Now that Spring Quarter is settled in and courses are all running and up to date (including the build-as-you-go courses) and I have a little bit of breathing room, it is time to switch focus to summer courses, and even autumn quarter courses and beyond. Essentially, what this means, is it is time for spring cleaning courses that were built over the past few years, and may not have been looked at much since then.

The focus for now is on master courses owned by the college. Many of these were designed in the early push to develop online courses, and many of them were designed by faculty members who are no longer at the university, or were designed on previous versions of the LMS and haven’t been updated to utilize newer features and services we now have available to us.

To ensure that I’m checking all the dusty corners of the courses during spring cleaning, the Director of Online Learning for the college I work with asked me to create a checklist of items to review for these redesign/update courses. The following areas are those that I see as crucial for an update cycle. Feel free to point out in the comments any areas I missed, or other helpful tricks or tips you have for updating older courses.

Look at the biggest area or change to make first: The Content

The best way I have found to get into any big cleaning project is to start with the biggest area first to create an opening or some space to work, which also allows me to better take stock of what smaller areas need to be addressed and how I can move things around to better utilize the space. I read an article about cleaning tips that suggested this method, and it has proven effective for me. When it comes to cleaning up a course, this area would be the course content items.

Making changes to Content is a big step because it will change how we look at or access all the other elements of the course. For a few of the courses I am looking into, the examples and sample cases are based on news stories happening 4-5 years ago or older, when the courses were being designed. Like old newspapers or magazines piled in the corner of a garage, these can easily be removed (and in the case of a course replaced with newer, more useful items). The instructors are often utilizing a new edition of the textbook and published journal articles, so the reading lists, chapter titles, and reading quizzes can be cleaned up and updated as needed there.

Our checklist for content is:

• Has the textbook changed? Do the chapter topics still make sense/follow the same order?
• Are there newer articles, journals, or videos to share that emphasize the topics and connect to the learners?
• Are the PowerPoint or lecture slides/videos out of date now that content is changing?
• Are there newer goals or outcomes that should replace the existing ones to keep the course up to date with university requirements or standards?

Though the list here is short, there are many instances of each of these items, so there are several areas to check through and reorganize while checking off this list—and these are the areas that will have the biggest impact on the course, too.

Once the junk files are thrown out, and the reusable items are set aside with a sense of organization to how they can be reused later, we have more space to work and can more easily see the other projects within the space. Then, I move on to the next large project.

Take stock of how you are using your space, and what you have in the space now: Technology Tools and Assessments

The next thing I usually look at when cleaning is to think about what furniture, appliances, or tools are in this space and whether or not I still need them (or if they are broken or otherwise no longer useful). I then know what to spend time fixing, cleaning, or rearranging, or what I can throw out to get back even more room. For a course, this equates to revisiting the assessments and technology tools currently in place.

When it comes to the assessments, we need to ask:

• Are the quizzes still measuring the correct concepts that the course goals are striving to meet?
• Do the quizzes function the way we (the instructor and course designer) would like them to—i.e. can students see their scores after, or the correct answers, etc.?
• Do we have the correct dropboxes available to collect student papers? Do we need to turn on a plagiarism/originality detector or service?

• Are the discussion boards up to date and utilizing the best balance of learner-to-learner/learner-to-material/learner-to-instructor interactions?

Once we get a sense of how we are using things, we can take a look at whether or not the current tools help us to best meet these uses, then repair or replace items that are more efficient or suited to the task.

Regarding the tools, the questions we need to ask:

• Are any of the tools no longer available and need to be removed?
• Have the embedded videos changed their format or stopped working? (Replace them!)
• Do any integrated tools need to be replaced or repaired (such as when our implementation of VoiceThread changed and all items needed to use a new embed code, plugin, or API-based tool)?
• Has the university provided newer tools that have similar purposes but better functionality?
• Has the publisher provided tools or plugins that the students can use inside the course?

Like repairing or replacing the ripped chairs, wobbly desk, or old TV/computer in a room, removing or repairing these old assessments and tools not only streamlines the course or saves space/time, but provides a more comfortable user experience for the learners, and even the instructors who may use a version of this course down the road (and the more comfortable a space/class is, the more people are going to use it!).

Now, we can move on to some of the smaller (maybe even more fun) aspects of the space.

Give it a new coat of paint: Changing the visual appearance of the course site

Once we get the junk files cleaned up or replaced, and we know the assessments and tools are ready to help learners engage with the content and with one another, we can shift our focus to items that, while important, are not always top priority: the course appearance and theme.

Our visual refresh checklist:

• Curb appeal: does the course have a useful and appealing welcome note that can get students off to a good start when they first enter the course? Could a welcome video be added to enhance presence and connection?
• The main entry: does the course lend itself to a visual syllabus (such as an infographic syllabus or CSS enhanced html page)?
• The hallway: does the course have/could it benefit from a custom navigation bar or widgets that help ease access, navigation, and engagement?
• The main living space: Do the content modules have consistent headings? Do the pages have CSS and design elements that aid in reading while being appealing to look at and work with? Is there a helpful video or image that can add appeal or clarity to a topic and break up large chunks of text?
• The kitchen: Could the assessments be enhanced with media like videos or images that introduce the assignment? Are there small samples available for students to get a sense of what they are being asked to create? Is the formatting clean and clear, allowing learners to quickly grasp the task without having to reread the document over and over?

In the courses I am working with, the CSS needs to be updated, and some of the headings or goal statements have inconsistent wording or font styles—these are simple changes but make the course space feel well-designed and inviting.

Step back and take a look at your work

Whenever I finish cleaning up and refreshing a room at home, I always feel a sense of accomplishment, and even an excitement that there is something new to this space, even if it has been around for years. I get more excited to sit down and spend time there and have even found that, at least in the case of cleaning up my home office, I even get more work done more quickly.

For instructors who are working off of a master course, and even for students who have taken online courses in the past (some of which may have been obviously out of date or have boring visuals more akin to a 90s website), seeing the course with new topics, tools, assignments/assessments, and appearance really has the same effect as when I clean up my office. When it feels like there is more to explore, that there’s more room for thought and work, or that time and care have been taken putting together something that works smoothly, the investment of time and effort will always pay returns.

So now my question for you is, what spots have I missed, or what tips and tricks do you have for cleaning up your courses (or your office, for that matter)?