I think an instructor of a course that was completely online could find him/herself overwhelmed with the amount of communication taking place. It takes time to navigate around, read everyone's posts on each topic, and comment, all while working to be both professional and approachable. In a face-to-face class, you can visually monitor how long it's going to take the instructor to respond to you. (How many other hands are in the air? How many people are lined up?) The instructor can also view facial expressions and body language to determine if his/her students are "getting it" and buying in. It seems like this element, in an online course, would have to be done entirely by computer interactions. I'd be completely overwhelmed if I had to teach a course completely online!

This seems to be a particularly relevant standard for this field in particular, perhaps more so than in any other area. Not only do "new" technologies enter the educational setting, but familiar ones are updated/upgraded. There is also such a broad range of technology available, as well as slightly different "products" to do similar tasks.

I've taught primarily in the high school setting, with a few summers of adjuncting in a small college, so this differentiation between instructor, creator, and provider struck me as very interesting. I've always been both instructor and creator; I've also felt that the "provider" (the schools I've taught within) gave me as "instructor/creator" a great deal of freedom. It seems though, that with online courses, these three roles could easily be assumed by three different people. Communication and interaction between these three roles would be perhaps even more important!