Online Teaching Toolkit

UMB Faculty Reflecting on Quality in Online Courses

The Difference Between Online and Face-to-Face Teaching

Below, we summarize five key differences between face-to-face (F2F) and online courses, as well as why understanding these differences is important for you as an instructor.

Difference #1: Course Development

• F2F: Traditional classroom teaching is often developed by an individual instructor.

• Online: Online courses are often developed in teams that can include more than one instructor, program directors, instructional designers, and media specialists.

Why is this important?

Designing online courses in teams draws on the unique perspectives and expertise of each team member to develop higher quality online courses.

Difference #2: Course Design

• F2F: Traditional classrooms are predominantly synchronous (real time). Classroom meeting times create a set time and place for instructors and students to meet, discuss, and engage in teaching and learning.

• Online: Online courses are predominantly asynchronous (not real time). Both instructors and students determine when they will engage with one another, the course content, and other students.

Why is this important?

In online courses, the expansion of time and space for teaching and learning creates uncertainties. Instructors must manage student expectations by clearly describing the who, what, where, when, why, and how of what is expected of them as students and what they can expect of their instructor.

Difference #3: Course Delivery

• F2F: The traditional classroom is often viewed as a passive learning environment where instructors lecture and students listen and take notes. The instructor functions more like a “sage on the stage.”

• Online: In an online course, the students take a more active role in learning, in which the instructor functions more like a facilitator or “guide on the side.” As such, student learning becomes more self-directed and often requires greater motivation, time management, and discipline.

Why is this important?

The shift from a teacher-centered to a student-centered learning environment requires both instructors and students to be aware of and account for the changing dynamics of teaching and learning.

Difference #4: Course Assessments

• F2F: Exams and quizzes are often administered in the classroom or in a proctored testing environment. Results may be discussed in a subsequent classroom meeting or may have important consequences to student success (i.e., high stakes).

• Online: Exams and quizzes are often administered asynchronously online through completion windows. Or, timed assessments may be provided to students in the Learning Management System (LMS). Results and feedback are delivered online. The online learning environment creates flexibility of time and place that encourages more frequent, low stakes assessments.

Why is this important?

In online courses, students depend more on assessment clarification, facilitation, and feedback provided by instructors in the absence of F2F classroom meetings.

Difference #5: Communication

• F2F: Traditional classrooms use predominantly oral communication.

• Online: Online courses use predominantly text-based communication.

Why is this important?

In online courses, exchanges between students and instructors often occur in writing (e.g., announcements, discussions, assignment prompts and submissions, assessment feedback, etc.). While oral and written communication exists in both course types, the asynchronous nature of online courses creates a greater reliance on asynchronous forms of communication (i.e., text). As such, it becomes important to ensure netiquette, professionalism, digital literacy, and clarity of message.

UMB Faculty Give Advice on Learning about Online Teaching