Characteristics of a Good Online Instructor

A positive online learning environment facilitates learning.

A good online instructor is cognizant of the needs of students, of the technology and the learning management system used, and of the particular instructional content. Communication skills should be positive, friendly and encouraging.

Social Presence

After posting a clearly written syllabus, guidelines on what students are required to do, and the standards expected, effective online instructors provide an initial prompt to encourage students to talk to each other and develop a learning community.

Facilitation

An instructor in an online learning environment is more a facilitator than a dictator and recognizes different views. Without becoming the center of discussion, instructors should monitor conversations, add occasional support and inject provoking questions that allow students to explore assumptions and develop critical thinking skills.

Feedback

Online learners depend on their instructors for timely feedback on their performance. Good online instructors establish grading criteria for discussion forums and assignments and hold students accountable.

Student Satisfaction

Good online instructors recognize that online students develop a high level of self-satisfaction with engaging discussion and self-evaluation measured against given criteria and assigned values such as assessment rubrics.

Assessment and Evaluation

Online instructors support continuous improvement through assessments such as quizzes, essays and collaborative team assignments. End-of-course feedback should be used to improve the instructor's performance and benefit new students.

References

• E-Moderating: The key to teaching and learning online; Gilly Solmon; 2000.
• Learning effectiveness: what the research tells us; Karen Swan; 2003.