Key points:
With an abundance of digital curriculum options in the marketplace, it can feel overwhelming for school administrators to find digital courses that meet the needs of their students. This is why I always recommend first identifying the challenges you aim to solve with digital courses and setting specific objectives.
Understanding your goals helps in prioritizing features that are essential for achieving desired outcomes, such as improving student engagement or accommodating diverse learning needs.
Once you have your purpose identified, I recommend building out three lists that include the items your digital courses must have, features they should have, and lastly, aspects that would be nice to have but aren’t necessary.
To help, I’ve put together examples of must-haves, should-haves, and nice-to-haves, with the goal of increasing student performance outcomes.
Top must-have: Standards alignment
Digital courses must align with state standards to ensure they meet learning goals and maintain accountability. Comprehensive digital curriculum is designed with the end goal in mind, based on “Understanding by Design,” an award-winning book and theory by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe that focuses on the benefits of backward planning. This framework ensures lessons are outcome-driven and effective in helping students understand and comprehend what they’re learning.
Should-have: Variety of elective courses
While not as crucial as core requirements, offering a diverse selection of electives can significantly enhance the educational experience. These electives provide students with opportunities to explore interests and develop a well-rounded skill set, fostering engagement and motivation.
A high-quality digital course catalog should also meet the needs of a diverse audience. Students learn differently and are unique, with varying interests and academic needs, and a comprehensive digital curriculum should reflect that.
Nice-to-have: Gamification
While digital course gestures such as gamification and bright colors can catch your eye and make you want to press the purchase button, remember your goal. If your goal is to increase student learning outcomes, then these features, while nice-to-have, may not move the needle in the way you need most.
With these examples of must-haves, should-haves, and nice-to-haves in your back pocket, it is now time to discuss other key considerations when you’re looking at purchasing digital courses.
Additional considerations
1. Accessibility: For digital courses to be successful, web accessibility and build-in features must be a priority to ensure all students have equal access to information and functionality. Some of these features include:
- Closed captioning in videos: Provides text for spoken content, benefiting students who are deaf or hard of hearing.
- Audio descriptions: Helps students with visual impairments by providing a verbal description of visual elements.
- Image alt text: Offers textual descriptions of images for students using screen readers.
- Keyboard-only navigation: Ensures that all functionalities can be accessed without a mouse, aiding students with mobility impairments.
- Proper color contrast: Ensures readability for students with visual impairments or color blindness.
- Descriptive links: Provides clear and concise link text, enhancing navigation for all users.
- Resizable text: Allows students to adjust text size for better readability
2. Audience-centric design: One of the most critical components of a rigorous digital curriculum is that it’s developed with an understanding of how students and teachers will interact with it. The digital curriculum provider should consider certain factors, including:
- Learning environment: Assess where students will be learning–at home, in school, or a hybrid setting.
- Support at home: Determine if students have the necessary support at home to assist with their learning.
- Socioeconomic backgrounds: Be mindful of the diverse socioeconomic contexts of your students’ families and ensure the courses are inclusive.
- Reading levels: Tailor courses to accommodate varying reading levels to ensure all students can understand and benefit from the content.
- Support for instructional teams: Ensure the curriculum includes resources to help teachers effectively guide students and maximize learning outcomes.
3. Continuous improvement: Opt for digital curricula that allow for ongoing updates and refinements based on feedback from students, families, and teachers. Continuous improvement ensures the content stays relevant, effective, and responsive to the evolving needs of students.
These are just a few digital course features that must be at the top of the list if you are looking to drive high student learning outcomes. Other items to consider include your instructional model, quizzes and tests, and supplemental materials for teachers.
The key takeaway is that school leaders should first focus on their goals and then prioritize lists based on what is needed and what would be nice to have. This strategy ensures digital courses meet the needs of students, families, and staff.
