My philosophy is to remove the desk from the classroom. Get up on your feet and circulate. It is amazing how a shy or quiet student will ask questions if they see you are visible and up and moving around to help them. In the past, I have had veteran teachers ask me how I maintained such an engaged group of students while I was teaching. I told them that I never sit down, I am moving around the room while lecturing, and I stand in the back of the room while they are taking exams. For my online teaching, I make myself available to the students beyond my online office hours. Whenever I am working at the computer, I make myself available through the online chat if they have questions. If I receive an email, I send a response right away and if I need to call a student I do that too.