Designing Your Own Module Framework
Sarah: OK, now I’m ready to create a module framework, but I really didn’t know where to start, so I asked Sam
and Jessie again. I think a lot of you have the same questions, but don’t know where to start. This time I recorded
the whole conversation for you. I hope you enjoy it!
Sarah: Hi, Jessie and Sam. Thanks for meeting with me! How do I start with designing a module framework?
Sam: Well, remember your course outline is a plan for what you
will teach and the module framework is a plan for how you will
teach it. To start the module framework, you’ll need to look at
your course outline and think about how you would teach the
content. Look at the schedule - the module topics, objectives
and assessment tasks - and think about the types of learning
assets you would do with the students. Then, focus on a typical
module and think about what you want at the beginning of the
module. What would you do at the beginning of a class?
Sarah: Uhh, I would put my objectives on the board.
Sam: Right, so instead of writing them on the board like you
might in a traditional classroom, you might put them online in a
module overview page. What would you do next?
Sarah: I would probably do a warm-up with my class followed
by some vocabulary work to get them ready for a listening or a reading activity.
Sam: Perfect. You can do something similar online. For example, you could have them do a discussion post for
the warm-up. Then you could share a vocabulary list online to introduce students to the vocabulary followed by
some vocabulary practice and maybe some sort of quiz.
Jessie: Then what do you do after the vocabulary practice in class?
Sarah: I’m going to teach listening and speaking activities together, and teach reading and writing activities
together. So, let’s look first at listening and speaking.
Jessie: Great, in your online class, you could have a listening asset that could be a video or an audio recording
followed by different learning assets for students to practice grammar, vocabulary, and speaking. Those assets
could be discussions, quizzes, or other activities.
Sarah: That makes sense - not too different from my in-person class. And I can do the same thing with reading and
writing. So, I have a plan for the beginning and middle of my module. What do I do for the end of the module?
Jessie: Well what do you do at the end of a module in your in-person class?
Sarah: I usually have a final task, a final test, and then I do something to “wrap up” or conclude the module.
Jessie: Perfect, you can do the same thing online. So now you have a plan - a module framework - for what you
would do in a typical module. You will use this module framework so you know how you will teach the content for
each module.
Sarah: OK, I think I’ve got it. Thanks! Time to start designing my framework.
© 2021 by Arizona State University. Designing Your Own Module Framework for the Online
Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding
provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the
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