As opportunities to implement online coursework expand, nurse educators need to develop new paths to student engagement. The term "engagement" has many meanings in education. Simply put, engagement requires students to do something more than passively read materials. Engagement is essential for online learner success. Formative assessments provide ideal engagement tools that permit learners to evaluate their understanding. The tools include self-check quizzes, reflection questions, discussion boards, and modernized "matching" activities that prompt learners to use a cursor to move boxed text descriptions into categories. The traditional aim of self-check activities is to provide a means for learners to assess course-specific knowledge; in online education, such activities also provide a means to actively engage students. Learning management systems, or software such as SoftChalk, provide instructors with a means to build such assignments and provide automated grading. Matching activities and flash cards provide learners with immediate feedback about content in which they need further learning, without fear of penalties. Formative assessments, which disclose answers and feedback, build student confidence in concept mastery and provide a means to correct misconceptions. Performance on self-assessments informs learners of need to review content or adjust learning strategies. Similarly, faculty access to individual and aggregate data from the self-assessments can inform content areas to review or pursue alternative instruction in the associated content areas.