How to teach online: 8 courses for the digital classroom

Whether you’re an in-person teacher, online educator or a learning institution, these 8 online teaching courses will help you elevate your skills in the digital classroom.

The world of education has been evolving for centuries, but this evolution sped up in 2020 when the pandemic escalated the need for change. Online learning has existed for a long time – The Open University has pioneered distance learning for over 50 years – but in many minds, it existed mostly as an add-on to the physical classroom. 

Now more than ever, online learning is considered as legitimate as in-person learning, and in many cases, it can provide a more accessible, flexible and affordable learning experience for all.

This has opened up a wealth of opportunities for educators. Teachers are taking more of a blended learning approach, many individuals have created successful online teaching careers, and globally renowned educational institutions and organisations are making successful online courses. 

So, are you ready to get a bit meta? This article details the best online courses to teach you about online teaching. Effectively, these courses are created by online education experts and designed to help you become the best online teacher you can be.

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Explore our best courses for online teaching

From learning the best digital classroom tools to creating an inclusive online learning environment, these courses are a great starting point for online educators. For even more courses, check out our How to teach online topic page. Let’s get into it. 

1. Digital Learning Toolkit: Resources for Successful Online Teaching by Climate-KIC and the Eindhoven University of Technology

The Online Education team at EIT Climate-KIC and the Eindhoven University of Technology have created a Digital Learning Toolkit that every online teacher needs to have. So, if you’re used to face-to-face teaching but need a little help converting your skills, this is the perfect course for you.

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Design and deliver online courses and an engaging learning journey
• Produce blended learning designs, including flipped classrooms
• Experiment with different types of course ingredients, such as video, audio, images, text, assignments, assessments and evaluations
• Improve learner engagement and maintain online learning communities.

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: You can start learning on this course at any time
• Course length: This short course is 5 weeks long
• Requirements: This is an introductory-level course for teachers, trainers and other types of educators who need to create online and blended courses 
• Certification: You can Upgrade or subscribe to Unlimited to get a digital certificate of completion.

2. Online Teaching: Evaluating and Improving Courses MC by The Open University

Harness the power of technology-enhanced learning (TEL) with this postgraduate microcredential by The OU. Perfect for if you already deliver online courses, you’ll learn how to evaluate and improve your courses and teaching. 

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the reasons for evaluating teaching
• Draw on key theories to identify and assess a range of evaluation approaches and frameworks
• Design evaluation strategies that are suitable for your TEL, and which meet the needs of diverse stakeholders
• Show understanding of the ethical considerations involved in educational evaluation 

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: 13 Mar 2023
• Course length: This microcredential is 12 weeks long
• Requirements: To study on this course, you will ideally have a bachelor’s degree or an equivalent level qualification, experience working in education and a strong interest in teaching and learning
• Certification: Academic credits from this course can contribute to The Open University’s Masters in Online Teaching. You will also receive a digital certificate upon course completion. 

3. Introduction to HyFlex Learning and Teaching by the University of Southern Queensland, Australia

The term HyFlex learning is a combination of ‘hybrid’ and ‘flexible’ learning, and considers students who are learning in a face-to-face environment as well as those who are learning online both synchronously and asynchronously. So, if you want to improve your adaptability and cater to students both in and out of the classroom, this is the course for you.

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Discuss HyFlex learning contextually and describe how choice is provided for learners
• Review and select appropriate digital tools to support HyFlex learning needs
• Design a HyFlex learning experience that provides student choice and flexibility
• Develop a plan to implement a HyFlex learning experience.

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: You can start learning on this course at any time
• Course length: This short course is 4 weeks long
• Requirements: This course is designed for anyone involved in designing and teaching online learning at any level of education 
• Certification: You can Upgrade or subscribe to Unlimited to get a digital certificate of completion.

4. Online Teaching: Accessibility and Inclusive Learning MC by The Open University

Accessibility and inclusivity are absolutely essential parts of education, both online and offline. While the digital classroom certainly presents challenges, technology actually provides many opportunities to make online learning more flexible and accessible than ever before. 

So, if you want to be able to offer support to online students of different learning and support needs, this in-depth course by The OU will help you succeed.

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Design accessible learning materials and activities for online learning
• Evaluate the accessibility of websites, online platforms, and interactive tools
• Reflect on the common challenges and benefits that students with disabilities find with online learning
• Develop policies and processes for accessibility
• Understand how assistive technology can support learners in new and effective ways.

