Each category of a tutor’s presence is vital to learning and to the establishment of the learning community; tutors' behavior must be such that they are seen to be “posting regularly, responding in a timely manner and modeling good online communication and interaction” (Palloff & Pratt, 2003, p.118). Without an instructor’s explicit guidance and “teaching presence,” students were found to engage primarily in “serial monologues” (Pawan et al., 2003). Baker (2004) discovered that “instructor immediacy, i.e., teaching presence (Rourke et al., 1999), was a more reliable predictor of effective cognitive learning than whether students felt close to each other. Studies have demonstrated that instructor participation in threaded discussion is critical to the development of social presence (Shea, Li, Swan, & Pickett, 2005; Swan & Shih, 2005) and sometimes not fully appreciated by online faculty (Liu, Bonk, Magjuka, Lee, & Su, 2005). Shea, Li, and Pickett (2006) proposed that teaching presence – viewed as the core role of the online instructor – is a promising mechanism for developing learning community in online environments.
Maria Guadron on 15 Aug 12"Instructional strategies and methods are used to Manage time in flexible ways to match learner needs. Include learning activities that are personally relevant to learners. Give learners increasing responsibility for the learning process. Provide questions and tasks that stimulate learners' thinking beyond rote memorization. Help learners refine their understanding by using critical thinking skills. Support learners in developing and using effective learning strategies for each task. Include peer learning and peer teaching as part of the instructional method. "
