"I am not a teacher, but a fellow traveler of whom you asked the way."
George Bernard Shaw

Online teaching may seem like being in the wilderness to some instructors. Venturing into wild, unknown territory. Overcome by fear, uncertainty and paralysis. Hence the metaphor of the online classroom as an unknown wilderness for the uninitiated. Instructors in the online classroom need to impart a sense of familiarity with the new learning medium and "transfer that level of comfort to the learners." (Palloff & Pratt, 1999) They must convey a sense of confidence to those they are in charge of. That they've been through this already and there's nothing to fear. Like wilderness guides who inspire and encourage their groups before setting out into new and often bewildering surroundings, the online instructor must know when to guide the way to new learning possibilities as well as when to step back and let the students explore on their own.

Those new to the wilderness experience, no longer surrounded by walls and modern conveniences, might ask: "Where's the bathroom? How will I eat? How will I protect myself from the elements?" Online instructors may experience similar feelings, no longer bound by the constraints of the walled classroom. Many previous rules and constraints no longer apply in cyberspace: "Where are the students? How do I know if they're here or not? How can I be sure they're participating? How can I evaluate them if I can't see them?"

The teacher's role in online learning can be seen as that of a wilderness guide. Wilderness guides have to lead the way for their inexperienced campers, yet they also point out things along the way and allow hikers to explore things and discover the wonders of nature themselves. When setting up camp, the guide will initially demonstrate the proper way to do things. Then as the students become familiar with the way things go, guides step back and allow the campers to perform duties themselves. Their interactions become collaborative: sharing information, demonstrating things and cooperating amongst themselves in order to carry out the tasks.

Online teachers must also initially lead the way, providing structure to the course by establishing clear boundaries of what's expected of the students. Too often erroneous assumptions are made by both teacher and learner. Without specifically addressing issues, each group's expectations may not mesh. The conflict inevitable during this "forming and norming" (Palloff & Pratt, 1999) period should not be avoided, as group cohesion ultimately depends on its successful resolution. Again this parallels the wilderness situations where solidarity is so important. Conflict stemming from such boundary stetting is not necessarily a bad thing, done with respectful and non-malicious intent. Once students' understand the new boundaries of the online classroom, the teacher can step back and become more of a facilitator. Pointing the way by proving relevant links, encouraging expansive, topic-driven discussions, and assigning tasks that are collaborative and meaningful.

Another way online approximates guided wilderness expeditions is that both open avenues of communication that weren't previously accessible. In the wilderness, we always seem to hear about the city folk who look like they've never been off the sidewalk in their lives suddenly bonding with people from contrasting backgrounds. The lifting of social barriers enables communication that would be nearly impossible back in the hectic concrete jungles. They seem to thrive in such a new environment where they can let their guard down and let their "true" selves come out. The removal of time and space limitations in the online classroom similarly allows students to "engage with each other, (the) material and instructor in completely different ways." (Palloff & Pratt, 1999) All discussions between students are open to all to read and comment on, as are the instructor's reactions and comments to them. It's like having a bird's eye view of a class, where all classroom communication can be heard. The asynchronous nature of classroom discussion means that thoughtful reflections are elicited, providing richer and deeper levels of interaction.

Instructors contemplating stepping into the online classroom need not be overly anxious about making the leap. By providing enough initial structure and then stepping back to let students become explorers, a sense of discovery can be had by all participants. Online teachers and learners will experience a transformation similar to wilderness returnees who say their lives will never be the same. Instructors will move from spoon-feeding information in the face to face class to showing students where the ingredients and utensils are. Lastly, there is one key difference between a true wilderness and the online classroom for which we can all be thankful for: mosquitoes!

References
(1) Palloff, Rena M. and Keith Pratt, Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace: Effective Strategies for the Online Classroom. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1999.

About the author
John Griffin is a student in the Masters of Science in Education,Online Teaching and Learning program at California State University Hayward. He currently teaches ESL at TheUniversity of Seoul in South Korea. An ex-U.S. Forest Service wilderness ranger, his love of the outdoors led him to see the relationship between an online teacher and wilderness guide, leading others into unknown territory.