EIU Media Relations

University Newsletter

FDIC Announces New Development Certification: The Online Teaching Certificate

The FDIC is unveiling a major new program with two new training and development opportunities: The Online Teaching Certificate (OTC)The OTC was created to provide faculty at EIU professional development opportunities to engage with best practices in online course design and pedagogy. The OTC includes two distinct courses: the Quality Online Design Institute (QODi) and the Online Teaching Strategies Institute (OTSi).

The goal of QODi is to provide faculty with the recommended standards and training necessary to improve the quality of their online course design which will enhance the online teaching and learning experiences of both faculty and students, and to encourage effective engagement and collaboration in the online environment. QODi incorporates the Quality Matters Standards and help faculty prepare their course for the Quality Online Course Certification.

The goal of the OTSi is to enhance online teaching practices and online learning experiences through faculty education of pedagogical strategies for the online environment. Through OTSi, faculty will redesign portions of their online course(s) using concepts presented for effective teaching strategies. OTSi is focused on the best practices for online pedagogy and the science of learning and includes valuable resources from well-established practices.

Once both courses are completed, the faculty participant will receive their Online Teaching Certification from the FDIC.

These courses – and the certificate as a whole – fill a large gap that has existed in FDIC programming for quite some time. Now, faculty who have completed the OCDi and taught online can further develop their course design and their teaching strategies, and their overall excellence in online instruction. Until today, nothing has existed between the OCDi for those new to online course development and the Quality Online Course certification for exemplary courses. Both QODi and OTSi fill this gap with best practices in quality course design and pedagogy.

For more information about the Online Teaching Certificate, please contact Dr. Michael Gillespie, Director of the FDIC.