Overview 

Establishing a welcoming online learning environment is only the first step. To promote student success, you’ll need to continually provide opportunities for students to engage — in other words, active learning experiences. Active learning is an important part of any course, regardless of delivery modality. Online learning offers a variety of innovative ways to engage students. Here, you will explore active learning strategies, identify new opportunities for interaction, and discover approaches to facilitating asynchronous discussions that you can use in your course.

What is "engagement"?

• What is engagement?
• How do I know if my students are engaged?
• What kinds of activities can I use to engage my online students?

There is no shortage of evidence highlighting the importance of engagement for deep learning. Major (2015) argues that “student engagement is a prerequisite to learning” (p. 211). It is important to clearly define engagement so that we can look for new opportunities in online learning. In its broadest sense, engagement might equate to attentiveness. In a more specific interpretation, engagement might require interaction with and/or application of a concept. According to Major (2015) student engagement consists of four interrelated factors (pp. 209-210):

1. Motivation: the drive to learn deriving from internal desires and/or external pressures
2. Attention: the ability to focus on a task 
3. Involvement: time and energy devoted to learning
4. Intellectual effort: skills to engage in deep learning approaches (beyond memorization)

Depending on your approach to teaching in a face-to-face classroom, teaching online may require innovative and varied approaches to engagement. In online learning environments, engagement can (and should) be present throughout the learning experience - from the orientation to the final evaluation. Locating opportunities for independent and collaborative activities will strengthen engagement and deepen learning. This document will focus on three forms of interaction: 

• Student-to-Instructor
• Student-to-Content
• Student-to-Student

Learning objectives

After reviewing this material, you will be able to:

• Summarize the importance of active learning
• Identify three different types of interaction
• Apply techniques to foster interaction

[Note: The content you will explore here has been modified from its original version as an asynchronous micro-course offered to faculty in August 2022. Some language in the following text and/or videos may refer to this course. Future offerings can be found at ctlm.wisc.edu/deepen-your-skills]

Active Learning Online

Watch the video below to learn about three different types of interactions.

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[Download Transcript]

You should also read this article, Engagement Matters: Student Perceptions on the Importance of Engagement Strategies in the Online Learning Environment (Martin & Bolliger, 2018) to learn more about the types of interaction and which are most beneficial to students.

Reflect

Consider different ways to incorporate the three types of interaction in your own online course.

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Asynchronous discussions

Asynchronous discussions are a nearly ubiquitous strategy to enhance learning through interaction in online courses. There are many ways to approach asynchronous discussions, but here are a few key tips:

1. Keep them small. Limit discussion groups to about 5-7 students to allow for relationships to develop and discussions to deepen.
2. Set up staggered due dates. Clarify that first posts are due at least three days before the final due date to ensure discussion can develop.
3. Offer scaffolding to teach students how to discuss. Use sentence starters, roles, or clear instructions about how to post and how to reply.
4. Use a rubric to clarify your expectations and make grading more efficient and equitable.

Resources for asynchronous discussions

Apply

Select a strategy to apply to your own online discussions.

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Start resource series over

• Fostering Community (Introduction)