Richard, I agree that setting high expectations for faculty and students will help to ensure consistency throughout the students' educational experiences at that institution. High expectations also encourage a higher caliber of work in both groups. I would suggest that there needs to be some flexibility in the faculty expectations as each class and content differs. Therefore, in some classes a direct instructor post to every student post might not foster the sense of community among the students that you want. It seems there would just need to be some flexibility in the model. rbert Brown III