Fostering SEL – A faculty member who routinely builds connections in person describes how she retooled an asynchronous graduate online course to foster collaboration, peer feedback, and social and emotional learning. From Canva introductions to discussion-based check-ins, “in
When class is asynchronous, the hard part isn’t delivering content. It’s the sense of a shared room—of trust, familiarity, and momentum that students often feel when everyone shows up together.
That question has pushed one faculty member to rethink what an online learning community can look like. especially for graduate students who aren’t engaged simultaneously. Teaching primarily undergraduate courses in person. she says she spends a lot of time curating classes to encourage connections among students. In those settings. she pushes collaboration through group projects and regular peer feedback. and she says students respond by enjoying those interactions—often leaving class having forged partnerships with other peers and choosing to take additional courses together to keep collaborating.
But her recent shift into an asynchronous graduate-level course brought new anxiety. She had concerns about whether she could create the same level of connectedness online, after previous experiences left her feeling that her online classes weren’t as collaborative and engaging as they should be.
Her solution focuses on collaboration and social and emotional learning. anchored in the Collaborative for Academic. Social and Emotional Learning—CASEL. CASEL introduces five competencies of social and emotional skills within the learning environment: self-awareness. social awareness. responsible decision making. relationship skills. and self-management. The faculty member argues that when those competencies are infused into course experiences. students and adults can participate in collaborative workspaces that build community and help people understand and accept different viewpoints.
She also points to CASEL’s 2026 emphasis that students need trusting relationships and strong environments where they feel motivated. engaged. safe. and a sense of belonging. She says she has long been able to foster that in-person. yet struggled to translate the same connectedness to an online setting where timing can’t be synchronized.
What she wanted most was a course experience where students could form professional peer groups and gain insightful feedback within those groups. To get there. she reexamined what she was doing in her in-person classes and reimagined those activities. assignments. and interactions for an online space. She spoke with colleagues, examined other online delivery methods, and found ways to build a community of learners.
One early step is giving students a human starting point through Canva slide introductions. In the first week. instructors share a Canva slide introducing themselves online so students can get familiar with the instructor and perceive them as approachable. Students then create their own Canva slide to do the same. The slides are compiled into one slideshow or posted on a discussion board. where peers can provide positive feedback or make connections. She says this activity fosters social awareness and relationship skills by helping students learn about one another and form connections to both the instructor and other classmates.
She also recommends check-in routines to keep students from feeling alone in asynchronous coursework. Instructors send an email to all students checking in and asking whether they have any questions at that time. For larger classes, the check-in can be posted in a discussion board instead. She describes these check-ins as typically sent out within the first quarter of the semester and then as needed after that point. The purpose is practical—students can share concerns or questions—but it’s also relationship-building: students may feel supported and encouraged to reach out for help when they perceive the instructor will check in and ask if they need assistance. In her view. that builds rapport between student and instructor and creates an opening for collaboration. while also encouraging students’ own self-awareness by prompting introspection about what they’re unsure of.
For times when students need more than isolated posts. she points to “innovation labs. ” sometimes described as “group huddles.” These are spaces inside the learning management system—LMS locations designed for discussion among students. They can include a quick topic post that invites ideas. or prompts that begin a discussion chain where students freely brainstorm about an upcoming assignment. She says these labs function as “safe space” discussions where students can give feedback to one another without a grade or point value. Instructors don’t have to provide the main feedback; they mostly monitor as students talk. She places these labs at key points throughout the semester as students move into new topics. describing the tool as supporting self-management and social awareness while giving students a collaborative way to engage.
Then there is Padlet, described as an interactive bulletin board that can make the learning space feel more shared. Instructors create a post and students respond to it. and students can also create their own posts that peers comment on. Instructors can build a “sandbox” on Padlet containing links. images. and space for sharing topics. and students can create their own sandbox as well. She says instructors can post articles and pose questions to spur conversation. and Padlet can also be used to generate ideas for an upcoming project. Her argument is that Padlet builds connections while students learn and share through their own lenses. helping students develop social awareness and increasing empathy and understanding of different viewpoints.
Her broader message is that collaboration in any learning environment can strengthen social and emotional learning. She writes that online classrooms can be just as interactive as in-person classrooms if instructors plan ahead to create a student-centered space. Building a collaborative workspace, she says, encourages community and supports social and emotional learning.
She also ties this approach to research on employability and workplace performance. She cites Hosseinioun. Neffke. Youn. and Letian (2025. August 26). noting their point that the “glue” keeping current talent productive includes social skills such as communication. empathy. conflict resolution. and the ability to coordinate diverse expertise.
In the end. her aim is consistent whether she’s teaching graduate or undergraduate students. in person or online: students should be encouraged to collaborate and learn from one another so they can become community-builders in their professional lives—welcoming others and their ideas within shared workspaces.
Dr. Stefanie R. Sorbet is an associate professor in the department of Elementary, Literacy, and Special Education at the University of Central Arkansas. She currently serves the department as interim department chair. She has over 25 years of experience in both elementary and higher education combined. Dr. Sorbet instructs positive classroom management courses and supervises interns in their field placement. Her research agenda consists of mentoring novice and preservice teachers in classroom management. social and emotional learning. and building community in classroom settings across all disciplines and grade levels.
Her references include CASEL (2026) on how SEL supports educational equity and excellence, and Hosseinioun, M., Neffke, F., Youn, H., & Zhang, L. T. (2025, August 26) in Harvard Business Review, as well as a link to hbr.org/2025/08/soft-skills-matter-now-more-than-ever-according-to-new-research.
social and emotional learning SEL online learning asynchronous courses collaboration CASEL graduate education faculty teaching Padlet LMS innovation labs Canva introductions