Why a Baking Theme?

This past summer, eCampus hosted a summer camp that covered a variety of topics—RSI, Assessment, and Accessibility—and used a baking theme to tie it all together. (A good theme makes the learning fun, right??)

We decided to stick with the baking theme for MQT because it’s such a perfect metaphor for Regular Substantive Interaction. Good teaching—especially online—isn’t about tossing ingredients together and hoping for the best. It’s about intention, timing, and care.

And, let’s be honest—bread, cookies, and cakes are a lot more fun to talk about than compliance checklists. The baking theme helps turn what can feel like a dry, regulatory requirement into something relatable, memorable, and even a little mouth-watering.

When you finish MQT, we want you to remember not just the definition of RSI, but the feeling of being in the “classroom kitchen”—mixing, proofing, and baking learning experiences for your students.

Welcome to your kitchen—where teaching isn’t just about checking boxes. It’s about mixing intention with care to create a learning experience that’s nourishing, inclusive, and memorable.

While Regular Substantive Interaction (RSI) is essential for compliance in distance education, its deeper purpose is far more powerful:
To cultivate instructor presence—and with it, trust, inclusion, and support.

🥣 The Core Ingredients: Trust, Inclusion, and Support

In The Norton Guide to Equity-Minded Teaching, we’re reminded that students don’t just need content—they need to belong. Instructor presence is how we preheat the classroom with warmth, build flavor through feedback, and serve up experiences that say you matter here.

Baking in Trust, Inclusion, and Support
Ingredient	What It Looks Like	Why It Matters
Trust	Prompt responses, feedback that shows you read their work, transparency about expectations	Trust is the leavening agent. It helps students rise. Without it, learning falls flat.
Inclusion	Diverse examples, acknowledgment of lived experiences, validating student voices	Inclusion is the flour—it holds everything together. It ensures no one is sifted out of the conversation.
Support	Encouragement, checking in, offering options, helping students navigate challenge	Support is the kneading—it strengthens the structure. It helps students stretch without breaking.

🥐 So, What Does RSI Have to Do With This?

Think of RSI as your baking process:

Direct instruction = mixing the core ingredients live, in front of students (content + context)
Content feedback = adjusting flavor as the dough rises. Not all dough is the same and results can vary
Facilitating discussions = encouraging students to bring their own ingredients while you share your content knowledge
Answering questions = making sure nothing burns or gets left out
Regular (weekly) presence = setting the right temperature for consistent, meaningful learning

It’s not about checking a timer—it’s about being there in the kitchen with your students.

🧁 Final Thought: Bake With Love

Teaching online isn’t just a delivery system—it’s a recipe for community. When you show up regularly, offer substance, and do it with care, you’re not just meeting a standard; You’re creating a space where students can trust the process—and themselves.

🍞 Looking for Something to Read during the Fall???

A free online version of The Norton Guide to Equity-Minded Teaching by Artze-Vega, Darby, Dewsbury, and Imad is available at W.W. Norton. Ideas shared in the book not only supports practical approaches to equity-minded teaching, but also align with and strengthen the goals of RSI. For example, "Unit 4: Relationship Earn and Maintain Students' Trust" goes into detail about feedback, which is also found in RSI.