Online Professional Development for Faculty
What is the Pathway Program? |
The Pathway to Master Online Instructor Program (also known as the Pathway Program) is a series of free professional development courses for UToledo faculty and teaching assistants developed and offered by UToledo Online. In this program, you will learn the fundamentals of online course development and delivery and current trends in the field of online learning.
The Pathway Program is comprised of five courses:
1. Online Teaching Certificate
2. Online Course Design Certificate
3. ADA Compliance and Online Courses
4. Applying the Quality Matters Rubric
5. Quality Matters Peer Reviewer Course
To learn more about the courses in the program, please see the course descriptions below. If you are interested in taking courses from the Pathway Program, please complete our Workshop Interest Form and we will contact you for the next available sessions.
Pathway Program Course Descriptions |
Online Teaching Certificate (OTC)
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This accelerated, 2-week fully online course prepares faculty and teaching assistants at The University of Toledo to effectively facilitate teaching and learning in an online environment. Participants will gain insights about online teaching and learning through discussion, sharing, peer mentoring, collaboration, and self-reflection. The course also enables participants to practice using various online communication and assessment tools as they complete learning activities from the student perspective.
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Describe the online learning environment and the different roles of an online instructor.
- Prepare the online course and students for the first day of class.
- Describe "Best Practices" in the facilitation of online discussion and learning communities.
- Describe strategies to display online presence.
- Create useful and effective feedback for students.
- Describe strategies for managing the online workload.
Online Course Design Certificate (OCDC)
This 4-week online course prepares faculty and teaching assistants at The University of Toledo to effectively design instructional materials, learning activities, and authentic assessment for online delivery.
Participants will gain insights about online pedagogy and Best Practices through a wide range of authentic tasks. A capstone project enables participants to demonstrate what they have learned in an applied setting, while building a foundation for additional course development in Blackboard.
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Write measurable learning objectives.
- Apply the concept of alignment in online module design.
- Gather and create meaningful instructional materials to support student learning.
- Select appropriate instructional strategies and technologies for learning activities and assessment.
- Apply best practices in online course design.
- Build an online module using Blackboard.
Prerequisites: Successful completion of the Online Teaching Certificate course.
ADA Compliance and Online Courses (ADACOC)
ADA Compliance and Online Courses is a three-week, fully online course that prepares faculty and teaching assistants at The University of Toledo to address accessibility when designing and developing their online courses.
The course covers topics that range from accessibility law to course design considerations for inclusivity, as well as the formatting of course content and other documents for accessibility. Participants will gain knowledge and skills about accessibility through a wide range of activities, including discussion, sharing, peer mentoring, self-reflection, and hands-on practice.
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Explain the importance of accessibility in online learning.
- Recall legislative standards that impact online course design and delivery.
- Apply accessibility principles and guidelines in the design and development of course materials.
- Use tools in Blackboard Learn to create accessible web content.
- Evaluate the accessibility of course content using online tools.
Applying the Quality Matters Rubric (APPQMR)
The Applying the Quality Matters Rubric (APPQMR) workshop is Quality Matters’ flagship workshop on the QM Higher Education Rubric and the process of using the rubric to review online courses.
Quality Matters is designed to improve the quality of online and blended courses by establishing a peer-reviewed quality assurance review process. In this workshop, you will become familiar with QM standards and participate in a practice peer review of an online course using the review tools. Additionally, you will gain practical ideas to improve your own courses using QM Rubric Standards.
Upon completion of this workshop, participants will be able to:
- Recognize the foundational concepts of Quality Matters.
- Identify the critical elements of the QM quality assurance program, including the QM Rubric, materials, processes, and administrative components.
- Apply the QM Rubric to review online courses.
- Make decisions on whether the demo course meets selected QM Rubric Standards.
- Apply the concept of alignment.
- Draft helpful recommendations for course improvement by citing annotations from the QM Rubric and evidence from the course.
