You’ve heard it before: “This could be a course!” But… could it really? On Edovo, “course” means something specific—and powerful. Before you start building, let’s get clear on what a course is (and what it’s definitely not).

So… what exactly is a course?

Courses are structured, multi-lesson educational experiences built around clearly defined learning objectives. Each course guides learners through a progressive, scaffolded sequence of lessons designed to build knowledge and skills over time. The curriculum is grounded in adult learning theory and instructional design best practices.

• A learning experience with clear goals, lesson-by-lesson structure, and instructional scaffolding

• Includes course objectives, lesson objectives, a course overview, and content that aligns with those learning goals

• Includes graded quizzes, open response prompts, and a scaffolded format that guides the Learner intentionally

• Uploaded through the Edovo Editor, where lessons, questions, media, and structure come together

Courses include interactive components such as 

• Learning objectives that state what learners will gain
  
  

• Multiple lessons, each with content + questions and scaffolded to achieve the course objectives
  
  

• Assessments like multiple choice, open response, and true/false
  
  

• Opportunities for reflection, not just recall
  
  

• Tracked progress, so learners see how far they’ve come
  
  

• A certificate of completion when they finish

Instructional Strategies at Work 

Courses are where all the instructional design strategies found in this section start working together on purpose. That includes:

• Adult Learning Theory – Relevance, autonomy, reflection

• Bloom’s Taxonomy – Objectives built on action, not abstraction

• Anchoring – Start with something relatable so Learners stay with you

• Microlearning – Break it up into clear, bite-sized chunks

• Chunking – Group related ideas so the brain isn’t swimming

• Looping – Revisit key concepts to boost retention

• Multimodal Delivery – Visuals, text, and audio working together

• Trauma-Informed Design – Calm, empowering tone and pacing

• Gagné’s 9 Events – A research-backed sequence for effective instruction

Why do all of these strategies matter here? Because courses aren’t passive learning experiences—they’re active learning containers for transformation. Unlike a podcast or eBook which are more passive learning experiences, a course is built to move a learner from point A to point Z, even without a teacher in the room. That requires care, sequencing, clarity, and strategy.

Examples (aka, the Full Plate You’re Serving Up) 

• HTML Essential Training by LinkedIn Learning

• Trauma Talks by Compassion Prison Project

• Preparing for Success After Prison by Prison Professors

• The Roadtrip Nation Experience—a career discovery journey

• Gmail for Beginners by Grow with Google

• Rising Strong: A Recovery Course co-created with subject matter experts

What a course is not

Let’s set the record straight. A course is not:

• A single video or file—those are stand-alone resources

• A casual reflection or short exercise—that’s an interactive resource

• A survey or feedback form—we’ll get to those next

• A sneaky way to dump a ton of files into one “item” to get more content published —  —courses should be structured, purposeful, and built to teach.

If your content isn’t prompting learners to think, respond, or apply what they’ve learned, it’s not a course—it might be better suited as a stand-alone resource or interactive resource.

Still unsure?

Ask yourself:

• Does this content build toward a specific learning goal?
  
  

• Are learners being asked to do something—not just watch or read?
  
  

• Is there structure across multiple lessons?
  
  

If you said “yes” to all three, congrats—you’ve got the makings of a strong course. If not, don’t worry—we’ve got other formats to help bring your message to life.

Your next read:

1. What’s the difference between certificates and transcripts?
   
2. One-way feedback strategies: How to gather and use learner feedback
3. A practical guide to the Edovo Editor: How to build, preview, edit and publish active content
   
4. Getting help with your active learning content creation: Edovo's professional services
   
5. A practical guide to the Edovo Editor: How to build, preview, edit and publish active content
   
6. The Edovo Edge: Research-backed methods for real results