Reading your post and Silvia Garcia’s response I’m struck by the similarities to my own teaching experience. I teach technology courses to junior high students and, even though I try to encourage independence by taking a project-based approach, I continue to struggle to find the right blend between teacher presence and independent learning. I always struggle with how much and when to pull back and let my students learn themselves and from each other. I always thought this was particular to the way young people learn rather than adults assuming that my students require more guidance through the learning process because of their age compared to adults, who should be more independent learners.

My own experience in taking courses online would suggest that this is not always the case. Yes, adult learners can be more independent, but that does not mean that they require less input from the instructor. I think it has more to do with the fact that some students will always require more from their teachers than others and this is something that is shared by both young and adult learners. I think a community of learners is important, but not a substitute for the active participation of the teacher.

Some of the online courses I have enjoyed and learned the most from had an instructor that dipped their oars into the water regularly and knew when to take their oars out of the water when the boat had enough momentum. Knowing when to use the the oars is not always easy.