Teaching Routines on the Internet

The planning of distance education courses requires that teachers reconsider how they will create the necessary interaction with students (and between students).  The principle medium described in this handbook is internet-based electronic communications.  Many of the same principles could be applied to television and audio-conferencing.

Routines describe the set of activities that the instructor plans to use to direct a learning episode.  While college faculty frequently adjust their plans as they interact with students, the distance environment demands more pre-planning.  To aid in this planning, the website outlines eight popular patterns that educators have used to guide their lessons -- eight routines that can be adapted to the internet.  After describing the steps of a routine, some discussion about ways to use internet technology to sustain the pattern is provided.  Of course, every faculty will need to find ways to modify these steps and extend these discussions to find the right fit for their course.

This website  is divided into four sections, roughly based on Tony Grasha's four teaching styles, in order to facilitate easy identification of the routines that are most likely to suit your teaching style.  Remember, however, that most teachers borrow ideas and practices from others.  Scan through the various routines before focusing on which ones are right for you.  This page will connect you to a set of suggestions for incorporating email, discussion groups, and chat rooms into an internet-based course.

Links to Sample Routines

Formal Authority Routines

Demonstrator Routines

Facilitator Routine

Delegator Routines

You may also want to visit Social Dynamics of College Classrooms: Issues and Ideas for Distance Educators

Return to Teaching Styles on the WWW page.