The 2022-2023 academic year will be my twenty-fifth year of teaching online. What started as an attempt to help Education and Health Science colleagues address a perceived need for adult learners has resulted in what is now my primary mode of instruction and main area of research.

During this time, I have collaborated with colleagues to apply online learning and adult learning theories to the design, facilitation, and instruction of online and blended courses. We have attempted to create and teach classes that promote social presence by experimenting with a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous interactions to maximize opportunities for student voice. Inquiry-based instructional models have been implemented to increase cognitive presence in online learning spaces.

This work seemed pretty straightforward, with gradual improvements until the last three years. But then the “blinders” started to come off, and shortcomings that were always there revealed flaws in our work.

First, we finally realized that our faculty and students from marginalized communities face discrimination and implicit bias in how learning management systems and other digital tools are designed and implemented.

Second, we learned about true challenges of scale when all faculty were forced to modify course modalities, not for greater flexibility or improved learning outcomes, but because of a global pandemic. Third, digital equity became a priority when inflation and other economic challenges, caused not just by COVID but also by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, impacted our ability to provide equitable online learning opportunities for all students.

This presentation will share successes and failures of online courses and programs I have participated in during the past twenty-five years. There will be opportunities for members of the NWeLearn community of inquiry to share expertise and insights as we examine where we have been, where we are, and what may be next.