Regular & Substantive Interaction

Regular & Substantive Interaction

What it means for distance education compliance.

In September 2020, the U.S. Department of Education established new requirements that fundamentally changed distance education standards. Any course where students utilize Title IV funds—federal financial aid—must now demonstrate Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI) between students and faculty.

This requirement affects millions of students across thousands of institutions nationwide, making RSI compliance a critical priority for higher education administrators.

What is "Distance Education"?

Distance Education is defined as:

Education that uses one or more of the technologies listed below to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor or instructors and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor or instructors, either synchronously or asynchronously. The technologies that may be used to offer distance education include:

• The internet;

• One-way and two-way transmissions through open broadcast, closed circuit, cable microwave, broadband, fiber optic, satellite, or wireless communication devices;

• Audio conference;

• Other media used in a course in conjunction with any of the technologies listed in this definition.

For the purposes of this definition, substantive interaction is engaging students in teaching, learning, and assessment, consistent with the content under discussion, and also included at least two of the following:

• Providing direct instruction;

• Assessing or providing feedback on a student's coursework;

• Providing information or responding to questions about the content of a course or competency; or

• Facilitating a group discussion regarding the content of a course or competency; or

• Other instructional activities approved by the institution's or program's accrediting agency.

(Distance education definition adopted from Code of Federal Regulations 34 CFR § 600.2)