Okay, this thread will have information and FAQs about how to start and run a course.
There are three key aspects and questions you need to ask when designing your course.
1. What is it on? In detail, this means what you want people to know or be able to do by the end of it.
2. How will it be delivered? Will you use forum articles, YouTube lectures, or a mixture?
3. How will it be assessed? Essentially, what do you want people to produce or create, or will you assess people verbally, or simply give an assessment based on their interest and participation in activities?
Once you have these sorted, you are ready to start designing your course. To become a lecturer and submit your course, you need to send the Chartophylax (currently Jubal) the following information. The easiest way to send it is by personal messaging - click their name to go to their page, and then hit the "Send PM" button.
- Course title (make it snappy!)
- Brief course description (A paragraph or so)
- Key planned points to cover
- A rough idea of how you intend to run and assess the course
- A brief overview of you and what experience you have in the course area
- Your maximum/minimum number of students (this is very important to ensure you have enough for any group activities but avoid you being swamped)
- Any requirements of students (particular computer programs they need, or particular background knowledge)
- Your idea of the maximum number of course credits (see the main FAQ thread) you should be able to give for it.
The Chartophylax will then either suggest amendments or accept your course - their decision on the maximum number of credits is final, and they will also then decide which certification categories your course will be available for.
An example course overview (feel free to copy/paste) might go as follows:
World Building
This course will be about creating and developing settings and fantasy worlds. It is designed to help authors, game designers, dungeon masters, or simply anyone else who is interested in how fantasy and science fiction settings are built and designed.
Planned sections:
Physics, geology, and terrain
Fauna and flora – design and evolution
The human problem: sentient species
Languages and language construction
Culture and depth
History and realism
The course will be assessed via the creation of a fantasy or science fiction setting, to be delivered or displayed in a mode of the student's choice (a mix articles on the world in an in-world or external style and possibly though not necessarily some brief short stories would be the expectation but not a requirement at all). Information will be delivered via a reading list, some specially written articles, tutorial discussions with students, and possibly some YouTube videos on salient points.
I am a prolific creator of fantasy settings with a wide range of interests from physics to history, giving me an overview of most of the key areas. My creations include the steampunk setting of Guns, Swords, and Steam, the sci-fi setting of Cepheida, more than one fantasy setting, and input into other projects such as the World of Twilight skirmish game setting.
Max students: 14-15
Min students: 1
Requirements: None
Max credits: 5
Once your course has been accepted, you will be given a subforum area under the "courses" section where you can post articles and communicate with students. You will be given
local moderation rights to this area, meaning you can pin and unpin discussion topics there as well as lock and delete them. Your course will also be on the enrolment area; you can officially begin the course as soon as you have the required number of students. If you are going to be away for a while, remember to tell people so your students know they can't contact you. Similarly, contact the Chartophylax with any concerns, or as soon as a student has completed and been assessed on a course so it can be added to their record.
Do ask any further questions below.
FAQs~None yet~
