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Professional Certificate in Online Education (PCOE)
Summary
Expand your online teaching knowledge and skills with this 16-week program. Learn proven strategies for designing effective and engaging online courses. This certificate program culminates in a professional ePortfolio project that demonstrates your online course development and delivery skills. Appropriate for faculty and instructors with some online teaching experience.
Details
The Professional Certificate in Online Education (PCOE), offered three times per year (February, June, and September), will help you enhance your knowledge, skill, and credibility in teaching online.
Key topics
- Contextual factors of online education
- Essential teaching and learning principles for online environments
- Effects of technology on education at a distance
- Writing learning objectives, creating online activities, and designing online assessments
The certificate culminates in an ePortfolio in which you will demonstrate your skills in planning online learning and making sound instructional design decisions.
Why earn the PCOE?
Practical: This totally online, flexible certificate program prepares you with foundational knowledge, understandings, and skills that are essential for any instructor or designer working in online environments. You can begin applying new knowledge and skills immediately.
High quality: The certificate models a principles-to-practice approach. Course content reflects reliable, research-based knowledge in the field of online education, which is then translated into practical strategies for instructors and designers.
Personalized: In course-based assignments, you will apply new knowledge and skills to your own teaching or design needs, reflecting your unique students, subject area, and context. You will create several tangible products that can be immediately applied within your professional context.
Marketable: Your certificate ePortfolio serves as a demonstration of your knowledge and skills in online education, which can be shared with current or potential employers or supervisors.
Expert feedback: DEPD instructional staff, experts in online education, provide feedback on your ePortfolio and are available for consultation during your certificate program coursework.
Professional community: Collaborative courses provide a way of making connections with other professionals in the field.
Frequently Asked Questions
How firm is the program deadline?
To earn the PCOE, all required courses and assignments, including the PCOE ePortfolio, must be completed and submitted on or before 11:59 pm CST on the program deadline. A petition to extend the deadline requires consultation with our staff.
How many hours per week can I expect to spend on the PCOE?
You should plan to spend between five to seven hours a week for the course content and assignments. This will vary from person to person based on the amount of time needed to read and complete assignments.
What technologies are used? How tech-savvy do I need to be to enroll in this certificate program?
You do not need to have sophisticated computer skills to enroll in the PCOE. You will be performing what are now considered to be basic tasks, such as email, uploading and downloading documents, using the Internet, and installing software. Rather than any particular technological skill set, you should bring to the program a willingness to experiment with new technologies and learn new skills, since you will undoubtedly need to teach yourself a few things along the way. You will learn by doing, which is a necessary and exciting part of the life of an online educator—continually learning new things, technological and pedagogical alike—so that you can continue to provide high quality educational experiences for students. This PCOE is a safe place in which you can choose to learn a new technology in the service of improving your teaching.
PCOE courses are offered in the Canvas learning management system. Some of the tutorials are Flash-based, and our web-conferencing platform, Blackboard Collaborate, requires Java. Some media files require RealPlayer or Windows MediaPlayer.
You will be guided through setting up your computer during PCOE Certificate Orientation, which also includes explanations and guidance for getting started with your ePortfolio.
Can I do the PCOE on my tablet or phone?
You can do much of this program on your tablet or phone, but you can’t do all of it. Some of the Flash-based tutorials do not work well on tablets, especially iPads. Also, while you can perform most of the tasks from Canvas on a tablet or phone, you may find that the computer-based interface is more visually appealing and easier to navigate. We do not recommend relying solely on your tablet or phone in this program.
How do you assess my performance in the certificate?
A member of DEPD’s instructional staff will review and provide feedback on your ePortfolio in accordance with a rubric. In order to complete the PCOE successfully, you must complete all of the required element and place them in your ePortfolio. If your first submission does not include all of the required elements, you will have another chance to revise, improve, and resubmit your ePortfolio to address the gaps identified by your ePortfolio reviewer.
What is an ePortfolio, exactly?
An ePortfolio is a collection of learning artifacts that, collectively, demonstrate your knowledge and skills. ePortfolios are used increasingly in online and professional learning contexts because they are a flexible, personalized, practical, and authentic form of assessment. ePortfolios allow you to demonstrate skills in context, to both show and tell what you have learned, and to share your knowledge with potential employers, colleagues, supervisors, and even students!