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: 13 Mar 2023
• Course length: This microcredential is 12 weeks long
• Requirements: To study on this course, you will ideally have a bachelor’s degree or an equivalent level qualification, experience working in education and a strong interest in teaching and learning
• Certification: Academic credits from this course can contribute to The Open University’s Masters in Online Teaching. You will also receive a digital certificate upon course completion. 

5. Google Classroom: Share, Collect, and Manage Student Work Online by Tablet Academy

If you’re looking for some digital learning tools to help you run successful online learning experiences for your students, look no further. From lesson planning and assignments to monitoring progress and student engagement, this course is the perfect introduction to online teaching and learning.

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Engage students with presentations, quizzes and videos
• Identify methods of sharing work with students online
• Describe the benefits and drawbacks of distributing and collecting work online
• Develop a workflow in Google Classroom to distribute, collect and feedback on work digitally.

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: You can start learning on this course at any time
• Course length: This short course is 6 weeks long
• Requirements: This course is designed for those who have experience in teaching or supporting education and are new to using Google for Education
• Certification: You can Upgrade or subscribe to Unlimited to get a digital certificate of completion.

6. Developing Online Teaching and Learning Environments ExpertTrack by Wintec

Whether you want to succeed at fully online or hybrid teaching, this ExpertTrack includes two courses that will help you to create the ultimate online learning environment for your students. You’ll also learn how to improve the interactivity and engagement of your current eLearning.

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Explain online teaching and learning perspectives and theories to inform decision-making and planning processes during your online learning development journey
• Examine how learning management systems can be used to help monitor, create, and deliver eLearning
• Design and deliver online learning that is engaging, exciting, and places your students and their learning outcomes at the centre of every activity.

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: You can start learning on this course at any time
• Course length: This ExpertTrack is 10 weeks long
• Requirements: This course is aimed at primary and secondary educators, including trainee teachers, newly qualified teachers, and experienced teachers
• Certification: You will earn a digital certificate from Wintec upon course completion.

7. Online Teaching: Embedding Social, Race, and Gender-Related Equity MC by The Open University

Educational equity is hugely important. It’s essential to recognise that people are not always afforded the same opportunities and resources to succeed in education, so we must counter inequity by offering support to those who need it. The ultimate aim is to reach an equal outcome for all.

So, if you’re an online educator and you want to learn how to design and deliver an inclusive online teaching experience that addresses inequities, including race and sexuality, this course will support you in your endeavour. 

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Demonstrate a critical understanding of the differences between educational equity, equality and inclusion
• Consider the importance of breaking the cycle of exclusion, discrimination, and disadvantage through the design and delivery of online teaching
• Identify multiple aspects of inequity in education, such as race, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status
• Audit online teaching activities and institutional policies in terms of bias and inequity.

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: 13 Mar 2023
• Course length: This microcredential is 12 weeks long
• Requirements: To study on this course, you will ideally have a bachelor’s degree or an equivalent level qualification, experience working in education and a strong interest in teaching and learning
• Certification: Academic credits from this course can contribute to The Open University’s Masters in Online Teaching. You will also receive a digital certificate upon course completion. 

8. The Online Educator: People and Pedagogy by The Open University

Want to enhance your online teaching strategy and make it more inclusive? This short course, developed by The Open University’s Institute of Educational Technology, investigates four myths about online learning.

These myths include the idea that innovation and accessibility are incompatible, and that educators’ online identities are irrelevant. If you want to take part in these thought-provoking discussions around online teaching, this course is for you.

By the end of the course, you’ll be able to:

• Identify the ethical considerations involved in researching online teaching
• Apply accessibility guidelines to online teaching contexts and identify key accessibility issues 
• Reflect on your existing digital identity and plan for its future development
• Explore ways of shaping a digital identity as an online educator
• Discuss the relationship between technology, content, people and pedagogy in online courses.

What do you need to know before you sign up to this online teaching course?

• Start date: You can start learning on this course at any time
• Course length: This short course is 4 weeks long
• Requirements: This course is suitable for anyone involved in online education or training, including teachers, trainers, course designers and researchers
• Certification: You can Upgrade or subscribe to Unlimited to get a digital certificate of completion.