What to do when a student, out of genuine interest, brings up a controversial topic you would have rather avoided? Controversy simply means people have varying opinions, which is healthy and is how progress is made in society. Harnessing it can help teach students valuable interpersonal and conative skills.

Live chat, class discussion boards, email, webinars, and virtual field trips are all samples of online course interactions that have become staples over the past 10 years. Are they all needed for online student success? Or is it primarily the frequency and/or the application of a substantial grade percentage that needs to be changed to existing modes of online interactions between students and instructors?

No teacher has ever said grading papers is the best part of the job. I’ve seen English teachers cite that as the reason they left the profession.