Teaching Presence in Asynchronous Online Classes: It’s Not Just a Façade

Abstract

The expanding scale and scope of online education options, both in terms of design and delivery, create significant questions that increasingly warrant research attention. Previous research has demonstrated that higher levels of teaching presence in online courses is positively related to student engagement, satisfaction and learning. Although there are many methods for infusing one’s teaching presence into an online class, practicalities constrain choices. The purpose of this study is to identify and assess those methods students perceive to be the most valuable. We empirically investigate students’ perceptions and evaluative judgments of a range of methods of setting and sustaining teaching presence in an online asynchronous course. Post hoc factor analysis of our data suggests refining our understanding of teaching presence in terms of stylistic versus substantive methods. Analyses of student survey data indicate that, while students see value in both types of teaching presence, they perceive significantly greater benefit from substantive relative to stylistic methods.