Best Practices for Designing Synchronous and Asynchronous Online Teaching for Adult Learners
Abstract: Understanding working professionals' ideas can help instructional designers, including faculty, to create more effective online courses that are tailored to the needs of adult learners, who balance responsibilities among work, school, and family. In this best practices session, we provide suggestions for the design of online learning environments for adult learners. These best practices are guided by the results of our study of the perceptions of a group of adult learners in an online course. Based on the adult learners’ thoughts regarding affordances and limitations of synchronous (at the same time) and asynchronous (at different times) modes of online learning, we developed research-based, practical tips.
Presider: Brenda Vogds, Eastern Carver County School