Uploading a PDF Is Not the Same as Designing an Online Course
In recent years, many educational institutions have accelerated the digitization of their programs, driven by the need to continue learning processes in virtual environments. However, this transformation has often been accompanied by misunderstandings. One of the most common—and harmful—assumptions is believing that uploading a PDF to a platform is equivalent to designing an online course. This notion not only reduces the pedagogical potential of digital education but also reinforces practices that isolate, rather than engage, students.
An online course is not simply a collection of files or links. It is a planned, structured learning experience, mediated by technology, and designed with interaction, accessibility, motivation, and meaningful knowledge construction in mind. Uploading a static document without context, without teacher guidance, and without active engagement activities is not enough. A PDF may be one element, but it cannot replace teaching or support.
To better understand this issue, it is helpful to turn to educational technology integration models that critically assess how and why digital tools are used in teaching. One of the most widely used is the SAMR model, developed by Ruben Puentedura, which outlines four progressive levels of technology integration in learning (Kendon & Anselmo, 2023):
- Substitution: technology acts as a direct substitute, with no functional change. Uploading a PDF to a platform is a typical example—digital instead of print, but no pedagogical shift.
- Augmentation: the technology provides functional improvement, such as making the PDF interactive with hyperlinks or form fields.
- Modification: technology allows for significant task redesign, like turning the content of a PDF into a group discussion or collaborative project.
- Redefinition: technology enables the creation of new learning experiences that were previously inconceivable, such as using the content as a springboard for a multimedia project, simulation, or immersive activity.
The first two levels represent enhancement, while the latter two indicate transformation. As Kendon and Anselmo (2023) point out, it is not always necessary to reach the highest level, but it is essential that technology use is pedagogically intentional and contributes to a meaningful student experience.
However, SAMR is not the only model for integrating technology in education. Another influential framework is TPACK (Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge), developed by Mishra and Koehler (2006). TPACK suggests that effective teaching with technology requires the thoughtful integration of three core types of teacher knowledge:
- Content Knowledge (CK) – What you know about the subject you teach.
- Pedagogical Knowledge (PK) – How you teach and support learning.
- Technological Knowledge (TK) – What you know about the tools and technologies you use.
These three domains overlap to form four additional areas of knowledge:
- PCK – Pedagogical Content Knowledge
- TCK – Technological Content Knowledge
- TPK – Technological Pedagogical Knowledge
- And the most comprehensive: TPACK, which represents the intersection of all three in a specific teaching context.
TPACK emphasizes that effective integration of technology depends not only on choosing the right tools, but on how pedagogy, content, and technology interact in relation to the specific context—including institutional norms, discipline, students, and available resources. It is not just about using technology, but about using it intentionally to transform the teaching and learning experience.
Designing an online course, therefore, is not about digitizing what already exists, but about rethinking it through an inclusive, contextual, and pedagogical lens. It means considering the diversity of learners, including people of different ages, backgrounds, learning styles, cultures, digital skills, and individual needs. Inclusion is not only about disability—it also encompasses all those who learn differently. A truly inclusive course is designed with the learner at the center, recognizing that the curriculum is not a fixed product, but a living curriculum, shaped by and with those who engage in it.
Uploading a PDF may be a starting point, but it should never be the endpoint. Designing an online course requires thoughtful integration of technology, pedagogy, and content. Models like SAMR and TPACK offer valuable frameworks to move toward more meaningful, inclusive, and transformative digital education.
