Elevating online learning through intentionality

What if the key to transforming intentional course design in online nursing education isn't more content, but more purposeful learning experiences?

On the latest Lippincott® Spark Podcast, host Dr. Kelly J. Dries talks with Dr. April D. Matthias, professor of nursing at UNC Wilmington and certified nurse educator with more than 25 years of experience, about a deceptively simple idea: in online learning, course design is teaching.

For Dr. Matthias, design determines everything: how learners connect with you, with each other, and with the material. She builds her approach on two structures. The first is alignment, the foundation that keeps content, activities, and assessments tied to intended learning outcomes. When students see that clear path, adult learners stay motivated and engaged. The second is engagement, built on three pillars: learner to content, learner to educator, and learner to learner. Together, these pillars close the isolation gap that so often undermines nursing student success in online programs.

Design done well doesn't just look good. It works. Dr. Matthias shares what she learned during a five-year journey to Quality Matters certification, including how her team tackled accessibility and standardized templates without sacrificing academic freedom. She explains why every resource, from PDFs to videos, should be accessible to all learners, and how consistent navigation frees students to focus on building the clinical judgment they'll carry into practice.

She also connects course-level choices to the bigger picture. Strong nursing education alignment, where course objectives map to program outcomes and professional standards, turns a collection of individual courses into a coherent, outcomes-focused experience. That's the difference between fragmented learning and learning that prepares students for real-world nursing practice.

The episode is packed with practical strategies you can apply right away, from welcome videos and structured peer review to backward design that starts with the end in mind. If you're rethinking how your online courses run, these are the tools that support both student success and satisfaction. To put this thinking into action, explore Lippincott nursing education solutions built to support intentional, outcomes-focused design.

Listen to the full conversation with Dr. April D. Matthias to discover practical strategies for designing engaging, outcomes-focused online nursing courses.