You will receive guidance on constructing your PCOE ePortfolio through course-based assignments. Depending on how you choose to complete some of those assignments, your ePortfolio may include text documents, images, multimedia, or other artifacts that illustrate how you are applying your knowledge of online education to your own students and subject area. Your PCOE ePortfolio will also include reflections in which you articulate the rationale for your choices.
Outline
Description of Courses
The PCOE consists of eight courses. Learners must complete all eight in order to be awarded a certificate and digital badge.
PCOE Orientation
Orients participants to the certificate program, its requirements, technologies that will be used, program policies, and the role of DEPD instructional staff.
PCOE 110 The Changing Landscape of Online Education
Provides a brief overview of the past, present, and future of online education, including current trends that are impacting the evolution of the field.
PCOE 120 Writing Objectives for Online Learning
Addresses the role of learning objectives in enhancing the effectiveness of instruction in online learning. It introduces criteria for high-quality learning objectives and methods for creating objectives that promote higher-order thinking skills. Attention is given to how the online context affects the construction of learning objectives and to the importance of alignment of objectives in improving course design.
PCOE 125 Basics of Online Discussions
Introduces a variety of practical strategies for designing and managing online discussions to improve participation, address potential challenges, and promote a sense of community. It also provides a basic skill set as core knowledge that can be applied to designing discussion assignments.
PCOE 130 Basics of Online Learning and Teaching
Provides essential information about how people learn, the effects of distance on the online learner, and the implications of these effects for teaching and designing online courses. Learning theories and frameworks for the online environment are discussed. The competencies needed by online teachers and students, the role of interaction and active learning at a distance, and strategies for effective design and instruction online will be addressed.
PCOE 140 Basics of Instructional Design for Online Learning
Presents the key components and methods of the process of designing instruction, and it demonstrates how to apply a systematic, problem-solving approach to planning and designing learning experiences. Emphasis is placed on a model that provides guidance through five phases of the instructional design process: analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. It also discusses the importance of quality control.
PCOE 150 Basics of Online Assessment
Introduces major concepts, methods, issues, and strategies involved in assessing student learning in online environments. Special emphasis is given to designing an assessment plan that fits the learning objectives. Planning considerations and strategies for selecting appropriate assessment methods are discussed, leaving the learner with a variety of practical ideas to develop and implement effective assessment approaches in the online environment.
PCOE ePortfolio
Learners synthesize their knowledge, understandings, and skills in teaching or designing for online learning by creating a portfolio of learning artifacts. These artifacts build on and augment coursework completed in each of the certificate courses.
Expand your online teaching knowledge and skills with this 16-week program. Learn proven strategies for designing effective and engaging online courses. This certificate program culminates in a professional ePortfolio project that demonstrates your online course development and delivery skills. Appropriate for faculty and instructors with some online teaching experience.
Details
Details
The Professional Certificate in Online Education (PCOE), offered three times per year (February, June, and September), will help you enhance your knowledge, skill, and credibility in teaching online.
Key topics
- Contextual factors of online education
- Essential teaching and learning principles for online environments
- Effects of technology on education at a distance
- Writing learning objectives, creating online activities, and designing online assessments
The certificate culminates in an ePortfolio in which you will demonstrate your skills in planning online learning and making sound instructional design decisions.
Why earn the PCOE?
Practical: This totally online, flexible certificate program prepares you with foundational knowledge, understandings, and skills that are essential for any instructor or designer working in online environments. You can begin applying new knowledge and skills immediately.
High quality: The certificate models a principles-to-practice approach. Course content reflects reliable, research-based knowledge in the field of online education, which is then translated into practical strategies for instructors and designers.
Personalized: In course-based assignments, you will apply new knowledge and skills to your own teaching or design needs, reflecting your unique students, subject area, and context. You will create several tangible products that can be immediately applied within your professional context.
Marketable: Your certificate ePortfolio serves as a demonstration of your knowledge and skills in online education, which can be shared with current or potential employers or supervisors.
Expert feedback: DEPD instructional staff, experts in online education, provide feedback on your ePortfolio and are available for consultation during your certificate program coursework.
Professional community: Collaborative courses provide a way of making connections with other professionals in the field.
Frequently Asked Questions
How firm is the program deadline?
To earn the PCOE, all required courses and assignments, including the PCOE ePortfolio, must be completed and submitted on or before 11:59 pm CST on the program deadline. A petition to extend the deadline requires consultation with our staff.
How many hours per week can I expect to spend on the PCOE?
