Require regular online instructor participation in asynchronous discussions, which may mitigate the lack of face-to-face interaction¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

UC Irvine Extension online courses require instructors to participate actively in class asynchronous discussions every 48 to 72 hours, depending on course type. The author hypothesizes this requirement may mitigate the lack of eyeball-to-eyeball interaction, as one possible explanation for finding no post-instruction drop-rate difference between online and onground classes. The article frames this as a conjecture to be examined, not a tested manipulation.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Instructor-facilitated online courses with fixed start and end dates
• Instructor participation in threaded discussions at a regular cadence

Constraints¶

• The mitigating effect is the author's stated hypothesis, not a tested result in this study

Target Learners¶

• adult continuing professional education students in online courses

Target Learning Goals¶

• sustaining persistence and engagement once instruction has begun

Related Strategies¶

• Instructor Presence In Discussions
• Facilitating Discourse (Online)
• Increase Synchronous Teacher Presence

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Jia Frydenberg. (2007). Persistence in University Continuing Education Online Classes. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 8(3). https://portal.issn.org/resource/ISSN/1492-3831