Course Development Checklist:
Skeleton, Meat, & Bling

I work with many SMEs, faculty, consultants, and managers in the development of curriculum for programs, courses, workshops, etc. In 2015, after much study and experimentation, I created a course development checklist to improve the efficiency, focus, and process of curriculum development. I've discovered that the best way to develop curriculum is to:
  1. work as a team
  2. develop the course intentionally
  3. put student needs first
  4. be very, very organized and clear
So, after a number of tests and revisions, I settled on a 3 stage method of course design which I call Skeleton, Meat, and Bling:
  1. Skeleton:  I advise developing student personas before getting started with any curriculum development.  When you are ready to work on your course skeleton, begin by building a course framework. A good way to think about it is to imagine you are building a house; you always start with a plan and a frame. After you have a course framed sketched out, it's time to storyboard the course. This is much like scripting a video or writing a story. As you develop your storyboard, maintain a focus on outcomes, and incoroprate assessments and activities as features of the story. Do NOT LOOK at any content. This is important! Content clogs up the early design stage and can derail the whole process. Organize the storyboard into modules, units, or blocks. Keep in mind that you want to sustain a sense of flow in the course. As students progress through the course, the level of challenge should increase with their level of skills development.  
  2. Meat: Now that you have created your skeleton, you can add meat to the bones, the resources and content (what the students will actually be doing, how, when, where, and why). When you write your content, write it in a conversational tone as if you are speaking directly to the student. Assume nothing! Be descriptive and clear with instructions. When you choose your resources, make sure they align with the course outcomes, activities, and assignments. It's better to provide 2-3 strong resources in each section than a long list of articles. Choose resources in a variety formats (apply UDL principles). Better yet, work with your library to develop open education resources (OER) and/or engage the students as co-creators of content. 
  3. Bling: Once the course has its structure, schedule, and content organized, you can turn your attention to the personality of the course. What is your teaching style? How do you interact with students? How can you best make use of the learning space (physical or virtual)? How big/small is the class size? Create multimedia, announcements, intelligent agents, digital badges, games, posters or whatever else kind of engagement and motivational techniques you plan to use. Consider inviting guest speakers, plan field trips if possible, make use of campus facilities for living labs or outdoor classrooms. This stage is very important and can be time intensive. Make sure to not leave this part to the last minute. 
I've developed over 500 credit courses using this method and the process has resulted in more effective and engaging learning experiences for students. This is because:
  • The development team works collaboratively with a student-focused plan
  • Content builds on the course structure - it is the paint, not the painter
  • Timelines are followed and met
  • The course is developed in advance of delivery, error-free and complete; there are no loose ends
  • Learning outcomes are better met
  • The course has 'flow' and is equitable
  • Effort is made to address student motivation and engagement
  • The instructors and students know what to expect and what to do.

Sample section of the checklist