This professional certificate prepares participants with knowledge related to online course design, online instruction, and other issues related to online teaching and learning. These competencies make a master online teacher.

In order to earn the Master Online Teaching professional certificate, a student must successfully complete:

  • Three core courses
  • One of the core choice courses
  • One elective course
  • The Master Online Teacher Practicum

Take all courses before the Practicum, although the elective course may be taken concurrently. All courses in the Master Online Teacher professional certificate are 8-week courses.

In order to earn the professional certificate, participants must have completed the required course work and demonstrated knowledge in the following areas related to online teaching and learning:

  • Roles of faculty in online courses
  • Roles of students in online courses
  • Communications in online courses
  • Collaborative nature of online courses
  • Available technologies for delivering online courses
  • Methods of assessment for online courses
  • Learning outcomes in online courses
  • Learning activities in online courses
  • Evaluation of online courses

The projects required to complete each course provide an electronic portfolio that demonstrates knowledge in the areas identified as most important to quality online teaching.

Required Courses

Each participant must complete the following courses to be eligible for the Master Online Teacher professional certificate.

Must successfully complete all of the following:

  • Overview of Online Instruction
  • Instructional Design for Online Course Development
  • Student Assessment in Online Courses
  • Practicum

Must successfully complete one of the following Core Choice courses:

  • Universal Design Principles for Online Learning
  • Technology Tools for Online Learning
  • Encouraging Communication in Online Courses

Must successfully complete one of the following electives (must be different than Core Choice):

  • Hybrid, Blended, and HyFlex Course Design (Blended Learning Design & Instruction)
  • Technology Tools for Online Learning
  • Universal Design Principles for Online Learning
  • Sims, Labs, and Multimedia for Online Learning
  • Encouraging Communication in Online Course
  • Cultural Responsiveness for the Online Classroom