There are many facets to supporting teachers and many of the issues are the same, whether they work online or via traditional delivery methods. Teachers need access to reliable facilities and resources, pedagogical, administrative, technical and social support, access to professional development and career progress, information on employment and health and safety issues and an opportunity to improve their skills and the quality of the courses they deliver. This article will focus specifically on providing an online support system for teachers that can allow them access to these opportunities regardless of their geographical location or delivery method.

Whether the online teacher is working at home or in the workplace, the online environment provides a unique opportunity to provide teacher support in a way that is difficult to replicate face-to-face. It has the potential to provide a better and more active service for teachers if it can be online, accessible, asynchronous and reliable.  This allows equal, flexible and visible participation and there is the potential for greater interaction across locations than traditional support methods.  It is innovative in its ability to allow teachers to be actively involved in their own support network.

The benefits of providing an online teacher support system includes:

• It can be accessed at any time from any location
  
• It can bring together teachers in similar disciplines at different locations
  
• It promotes the sharing of resources and ideas
  
• It allows teacher-to-teacher support and mentoring
  
• It can be used as a tool for course and curriculum development
  
• It can act as a central repository for resources and information
  
• It can be archived

A framework for an online teacher support system can revolve primarily around an asynchronous discussion forum, which can take a variety of forms depending on the number of participants and available facilities:

• Shared set of email addresses. This is ideal for very small groups who use email regularly and have limited access to more extensive online facilities. It can be used with a common email software application to share document versions automatically (for example Qualcomm Eudora’s ESP feature).
  
• Email mailing list. Free versions are available and this is a simple way to ensure all participants automatically receive all messages. An Example is Yahoo Groups.
  
• Discussion Board. This is good for larger groups or multiple disciplines as separate conferences can be set up. It allows a central document depository to be established and can often be accessed via the Web or email. Examples are WebBoard, FirstClass.
  
• Virtual Learning Environment. This allows for a more structured environment that can accommodate various facilities such as a discussion board, chat, home pages, link depository and specific customisation. Examples are WebCT, Blackboard and Moodle.

The online discussion forum allows:

• Open communication between teachers, administrators and technical support. The forum can act as a common communication point between staff who may rarely meet face-to-face.
  
• Support on pedagogical issues. This may include:
  
  • The nature and meaning of course materials
    
  • The standard and frequency of contributions from students
    
  • The type and level of feedback required on specific activities
    
  • The source and selection of additional student materials
    
  • How learning outcomes and assessment criteria are defined and met
    
  • The relationship between theoretical concepts and practical application
    
  • Learning styles and relationships
    
  • Innovations and current thought in specific subject areas.
• Mentoring of new staff.  New teachers can ask for support and guidance on a range of issues and receive personalised and timely feedback that is viewable by other teachers.  Past questions and answers can be archived so that they can be accessed at any time, avoiding the need to repeat common issues every time a new teacher joins the group. Group mentoring can be as effective as one-to-one interaction and has the added benefit of drawing on a broader pool of experience, an advantage that is harder to replicate in traditional face-to-face support networks.
  
• Support on technical issues. Teachers and technical support staff can share their expertise in an open forum to resolve common technical issues. Archived discussions can form the basis of ‘frequently asked questions’ (FAQ) and technical problems that can be foreseen (for example, planned interruption to server access and maintenance of facilities) can be shared in a timely manner so teachers can inform students and make contingency plans.
  
• Social interaction. This can be an important part of building teams and rapport between staff and is particularly important for staff who may not meet face-to-face frequently.
  
• Sharing of resources and ideas. Teachers, who use their particular skills to develop new ways to manage their work or students or may have new ideas and resources, can use the discussion forum to share their ideas and to collaborate.
  
• Course development. All of the aspects listed above can contribute to teachers being involved in ongoing active course development and this can be made possible and encouraged by a facilitator with the ability to implement changes.

 One of the key benefits of a web-based discussion forum is that it can act as an archive of information and can be a place to share and store key documentation. These could include:

• A Teacher Guide
  
• Templates for student progress tracking, attendance, portfolios, etc.
  
• Examples of student work
  
• Minutes of meetings
  
• OH&S guidelines
  
• Employment information
  
• Professional development information

In order for an online discussion forum to be successful, it can help if there is:

• Management and teacher support. This allows the facility to be seen as a positive tool that has real benefits and is not just an added responsibility.
  
• A facilitator to implement ideas. The facilitator can draw discussions to a close and should have the authority to actually implement new ideas. This makes the system an active tool that can affect real change and progress.
  
• Equal access for all relevant staff. This may mean the forum needs to be accessible from any location, especially from outside the workplace, and may need to be asynchronous so staff can contribute at any time.
  
• A reliable system. It can be very discouraging if teachers can’t access the forum when their schedule allows and frequent lack of access can deter teachers from contributing at all.
  
• Participation across levels. This can include management, administration, teachers and technical support and allows several facets of teacher support to be realised.
  
• Regular contributions and active participation. All of the aspects listed above encourage teachers to become actively involved on an ongoing basis and the failure of any one aspect can discourage teachers from contributing regularly or understanding the value of helping create an active and productive forum.

Some examples of different ways an online discussion forum can be utilised: