Quality Framework for Open Online Courses (2026 strategy)

Tools Used: Google Slides, Research Synthesis (APA)

My Role: Instructional Design Strategist, Researcher, Framework Architect

Type: Strategy Deliverable. A quality framework defining and measuring course quality across a MOOC portfolio, grounded in learning science research.

Problem: Open online course portfolios often grow without a shared, defensible definition of what "quality" actually means, making it hard to hold new courses to a consistent standard or explain to stakeholders why one course works better than another.

Solution: I built a quality framework grounded in three research-backed principles: active learning, universal design, and constructivism, then translated each into measurable KPIs (completion accuracy, format accessibility compliance, and depth of reflective analysis) rather than vague quality language. To show the framework in practice, I applied it to a sample course, defining terminal objectives, KPI targets, and a week-by-week structure that models how each principle shows up in real course design, then worked through where standardization should be non-negotiable (accessibility, assessment) versus where flexibility should be preserved for individual client needs.

Outcome: A reusable, citation-backed framework that gives a portfolio team a consistent, defensible standard for course quality, not just a checklist, but a rationale tied to how people actually learn.