The challenges and responsibilities for the online instructor involve creating as many opportunities for dialogue as possible and fostering a social climate in which trust and cooperation develop good collaborative relations, which also
contributes to effective use of discussion for learning. Indeed, meaningful engagement with learning content is important for boosting student confidence which is inspired also by teacher modelling, especially if great enthusiasm is displayed for their subject (Delahunty et al., 2014). The importance of modelling is widely acknowledged as an effective strategy in the design of any learning activity that aims to introduce novel approaches (Fuchs et al., 2012; Lai, 2015; Vinagre, 2017). Too often, however, courses are designed without specific modelling of the behaviours they are designed to engender. This paper details the design and delivery of an online professional development (PD) course titled ‘Getting started with online teaching’ in the context of the National Forum PD digital badge initiative. The project involved a collaborative team effort across three HEIs to develop and deliver the course online, employing a range of the strategies which were suggested in the course. Aimed at HE educators who wish to move some of their teaching online, the course was scaffolded so these future online teachers become online learner first and then develop their insight into online teaching through observation, imitation and ultimately modelling. At a philosophical level, this implies a ‘practice what you preach’ stance which offers educators the opportunity to undergo the experience from the student’s perspective in the first place and reflect on their own teaching in the process. This presentation will discuss how successful the initiative was in delivering its objectives based on feedback collected from participants and the development team’s insights.