Well-Being in the Digital Classroom

Effective digital classrooms have instructors who are present, engaged, and responsive, helping students feel connected not just to the material but to the people learning alongside them.

Dylan Barth, PhD, Vice President for Innovation and Programs, Online Learning Consortium,

In the span of just a few years, the online dimension of higher education has shifted from a niche offering to a mainstream reality. According to data from Nathe tional Center for Education Statistics (NCES), in fall 2023, 53.2 percent of students at 5,677 U.S. postsecondary institutions were enrolled in at least one distance-education course (NCES 2025). With more than half of learners engaging digitally, the classroom is no longer confined to bricks and mortar. That transformation raises vital questions about student well-being: how do we navigate issues of connection, engagement, mental health, and equity when the “classroom” is a screen?

While “online students” are often treated as a single category, the reality is far more complex, especially among those learning exclusively online. This population includes working adults, caregivers, first-generation students, rural learners, military-connected students, and those balancing school with full-time jobs or family responsibilities. As Dr. Dylan Barth, the vice president of innovation and programs at the Online Learning Consortium, explains, online learners “are a very diverse group of students in terms of their life circumstances, and they need flexibility. They need support, just like any other student.”

He emphasizes that effective online teaching requires intentionally designing for community and belonging, noting that creating opportunities for connection and providing responsive, human support is as important as learning the material itself.

Many exclusively online learners are also returning students, people who may have paused their education, shifted careers, or decided they needed new skills to advance. As Dr. Barth notes, “typically these are students who are coming back after maybe they had a few years of college and dropped out for whatever reason. Maybe they want to go into a new field or upskill.” These learners often fall outside the traditional 18- to 23-year-old demographic and are juggling work, caregiving, or other major responsibilities alongside their studies. That reality makes flexibility not just a convenience but a prerequisite for success.

As online enrollment continues to climb, understanding what these learners need to thrive becomes essential, not just for academic success but for their overall well-being. Keep reading to explore the most pressing challenges online students face, what meaningful support looks like, how educators can foster community in digital spaces, and how the future of online learning may evolve when well-being sits at the center.

One of the most significant challenges facing fully online students is not isolation, as is often assumed, but sheer busyness. As Dr. Barth notes, many online learners are juggling work, family responsibilities, and other major commitments alongside their coursework. “Time is the biggest issue that they have,” he explains, “trying to balance family, working, and other responsibilities can be very stressful.” This constant pressure can make it difficult for students to feel connected to their institutions or supported by campus resources, simply because they have so little bandwidth to engage.

Yet Barth is clear that disconnection isn’t inevitable. Even for students stretched thin, “it’s absolutely possible to create a sense of community,” he says. Particularly when programs are intentional about helping online learners build relationships with peers and faculty.

What often gets labeled as burnout among online students is, in reality, the cumulative weight of too many commitments rather than the online modality itself. As Dr Barth explains, “I don’t think it’s being an online student. I think it’s being a student who may be working 40 hours a week and having other commitments.” Many online learners balance full-time jobs, caregiving roles, and other responsibilities while taking only one or two classes at a time. This stretched-out pace can prolong degree completion, sometimes by years, which Dr. Barth describes as understandably demoralizing.

To keep moving forward, students may add summer courses or short sessions between semesters, often leaving them with little or no break. The workload may be comparable to that of on-campus peers, Dr. Barth notes, but these learners “just really have so much they have to do compared to their campus counterparts.”

Supporting online learners effectively requires attention at both the course and institutional levels, beginning with the everyday experience students have in their classes. Dr. Barth emphasizes that clear, intuitive course design is essential. Online students don’t have the option to walk up after class to clarify an assignment, so faculty must ensure that instructions, expectations, and next steps are easy to follow.

Equally important is timely communication. As Dr. Barth explains, “if an online student intends to do their assignment on Tuesday, because they have commitments the rest of the week, but there’s a problem, such as maybe something wasn’t uploaded or they don’t understand the assignment, then they really get put behind.” Flexibility in deadlines, he adds, isn’t about lowering standards but acknowledging the real constraints students face. Some instructors are also turning to tools like custom GPTs trained on course materials to offer guided support during late-night hours when students are most likely to be doing their work. While not a replacement for faculty presence, these tools can help bridge gaps for learners with limited availability.

At the institutional level, Dr. Barth stresses that reducing friction in the student experience is key to supporting online learners and mitigating burnout. Strong, accessible online support services, such as tutoring, writing centers, and academic advising, can make a significant difference, especially when they are available during the evenings or weekends, when many online students are most active. He notes that these systems not only benefit fully online learners but also support on-campus students.

Much of the overwhelm online students feel comes from avoidable barriers: long waits for help, unclear processes, or difficulty accessing basic resources. Dr. Barth likens these frustrations to dealing with a billing error; you’re already stressed, and every additional hurdle compounds the feeling. Institutions can ease that burden by ensuring students have clear, reliable pathways to assistance, while still maintaining academic rigor. He notes that, “institutions can’t and shouldn’t reduce the integrity or the quality of online courses, but they can remove non-academic obstacles that make learning harder than it needs to be.”

Creating a sense of community in online courses doesn’t happen by accident. It must be intentionally cultivated by instructors. While some students may form connections on their own, Dr. Barth emphasizes that “it really is going to come from the instructor,” and often from the course or program level rather than institution-wide initiatives.

Structured opportunities for interaction, such as discussion forums or thoughtfully designed group projects, help students build relationships and mirror the collaborative work environments many will encounter in their careers. Dr. Barth points to his own teaching experience at UW–Whitewater, where students in a leadership program come to know one another over multiple courses through recurring projects and shared conversations.

Community also grows when instructors show up as real, human figures rather than distant evaluators, asking about students’ interests, offering personal context, and maintaining a strong online presence. “It’s not a set it and forget it situation,” Dr. Barth explains, “effective digital classrooms have instructors who are present, engaged, and responsive, helping students feel connected not just to the material but to the people learning alongside them.”

Dr. Barth notes that many of the most effective community-building strategies are also the simplest. “The easiest, the most low-tech way, is through asynchronous discussion forums,” he says,” nearly every learning management system supports them and that well-crafted prompts can spark meaningful peer engagement.” Virtual office hours offer another avenue for connection, giving students the chance to speak with instructors, and sometimes one another, in a more informal setting.

Group projects, too, can strengthen the community by allowing students to collaborate synchronously at times that fit their schedules. Dr. Barth also incorporates short weekly videos, not full lectures, but five- to eight-minute check-ins where students can see him, hear his voice, and engage with key concepts. These small touches, he explains, help humanize the online environment and encourage students to respond: “It’s definitely different from in-person classes,” he says, “but it’s certainly possible to create that sense of community.”

Looking ahead, Dr. Barth believes the future of well-being-centered online learning lies in removing structural barriers and offering pathways that feel more attainable for busy students. Consistency in course design, streamlined support, and policies that acknowledge the unique constraints of online learners, such as equitable registration processes, are all essential.

But one of the most promising shifts, he says, is the rise of micro-credentialing. Rather than committing to a multi-year degree before seeing any return on their investment, students can complete smaller, stackable learning experiences that result in certificates or credentials they can apply immediately in their jobs. This approach not only offers a sense of progress but also combats the demoralization that comes with long, drawn-out degree timelines.

As Dr. Barth explains, “being able to take courses in smaller chunks gives online learners a way to build momentum, gain relevant skills, and decide later whether to continue toward a full degree, all while balancing the realities of work, family, and life.”