Creating and Maintaining Presence: The Biggest Challenge in Motivating Students in the Online Classroom

People feel motivated to participate when they feel engaged, connected. In the online environment creating that sense of connectedness and engagement that stimulates motivation is without question the number one challenge.  The key to engagement, connectedness and motivation all lie in the same teacher/classroom attribute: presence. I call presence an attribute because in the online environment, just as in the f2f environment, presence is more than physical proximity: it is a feeling tone created by the instructor. It is the assurance students have that the instructor is there with them; that there is a real person who cares on the other side of the computer screen.

How does an instructor create presence? Being in the course on a frequent basis is a start, but only a start. The quality of the interaction with students when the instructor is in the class defines the nature and extent of the presence conveyed by the instructor. A personal introduction, helpful comments in clear, but friendly language, quick responses to student e-mails, timely return of work with substantive personalized feedback, availability to students through a variety of means (telephone, Twitter, text, Skype, etc.)….all of these things create a presence that is real and caring. That type of presence engages and motivates. Creating and maintaining that type and level of presence is not easy – which is what makes it, in my opinion, the biggest challenge in motivating students in an online class.