Teaching presence begins before the course commences as the teacher, acting as an instructional designer, plans and prepares the course of studies, and it continues during the course, as the instructor facilitates the discourse and provides direct instruction when required (Anderson, et al, 2001).

In short, teaching presence is manifested in everything the instructor does to guide, support, and shape the learners’ experiences.

More on planning & preparation—For an online learning environment, the emphasis shifts from preparing class sessions to preparing learning modules with specific learning goals, reading assignments, brief instructional materials, learning activities, discussion board posting requirements, assessment procedures, etc. While you design the modules for your course, you should regularly ask:

• What do I want students to learn in this module?

• How will students demonstrate their learning of the materials in this module?

• What assignments or learning activities will support the learning for this module?

Direct instruction—Students perceive your teaching presence through your direct instruction. Direct instruction is when you allow students to see your disciplinary expertise through your online interaction with them.

Indicators of direct instruction “include presenting content and questions, focusing the discussion on specific issues, summarizing discussion, confirming understanding, disposing misperceptions, injecting knowledge from diverse sources and responding to technical concerns” (Shea, et al, 2006).