PLP Teaching online - Becoming

well-designed icebreaker activities, group assignments, and ongoing topical discussions that involve both faculty and the students.

One clear take-away from this study is that it is incumbent upon faculty to play a leadership role in building community in their virtual classrooms.  As this study has shown, students believe instructor modeling is the most important element in building online community. 

Examples of how an instructor might implement these recommendations include things as simple as sending an email complimenting a student on his/her participation in a given week (i.e., “encouraging students”), establishing a virtual “lounge” where students and faculty can talk informally about any topic of interest (i.e., “facilitating sharing and participation”), asking the class whether the expectations for participation are clear and providing suggestions for improvement (i.e., “responding to student concerns and establishing an environment of open communication”), and providing students with polite but honest feedback about their work (i.e., modeling expected behaviors and interactions).  Another effective technique to promote the development of relationships is the use of rotating smaller working groups of 4-6 members.  The smaller group size allows for more interaction and the rotation allows students to still interact with all of their classmates.