ONLINE INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES

Online instructional strategies refer to the methods and approaches that guide the organization of learning activities, course content, and student engagement in online courses. Strategies frequently adopted in online courses include (1) promoting interactivity through asynchronous and synchronous communication or delivery (2) facilitating the application of concepts; (3) using video demonstrations, such as screencasts for demonstrating tools and programs; and (4) conveying a strong social presence or a sense of belonging to a learning community. Online course design refers to the features that shape the overall structure of the course, including learning activities, sequence of content and communication, and structure of assignments. Research showed that students perceptions of their overall learning experience with instructional strategies and online course design not only affected their perceived learning but also their overall satisfaction with an online course. Online education, including innovative and responsive online course designs, as well as research on student opportunities to interact with online course content, continues to grow in education. Although the demand for online (Science and Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) courses have never been higher, little has been done to develop effective instructional and online course design strategies for teaching STEM courses online. However, considering the reality that many online students seek online courses to avoid fixed meeting times and traveling to campus, it is practical to adopt asynchronous communication for online courses. The study results can be used to guide online teaching and learning as well as online course design for instructors, course designers, and students in STEM fields. This paper reports the effectiveness of the instructional strategies adopted and the online course design features in a fully online course from the students perspectives. Instructional strategies and course design for teaching online as explained and discussed in this paper. KEYWORDS: teaching, strategies, instruction, online teaching strategies and learning.