You should plan to spend between five to seven hours a week for the course content and assignments. This will vary from person to person based on the amount of time needed to read and complete assignments.
What technologies are used? How tech-savvy do I need to be to enroll in this certificate program?
You do not need to have sophisticated computer skills to enroll in the PCOE. You will be performing what are now considered to be basic tasks, such as email, uploading and downloading documents, using the Internet, and installing software. Rather than any particular technological skill set, you should bring to the program a willingness to experiment with new technologies and learn new skills, since you will undoubtedly need to teach yourself a few things along the way. You will learn by doing, which is a necessary and exciting part of the life of an online educator—continually learning new things, technological and pedagogical alike—so that you can continue to provide high quality educational experiences for students. This PCOE is a safe place in which you can choose to learn a new technology in the service of improving your teaching.
PCOE courses are offered in the Canvas learning management system. Some of the tutorials are Flash-based, and our web-conferencing platform, Blackboard Collaborate, requires Java. Some media files require RealPlayer or Windows MediaPlayer.
You will be guided through setting up your computer during PCOE Certificate Orientation, which also includes explanations and guidance for getting started with your ePortfolio.
Can I do the PCOE on my tablet or phone?
You can do much of this program on your tablet or phone, but you can’t do all of it. Some of the Flash-based tutorials do not work well on tablets, especially iPads. Also, while you can perform most of the tasks from Canvas on a tablet or phone, you may find that the computer-based interface is more visually appealing and easier to navigate. We do not recommend relying solely on your tablet or phone in this program.
How do you assess my performance in the certificate?
A member of DEPD’s instructional staff will review and provide feedback on your ePortfolio in accordance with a rubric. In order to complete the PCOE successfully, you must complete all of the required element and place them in your ePortfolio. If your first submission does not include all of the required elements, you will have another chance to revise, improve, and resubmit your ePortfolio to address the gaps identified by your ePortfolio reviewer.
What is an ePortfolio, exactly?
An ePortfolio is a collection of learning artifacts that, collectively, demonstrate your knowledge and skills. ePortfolios are used increasingly in online and professional learning contexts because they are a flexible, personalized, practical, and authentic form of assessment. ePortfolios allow you to demonstrate skills in context, to both show and tell what you have learned, and to share your knowledge with potential employers, colleagues, supervisors, and even students!
You will receive guidance on constructing your PCOE ePortfolio through course-based assignments. Depending on how you choose to complete some of those assignments, your ePortfolio may include text documents, images, multimedia, or other artifacts that illustrate how you are applying your knowledge of online education to your own students and subject area. Your PCOE ePortfolio will also include reflections in which you articulate the rationale for your choices.
Outline
Description of Courses
The PCOE consists of eight courses. Learners must complete all eight in order to be awarded a certificate and digital badge.
PCOE Orientation
Orients participants to the certificate program, its requirements, technologies that will be used, program policies, and the role of DEPD instructional staff.
PCOE 110 The Changing Landscape of Online Education
Provides a brief overview of the past, present, and future of online education, including current trends that are impacting the evolution of the field.
PCOE 120 Writing Objectives for Online Learning
Addresses the role of learning objectives in enhancing the effectiveness of instruction in online learning. It introduces criteria for high-quality learning objectives and methods for creating objectives that promote higher-order thinking skills. Attention is given to how the online context affects the construction of learning objectives and to the importance of alignment of objectives in improving course design.
PCOE 125 Basics of Online Discussions
Introduces a variety of practical strategies for designing and managing online discussions to improve participation, address potential challenges, and promote a sense of community. It also provides a basic skill set as core knowledge that can be applied to designing discussion assignments.
PCOE 130 Basics of Online Learning and Teaching
Provides essential information about how people learn, the effects of distance on the online learner, and the implications of these effects for teaching and designing online courses. Learning theories and frameworks for the online environment are discussed. The competencies needed by online teachers and students, the role of interaction and active learning at a distance, and strategies for effective design and instruction online will be addressed.
PCOE 140 Basics of Instructional Design for Online Learning
Presents the key components and methods of the process of designing instruction, and it demonstrates how to apply a systematic, problem-solving approach to planning and designing learning experiences. Emphasis is placed on a model that provides guidance through five phases of the instructional design process: analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. It also discusses the importance of quality control.
PCOE 150 Basics of Online Assessment
Introduces major concepts, methods, issues, and strategies involved in assessing student learning in online environments. Special emphasis is given to designing an assessment plan that fits the learning objectives. Planning considerations and strategies for selecting appropriate assessment methods are discussed, leaving the learner with a variety of practical ideas to develop and implement effective assessment approaches in the online environment.
