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The Joyful Online Teacher: Finding Our Fizz in Asynchronous Classes
The happier the teacher, the better the learning experience—for instructor and student alike. With this equation at its core, The Joyful Online Teacher provides practical guidance for making distance learning infinitely more enjoyable and effective, and for improving the online teaching experience in asynchronous classes that often take place in Learning Management Systems (LMSs) like Canvas or Blackboard Learn, and where instructors and students rarely interact in real time, contributing to low completion rates.
One of the most pervasive challenges in distance learning is the absent online instructor; and one clear reason for this problem is the often unsatisfying nature of teaching online. A leading voice on online education, Flower Darby draws on the sciences of learning, emotion, and motivation, three decades of her own teaching, extensive research on online student experience, and the stories of joyful online teachers to present concrete tips for making online teaching more rewarding.
The key, Darby suggests, is learning to love teaching online. To that end, her book offers instructors accessible, inspiring, common-sense hacks for connecting with students, finding passion, navigating the structural inequities of higher ed, and more—all with a focus on building rapport and relationships, the central ingredients of happiness and satisfaction. These time-tested strategies and hard-won insights promise to help online teachers find meaning, purpose, and, yes, joy in their work—and, consequently, to fulfill the enormous, largely untapped potential of online education.
One of the most pervasive challenges in distance learning is the absent online instructor; and one clear reason for this problem is the often unsatisfying nature of teaching online. A leading voice on online education, Flower Darby draws on the sciences of learning, emotion, and motivation, three decades of her own teaching, extensive research on online student experience, and the stories of joyful online teachers to present concrete tips for making online teaching more rewarding.
The key, Darby suggests, is learning to love teaching online. To that end, her book offers instructors accessible, inspiring, common-sense hacks for connecting with students, finding passion, navigating the structural inequities of higher ed, and more—all with a focus on building rapport and relationships, the central ingredients of happiness and satisfaction. These time-tested strategies and hard-won insights promise to help online teachers find meaning, purpose, and, yes, joy in their work—and, consequently, to fulfill the enormous, largely untapped potential of online education.
199 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 21, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 9, 2026
I told a friend I was reading The Joyful Online Teacher, and her reply was, "Is that a thing?" Joyful online teaching hasn't been a thing for me for a very long time. My last semester teaching asynchronous online was so terrible, I had to face the fact that I was the problem. Luckily, Darby has solutions.
She writes in the same way she advises instructors to update their courses. Her arguments are well-organized and straightforward. She is personable with a cheerleader affect that actually made me believe that I could, indeed, do better and so would my students. She frames her strategies around the PERMA model of well-being: Positive Emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment with emphasis on positive emotions and relationships. She reminds instructors to set boundaries so that they can be present in their courses without burning out. She reminds us that asynchronous online learning is ultimately an equity play that allows non-traditional college students to obtain degrees that can help reshape their futures. I think this is still mostly true, but I'm not entirely sure for how long.
As AI reshapes everything, higher education and the workforce must reshape with it. Darby is transparent that she's not writing about AI-proofing our classes. She makes a few nods to where AI might help instructors and cautions against using bots to run a class or using AI to shape a class because it increases the distance between the learner and the instructor which is exactly the gap she's writing to bridge. I won't list the strategies here, but the book is a quick read. Start with one strategy and move through the rest as they suit you, your time, and your courses.
She writes in the same way she advises instructors to update their courses. Her arguments are well-organized and straightforward. She is personable with a cheerleader affect that actually made me believe that I could, indeed, do better and so would my students. She frames her strategies around the PERMA model of well-being: Positive Emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment with emphasis on positive emotions and relationships. She reminds instructors to set boundaries so that they can be present in their courses without burning out. She reminds us that asynchronous online learning is ultimately an equity play that allows non-traditional college students to obtain degrees that can help reshape their futures. I think this is still mostly true, but I'm not entirely sure for how long.
As AI reshapes everything, higher education and the workforce must reshape with it. Darby is transparent that she's not writing about AI-proofing our classes. She makes a few nods to where AI might help instructors and cautions against using bots to run a class or using AI to shape a class because it increases the distance between the learner and the instructor which is exactly the gap she's writing to bridge. I won't list the strategies here, but the book is a quick read. Start with one strategy and move through the rest as they suit you, your time, and your courses.
May 19, 2026
I’ve been teaching online for nearly 20 years, and I’ve long admired Darby Flowers’ work, so The Joyful Online Teacher felt like a timely read at the end of a demanding semester.
What makes this book so effective is its optimism without ignoring reality. Flowers addresses modern challenges, including AI and student retention, while continually reminding readers why online teaching matters and why it takes the right mindset to do it well.
As someone who genuinely loves educational technology and the opportunities online learning creates for students who need flexibility, I found the book both validating and motivating. Many of the strategies may already be familiar to experienced instructors, but the reminders are powerful, and there are plenty of fresh, practical ideas for creating a more positive and engaging online environment.
One of the book’s strongest messages is that successful online courses depend on presence and energy. Students need to show up, but instructors need to want to show up. That joy and commitment absolutely affect retention and student success.
Overall, it’s a quick, encouraging, and highly relevant read for anyone teaching online today.
What makes this book so effective is its optimism without ignoring reality. Flowers addresses modern challenges, including AI and student retention, while continually reminding readers why online teaching matters and why it takes the right mindset to do it well.
As someone who genuinely loves educational technology and the opportunities online learning creates for students who need flexibility, I found the book both validating and motivating. Many of the strategies may already be familiar to experienced instructors, but the reminders are powerful, and there are plenty of fresh, practical ideas for creating a more positive and engaging online environment.
One of the book’s strongest messages is that successful online courses depend on presence and energy. Students need to show up, but instructors need to want to show up. That joy and commitment absolutely affect retention and student success.
Overall, it’s a quick, encouraging, and highly relevant read for anyone teaching online today.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews