This is a response to Bennett et al.'s (2016) "The Process of Designing for Learning: Understanding University Teachers' Design Work." We examine this study of faculty approaches to course design in order to connect the authors' findings to implications for course design practices in the current context of shifting courses online. The design processes of experienced faculty are the primary subjects of the study, which may have implications for how institutions approach supporting faculty efforts to design courses under time constraints. However, research shows that less experienced faculty may be unprepared to effectively redesigning courses under time constraints. The primary approaches to course design are the individual approach, where a faculty designer follows his or her own design process and the centralized or team approach, where a subject matter expert joins an instructional designer and/or additional educational design or technology specialists to develop courses. Institutions need to consider how much of their faculty have 10 years or more of experience in order to determine which approach would work best.

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The online pivot necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 has placed online instruction in the spotlight. While schools and universities around the world quickly moved classes online and kept students learning, it became apparent that most institutions and instructors lacked a solid foundation in creating online curriculum. Recognizing that online instruction is here for the long-term, building skills in creating and managing the online curriculum is essential. This chapter covers the history and foundations of curriculum, explores key issues and opportunities for educators just getting started with online learning, and recommends foundational practices for developing effective online curriculum. The approach takes a practical perspective, stepping through the curriculum development phases and concluding with a look at some of the challenges curriculum developers and instructors face.