One challenge of online courses is students having access to the instructor. It is a common misconception of online instructors that simply being online a few times a week is sufficient to meet the needs of students. I have found that the demands of online instructing can be overwhelming for both the instructor and the students. From the student’s perspective, they want to be able to complete the task they set out to do in the timeframe they have carved out of their busy day. Most of them usually allot a block of time to tackle an assignment and getting stuck in the middle of that process is frustrating. Even the best designed course does not address all the questions and concerns students may have. Therefore the instructor must have alternative methods of addressing student issues.
As an instructor, it is important to give the appearance of being available as much as possible. Checking into the course several times a day and immediately responding to student questions is helpful. If a question from a student is one that many in the class will have, I’ll repost the reply to everyone in the course. When I’m online, the settings show that I’m available through the chat feature of the learning management system (LMS) I’m using for the course. Students are able to message me or use the LMS chat feature. In addition, I provide a phone number so students can contact me with questions. I’ve had other instructors gasp when I tell them this, but my experience is that students are respectful of my time and are actually hesitant to call. I feel the benefits of having an open-door policy far outweigh the inconvenience. I do have caller ID and I do know how to let a call go to voice mail. I’m careful not to totally ignore any student’s question and reply as soon as I am able. Both the students and I appreciate that most concerns can be addressed in short order, and I find that taking a few minutes to answer a question eliminates hours, days or weeks of uncertainty for the student. Issues that result in students not participating in class can be often be met head-on if the student knows the instructor has a 24/7 philosophy for online office hours.
