How to create a WOW online cohort learning experience (Part 5)
A 5-part framework to design an online cohort course
Hi friends 👋
Hope you are having a good week.
As I wrapped up 2023 and three iterations of our Writing On The Net course this year, I would like to share with you the final part of my series on “How to create a WOW online cohort learning experience”.
Although we’ve reached the end of this series, we’re on a journey that never ends. Building online cohort courses requires constant learning and iterations and I am sure there are more challenges awaiting me and my team in the next year.
Here is an overview of the series so far:
Part 4: 3 mistakes I made when designing online cohort courses
Part 5: A five part framework to design an online cohort course ← This post
Let’s get to it!
I.
An online cohort course is a time-bound experience where learners learn together in a big cohort under direct guidance and support from instructors and peers.
Keywords that describe an online cohort experience are:
Live, synchronous
Time-bound
High accountability
II.
For us, what makes up an online cohort course?
An online cohort course:
Inspires students to do/start doing X → Inspiration
Teaches students the necessary information to do X → Knowledge acquisition
Creates a space for students to do X → Knowledge application
Helps students keep learning and practicing until the end of the course → Accountability
Let's take a closer look at these core elements through the design of Writing On The Net.
Inspiration
Students get inspired by the 30-day challenge to overcome their fear and have the will to start something.
Students get inspired by the instructors' content. They will gain new mindset shifts and new beliefs about their capability.
Students get inspired by the instructors' delivery style, their energy, and the relationship instructors and students build together.
Knowledge acquisition
Students gain knowledge by interacting with the course content.
Knowledge application
Students put their knowledge into action by writing right away during the duration of the course.
Accountability
Students have more accountability through prizes, check-ins, and support from the staff team.
Overall, in order to create a good online cohort course experience, we need to incorporate the following elements:
Inspiration
Knowledge acquisition
Knowledge application
Accountability
III.
So where does the community element come in?
Community has always been the most complex element to explain and design for me. Students experience and interact with the community in different ways. Some like to interact passively with the community. Some are very active. Thinking of what community means, some think of a few close connections they make. Others think of the challenge the community did together. Others think of specific features of the course.
Observing how students interacted across the past three cohorts, I came up with the following role of community.
Community elevates the four core elements of a course. Community can turn a course experience from good to great, from great to WOW.
Community can inspire, extend students' knowledge, and keep students accountable at a compounded level.
Peers can inspire each other through their stories, backgrounds, and thinking. Peers can extend or influence each other's understanding of the world in ways beyond the instructors' knowledge. Peers can keep each other accountable by doing the same hard tasks/challenges at the same time together.
Since community is a booster of the other four elements, it can be hard for students to see its importance before experiencing the course. But when experienced, it is one of the most unforgettable elements of the course.
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As we reach the end of this series, it’s clear that the journey of creating and refining online cohort courses is an evolving one. The lessons from "Writing On The Net" have underscored the crucial blend of inspiration, knowledge acquisition, application, and accountability. However, the magic ingredient that transforms a good course into a phenomenal one is the power of community.
Through this series, we've explored how community acts not just as a support system but as a dynamic, interactive space that elevates every aspect of the learning experience. It’s where knowledge extends beyond the confines of structured content and where accountability becomes a shared, rather than individual, journey.
In conclusion, the art of creating a "WOW" online cohort course lies not just in the content or the structure, but in fostering a vibrant community that resonates with each participant.
Thank you for joining me on this journey through the "How to create a WOW online cohort learning experience" series.
Here’s to many more explorations and discoveries in 2024!
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By the way, I am hiring!!
🌟 If you are curious about problems in marketing and online education in Vietnam, I am hiring for a Marketing Manager role for my new venture. We are very excited to tackle problems in how Vietnamese students and knowledge workers learn.
You can check out the full job description here and drop me an email at phuong.mospace@gmail.com if you are interested:) Happy to answer any questions/wonders you have.