Online teaching remains one of the most talked-about topics of the day in higher education, and there are no shortage of studies on the topic. Do students learn more online? Do they learn less? Do they learn slightly less, but maybe it saves so much money that administrators will still find it appealing? But left relatively undiscussed is another question faculty might have: what is it like to teach online?

Helena Worthen reports on a new survey from COCAL (the Coalition of Contingent Academic Labor) that asked faculty members about their online courses. She discusses the data in the September-October issue of Academe, exploring questions like: Why do faculty teach online? Who develops the courses? Who owns the courses?

Worthen also helps break down the data by institution type, to see, for example, to see how teachers at for-profit schools get paid relative to those at community colleges, public state universities, and private schools. Take a look at the rest of the data and Worthen’s analysis in Academe.