Zehra Esin Yücel’s research while affiliated with Ege University and other places

Online learning can be useful for designing instruction with its asynchronous or synchronous forms. The teachers can reduce time and space limitations and support learners with additional materials in a cost-effective way. However, online learning heavily depends on learner characteristics/profile and course design. Even though it provides the flexibility of designing courses for different learner needs, motivation and learner responsibility remain unsolved problems. On the other hand, we can boost learner's autonomy with our course design. Autonomous learner profile is a perfect fit for online learning because of the flexibility for the learners. In this chapter, the authors define learner autonomy, describe its role in online course design, go over key elements in online course design and management, and give design tips for boosting learner autonomy in both synchronous and asynchronous online courses.