I think the instructor and the student are essential in the distance learning process. I agree with the following quote from the text "teaching and learning are two sides of the same coin, often referred to as a learning experience" (Simonson et al., 2015, p.201). When an instructor is designing a course, the main focus should be toward using the best tool and means for the activity and incorporating a variety of learning styles so all students can learn. In my experiences, I have observed that students learn differently, some are visual learners, others are text learners, and most learn by association and activities that are real life-based. In addition, it is important to display clear guidelines and grading criteria so students know how to structure their time and efforts and know how their work will be graded. I have found in my experiences that clear grading rubrics are of utmost importance to guide students toward successful completion of coursework. Both the instructor and the student have responsibilities in the process of learning. The instructor has the duty of presenting learning objectives and information to promote the learning, as well as, guide and help the learning. The student has the role of using the learning materials, learning the content by completing coursework, and asking the instructor questions or for help. In my experiences teaching online courses, I have found it beneficial to include a start the course here area or begin course here area, in this area I include the syllabus, schedule, grading rubrics, my contact information, and a syllabus quiz. The students must score maximum on the syllabus quiz to move forward in the course. The syllabus quiz covers getting started information, the location of areas in the course, finding due dates, grading information, etc. I have found this syllabus quiz slows students down and makes them read and understand the course information so they can be successful in the course.