This workshop is offered in two modalities:
- 2-week fully online asynchronous workshop
- 1-day synchronous workshop (now held via web conference, may return to in person in the future)
quality matters Peer Reviewer course (PRC)
The Peer Reviewer Course is a 3-week, fully online course designed to prepare experienced online faculty to serve as Quality Matters-Certified Peer Reviewers. The course includes a review of the foundational principles of Quality Matters and the QM Higher Education Rubric, as well as practice applying rubric standards and writing helpful recommendations. Additionally, participants will use their new skill set to complete a practice review of an online course.
Upon successful completion of this course, eligible participants may complete and submit a Role Application, plus a Memo of Understanding to Quality Matters to be approved to be a QM-Certified Peer Reviewer. After approval, QM-Certified Peer Reviewers may serve on official Quality Matters reviews for higher education courses at institutions across the country.
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Explain the underlying principles of QM and the critical elements of the QM Rubric, materials, processes, and roles and responsibilities.
- Demonstrate correct application of the QM Rubric Specific Review Standards during a practice review of an online course.
- Recognize the events that will transpire during the peer review process.
- Write helpful recommendations for course improvement.
- Reflect on how the recommendations from the sample course review impacted and influenced the instructor's revisions of the course
Prerequisites: Successful completion of the Applying the Quality Matters Rubric Workshop.
Peer Reviewer Course Grant
The Peer Reviewer Course is offered and taught by Quality Matters and has a $200 registration fee. UToledo Online offers a reimbursement grant so that experienced online instructors at UToledo can obtain Peer Reviewer certification. For more information, please contact UToledo Online at utlv@utoledo.edu.
Master Online Instructors |
Upon successful completion of all five courses in the Pathway Program, participants are recognized as Master Online Instructors. Congratulations to our Master Online Instructors, listed below:
Year Awarded | Instructor | College/Unit |
2015 | Barbara Mauter | University College |
2016 | Ruthie Kucharewski | College of Health and Human Services |
2016 | Daniel French | College of Arts and Letters |
2016 | Jessica Sloan Kruger | College of Health and Human Services |
2017 | Barbara Saltzman | College of Health and Human Services |
2017 | Barbara Kopp Miller | University College |
2017 | Michael Douglas | UToledo Online |
2018 | Jill Humprhies | College of Arts and Letters |
2018 | Sely-Ann Headley-Wilson | College of Health and Human Services |
2018 | Jennifer Perion | College of Health and Human Services |
2018 | Melissa Gleckler | UToledo Online |
2018 | Shujuan Wang | Judith Herb College of Education |
2018 | Chelsea Chandler | UToledo Online |
2019 | Michelle Arbogast | Judith Herb College of Education |
2019 | Colins Imoh | Judith Herb College of Education |
2019 | Kelly Lewandowski | College of Nursing |
2019 | Krizia Melendez | College of Health and Human Services |
2019 | Colleen Quinlan | College of Nursing |
2019 | Monica Williams | College of Health and Human Services |
2019 | BethAnn Hatkevich | College of Health and Human Services |
2019 | Daniel Hickey | College of Medicine and Life Sciences |
2019 | Jeanna Tran | College of Health and Human Services |
2020 | Sylvia Suh | UToledo Online |
2020 | Holly Monsos | College of Art and Letters |
2020 | Yolanda Mora-Calderon | College of Art and Letters |
2021 | Nancy Snow | College of Business and Innovation |
2021 | Dhurba Raj Sapkota | College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics |
2021 | Diana Franz | College of Business and Innovation |
2021 | Nicole McKenzie | College of Health and Human Services |
2021 | William Weaver | College of Health and Human Services |
2021 | Mathew Varughese | College of Health and Human Services |
2021 | Anthony Daniels | College of Arts & Letters |
2021 | Fuad Al-Daraweesh | American Language Institute |
2021 | Christa Black | College of Health and Human Services |
2022 | Claire Copa | College of Health and Human Services |
2022 | Michelle Walker | UToledo Online |
2022 | Robert Langenderfer | College of Engineering |
Participant Testimonials |
View the videos below featuring UToledo faculty who have participated in the Pathway Program. Hear more about what they learned and how these professional development courses have enhanced their teaching: