<p>This dissertation consists of three interrelated articles about supporting instructors to develop their facilitation skills both on the instructional and emotional sides during online case-based discussions. In the first study, we examined the influence of instructors with varying levels of experience on student participation and interaction in online case discussions. Findings showed that while both expert and novice instructors utilized facilitation strategies in clusters to facilitate discussions, the novice instructor displayed less flexibility as a facilitator, and these differences impacted student activeness. Our second study explored experts’ teaching practices, such as structuring, facilitating, and assessing online case discussions, and the reasons behind their decisions. We found that the experts clustered strategies during online case discussions while maintaining differences in how they implemented them. There was practical guidance provided for novice instructors that could be adapted to meet their own needs. Using a learning experience design lens, the last paper conceptually discussed opportunities for facilitating students’ emotions during online case discussions and offered suggestions that instructors can incorporate into the planning, implementation, and evaluation phases.</p>

This study identifies and assesses a more specific relationship between the online instructor presence and the online learner's experience than is currently offered in previous studies. Guided by three questions, the study asked: (a) What is the relationship between the online instructor communication style and the learning experience, as defined by the adult learner's cognitive achievement, ratings of the overall course experience, and perceptions of the instructor's performance; (b) What is the relationship between the strength (contact frequency with the learner) of that communication style (facilitating or non-facilitating) and the learning experience; and (c) What is the relationship between selected learner demographic variables (previous subject experience on the job and previous experience with the vendor's online learning environment) and the learning experience. The study included an examination of ex post facto data that depicted the interactions between 89 students and 9 instructors in 358 asynchronous, professional development class discussions. The examination revealed the presence and frequency of select instructor behaviors more acutely define the communication style and strength of the online instructor's relationship to the professional adult's online learning experience. The study's additional findings support earlier research that suggests prior learner experience relates positively to online learning outcomes. These findings contribute to the larger body of knowledge related to online instruction. / Ph. D.