PCOE ePortfolio
Learners synthesize their knowledge, understandings, and skills in teaching or designing for online learning by creating a portfolio of learning artifacts. These artifacts build on and augment coursework completed in each of the certificate courses.
Earn Credit Hours
By participating in this class you will earn:
Click here to view an explanation of credit hours
What Attendees Are Saying:
“Having at least fifteen years of classroom experience and holding a PhD in Education, I consider myself to be an experienced and qualified educator. Nevertheless, the learning gains that I made from this course were invaluable, whether these gains took the form of professional rejuvenation or much-needed orientation to the online teaching and learning environment. I was looking for a program that went beyond transient technological “bells and whistles” to a more enduring, principled approach that would allow me to evaluate and use whatever “bells and whistles” came my way, and I found it in the PCOE. I found the principles-to-practice approach to be to my liking, and I must add that much of the learning in this regard came not only from the course content and activities, but also from highly effective modeling by the course instructors.”
— Jonathan Green, Senior Lecturer, Mahidol University International College, Thailand
Earn Credit Hours
By participating in this class you will earn:
View the explanation of credit hours
Questions?
Contact:- Janet Staker Woerner
- janet.stakerwoerner@wisc.edu
- 608-890-3038
Continuing Studies FAQs
Cancellation Policy:
Our cancellation policy varies by type of program. View our policies page for more details about cancelling a program.
More Distance Teaching & Learning Offerings
Designing Digital Teaching and Learning for Theological Educators
Fundamentals of Online Teaching
Online Education Administration
What Attendees Are Saying:
“Having at least fifteen years of classroom experience and holding a PhD in Education, I consider myself to be an experienced and qualified educator. Nevertheless, the learning gains that I made from this course were invaluable, whether these gains took the form of professional rejuvenation or much-needed orientation to the online teaching and learning environment. I was looking for a program that went beyond transient technological “bells and whistles” to a more enduring, principled approach that would allow me to evaluate and use whatever “bells and whistles” came my way, and I found it in the PCOE. I found the principles-to-practice approach to be to my liking, and I must add that much of the learning in this regard came not only from the course content and activities, but also from highly effective modeling by the course instructors.”
— Jonathan Green, Senior Lecturer, Mahidol University International College, Thailand
Our cancellation policy varies by type of program. View our policies page for more details about cancelling a program.
Have Questions?
Contact:- Janet Staker Woerner
- janet.stakerwoerner@wisc.edu
- 608-890-3038
Stay In Touch
Keep up to date about Distance Teaching & Learning offerings at Continuing Studies. You'll receive upcoming announcements and information related to Distance Teaching & Learning.
Earn Credit Hours
By participating in this class you will earn:
Questions about this program?
Contact:- Janet Staker Woerner
- janet.stakerwoerner@wisc.edu
- 608-890-3038
Cancellation Policy:
Our cancellation policy varies by type of program. View our policies page for more details about cancelling a program.
More Distance Teaching & Learning Offerings
Designing Digital Teaching and Learning for Theological Educators
Fundamentals of Online Teaching
Online Education Administration
What Attendees Are Saying:
“Having at least fifteen years of classroom experience and holding a PhD in Education, I consider myself to be an experienced and qualified educator. Nevertheless, the learning gains that I made from this course were invaluable, whether these gains took the form of professional rejuvenation or much-needed orientation to the online teaching and learning environment. I was looking for a program that went beyond transient technological “bells and whistles” to a more enduring, principled approach that would allow me to evaluate and use whatever “bells and whistles” came my way, and I found it in the PCOE. I found the principles-to-practice approach to be to my liking, and I must add that much of the learning in this regard came not only from the course content and activities, but also from highly effective modeling by the course instructors.”
— Jonathan Green, Senior Lecturer, Mahidol University International College, Thailand
- Janet Staker Woerner
- janet.stakerwoerner@wisc.edu
- 608-890-3038
Cancellation Policy:
Our cancellation policy varies by type of program. View our policies page for more details about cancelling a program.
Have Questions?
We have collected answers to common questions in our
FAQs.
You can also contact Customer Service at or
608-262-1156.
Continuing Studies FAQs
Previous Class
8826-19-PDAS
Schedule
Feb 12-Jun 10
Location
Complete Online