Faculty Online Readiness Program
The Faculty Online Readiness Program (FORP) is a foundational professional development program that combines online teaching theory and practice into a condensed, short-course experience for faculty interested in developing online courses.
Each Fall and Spring semester, three FORP sessions are offered focusing on different aspects of online teaching and learning. Faculty are invited to participate in any of the sessions or all three, as desired. No prior knowledge or online teaching experience is required.
FORP Components
There are six components to each FORP session:
1. Canvas Course
Participants will be enrolled in a self-paced course on Canvas to discover concepts and resources for online course design.
2. Workshops
Live (virtual) workshops complement course concepts and allow participants to share insights with peers.
3. Course Development Support
ATS Instructional Designers can build courses and media or provide other course development support as desired.
4. Digital Badges
Participants earn badges for completing each FORP session. A culminating badge is awarded for completing all 3 FORP sessions.
5. Peer Reviews and Consultation
CSULB Faculty Peer Reviewers and ATS Instructional Designers are paired with participants to provide feedback.
6. RTP Documentation
Documentation of program completion is available upon request for participants to include in RTP portfolios.
FORP Sessions
Fall 2024 FORP dates coming soon!
Estimated Hours to Complete: 3-5 hours
This training course will cover the fundamentals of teaching and learning online, provide an overview of various online modalities, and offer strategies for engaging students. The course learning objectives include:
- Apply key structural elements and best practices for online teaching and learning.
- Distinguish between modalities of online learning.
- Inspect nuances of online teaching.
WORKSHOPS
FORP workshops coming soon!
Estimated Hours to Complete: 6-8 hours
In this training course, faculty will be introduced to designing effective learning objectives for online courses, integrating technology tools, and applying best practices to create accessible course content for online delivery. The course learning objectives include:
- Define the course modality migration process.
- Examine designing effective online learning objectives.
- Identify appropriate technology tools for teaching and learning.
- Recognize different components of accessibility.
WORKSHOPS
FORP workshops coming soon!
Estimated Hours to Complete: 6-8 hours
In this training course, faculty will explore assessment design strategies and methods for providing constructive feedback to students. Topics will also include diversity, equity, and inclusion and approaches to creating community among students in an online environment.
Course learning objectives include:
- Recognize effective online course assessment design.
- Identify the benefits of administering constructive feedback.
- Review opportunities to foster diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Apply workload streamlining strategies.
WORKSHOPS
FORP workshops coming soon!
Program Requirements
A badge will be awarded to participants who complete the following requirements for each training course:
- Complete the Canvas course for the session in which you are enrolled.
Complete the course content and actively participate in the online discussion boards. - Attend the dedicated workshops offered during the duration of the session.
In collaboration with distinguished CSULB faculty, ATS will present workshops on specific topics aligned with each training course. Participants are asked to attend the dedicated synchronous live workshops offered during the training course or request access to our on-demand video library. - Work with an assigned ATS Instructional Designer.
Faculty participants will work closely with an Instructional Designer for the duration of the program. The Instructional Designer will support faculty in the application of concepts discussed in each training course. - Apply the quality course design and delivery checklist.
Each training course will include a checklist with elements of online course design and delivery. The checklist was developed by our instructional design team and our faculty quality assurance community of practice. The checklist is meant to guide faculty through the design, development, and delivery of their online course and confirms that quality assurance exists within the course. Requirements to complete each training course will consist of implementing each checklist item to any chosen course and having the course reviewed by a peer review faculty member and instructional designer. - Complete the anonymous course evaluation survey.
A link to the survey will be provided at the end of the program.
A culminating badge will be awarded to participants who complete all 3 training courses in the program.
How is the FORP Course training different than the other professional development courses such as the Instructional Technology Foundations (ITF) and Online Learning Studio (OLS) programs?
The majority of FORP content is brand new; topics such as Diversity Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) have been included. This program considers more nuanced issues of teaching online and presents tips and best practices that can be implemented in the classroom. ITF and OLS only briefly covered the basics of these topics.
Does this program only focus on course design?
In each FORP training course, participants will have the opportunity to learn about course delivery and course design.
Am I required to complete this program in order to teach online courses at the University?
No. Participation in or completion of this program is not required to teach online. However, the training may be used as careful consideration for faculty appointments.
Documented training and preparation to teach online may be considered as one aspect of a faculty member's qualifications for teaching in hybrid, hyflex, or synchronous and asynchronous online modalities. Completing appropriate modules will be a benefit for anyone who intends to teach online in future semesters.
