Advances in technology have created a new type of learner who relies mainly on laptops and mobile devices to access teaching materials. This situation has driven teachers to adopt new strategies that preserve the quality of face-to-face teaching, yet take advantage of the benefits online teaching provides.

The current book aims at setting the foundations for the successful delivery of online teaching. It is divided into three main parts.

Part 1 (chapters 1 and 2) introduce the book by first giving an overview of online teaching, including its benefits, its functioning, and its two main types, synchronous and asynchronous (chapter 1). Chapter 2 guides the reader toward exploring the resources offered by teaching institutions in order to properly plan learning activities. This includes exploring the technological and administrative environments.

Part 2 (chapters 3 to 9) looks at the core of the design process of an online course. It discusses the different strategies for developing a course, creating an effective syllabus and teaching content, and devising accompanying student activities. It also discusses copyright and intellectual property when using online educational resources. The part concludes with an exploration of the different Web 2.0 tools available to create appealing online teaching material.

Part 3 (chapters 10 to 15) then focuses on the learner’s side. It highlights the aspects to take into account when preparing students for online learning. The authors focus on classroom management and how to avoid common pitfalls. This fourth edition includes a new chapter on massive open online courses (MOOCs).

The main characteristic of this book is the use of concrete case studies to support its claims. This makes it easy for the reader to put things in context. It is well written and up to date. The book gathers best practices, but also highlights common pitfalls. I highly recommend it to anyone involved in designing online courses.

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