oncourseworkshop.com

What It Is

On Course Workshop is a professional development workshop and conference program for higher education educators, with themes focused on student success, retention, classroom engagement, and learner empowerment. The site states that the program has been running since 1996, with more than 50,000 college and university educators participating in its activities, and over 1 million students using On Course textbooks. It is not a general online course platform for students, but rather a teaching improvement training system for college departments, faculty development centers, and student success teams.

Core Content and Format

Its core framework is built around the On Course Learning Principles, which include eight principles: personal responsibility, self-motivation, self-management, interdependence, self-awareness, lifelong learning, emotional intelligence, and self-belief. The courses emphasize learner-centered instruction, active knowledge construction, and highly engaging teaching, with the goal of helping instructors design classroom experiences that better foster student responsibility and sustained learning. Delivery formats include campus workshops, national workshops, and keynote presentations. The site clearly states that campus workshops can be held online or in person, and that there are 12 types of campus workshops as well as keynote options. Supporting resources include textbooks, videos, best-practice articles, books on participatory teaching via Zoom, and institutional research.

Pricing and Certificates

The website does not disclose standard pricing, individual fees, or institutional purchasing packages. It only indicates that users can make contact to obtain information about campus workshops and provides content related to funding workshop participation. As such, it appears closer to a custom-quote model. The site also does not show clear information about certification, continuing education credits, or completion certificates. Institutions considering a purchase should confirm details such as delivery length, participant limits, material copyright, certificates, and follow-up support.

Pros and Cons

Its strengths lie in its clear positioning and long-term focus on student success in higher education. Its instructors largely come from roles in college English, counseling, faculty development, student affairs, instructional design, and related areas, giving them real institutional practice experience. Its philosophy goes beyond classroom techniques and also covers non-cognitive skills, emotional intelligence, and student autonomy, making it especially valuable for developmental education and first-year programs. The limitations are that information transparency is only moderate, with pricing and detailed course outlines missing. Cases and testimonials are mostly presented on the official website, with limited independent third-party verification. In addition, the content is clearly based on the U.S. higher education context, so localization would be needed before directly introducing it into Chinese universities.

Who It’s For and Access in China

It is better suited for university faculty development centers, student success centers, general education or first-year programs, academic advising teams, and developmental education teams, where it can be used for internal training or curriculum reform. It is less suitable for users looking for individual career certificates, Chinese-language courses, or low-cost self-paced courses. The site does not provide information about access from mainland China, so this remains unknown. The teaching language is primarily English, and domestic institutions would also need to evaluate web conferencing tools, time zone differences, and language support.