Promoting Student Engagement in Online Courses

Students enrolled in fully online courses—particularly those that are completely asynchronous—often face challenges in staying engaged and connected to their learning. Online distractions are abundant, and compared to attending an on-campus class, it is easier to disengage from an online course. Fortunately, there are many strategies faculty can implement to promote student engagement in their online courses.

Regular and Substantive Interaction

Regular and substantive interaction (RSI) is a federal requirement for fully online courses. The presence (or lack) of RSI distinguishes a “distance learning” course from a “correspondence” course. If students are using any form of federal financial aid to pay for an online course’s tuition or fees, that course must include regular and substantive interaction.

“Regular” interaction means that the activity must be available to students on a predictable and regularly scheduled basis. For example, an instructor who schedules Zoom office hours every Thursday at 7:00 pm provides regular interaction. An instructor who offers office hours by appointment only does not provide regular interaction.

“Substantive” interaction is defined by the U.S. Department of Education as engaging in at least two of the following activities on a regular basis:

• Providing direct instruction (defined as synchronous instruction)
• Assessing or providing feedback on a student's coursework
• Providing information or responding to questions about course content
• Facilitating a group discussion regarding course content
• Other instructional activities approved by the accrediting agency

Note that RSI includes only interaction between the instructor and student. The table below provides ideas for incorporating RSI into online courses.