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Learning Community
Learning Community
What is the meaning of "community" in the context of learning and online learning?
What is the meaning of "community" in the context of learning and online learning?
An online community of inquiry is a 'group of individuals who collaboratively engage in purposeful critical discourse and reflection to construct personal meaning and confirm mutual understanding' (Garrison, Cleveland-Innes and Vaughan).
The Community of Inquiry (CoI) model serves as the theoretical framework on which our understanding of how people teach and learn best online is built. The CoI framework identifies and explores three key elements that support learner engagement and promote a successful online learning environment—social, teaching and cognitive presences. Along with each presence, the CoI research provides categories with indicators to identify and define related applied effective practices, and inform the way we teaching online to best serve our online learners.
The CoI framework is shown in the Figure below. [This is an interactive graphic. Click on the markers to reveal the content. For viewing full screen, click on the menu on the bottom right of the graphic.
The instructor’s presence and engagement with online learners are of utmost importance.
As explained above, research studies found that the instructor’s presence and engagement with online learners are the most significant variable in teaching and learning effectiveness and satisfaction. Three presences were discussed based on the Community of Inquiry Model:
Social presence – The ability of learners to project themselves socially and emotionally, thereby representing themselves as "real people."
Teaching presence – The design, facilitation, and direction of cognitive social processes for the learners to gain meaningful personal and educational learning outcomes.
Cognitive presence – The extent to which learners are able to construct and confirm meaning through sustained reflection and discourse.
Activity—Asess your own presence
Activity—Asess your own presence
The purpose of this activity is to consider how you have already incorporated these presences in your own courses and list new strategies you may need when transitioning to an online classroom.
Download the Community of Inquiry Worksheet.
Consider a face-to-face or blended course you would like to convert to an online format, an online course you are redesigning, or your teaching practices in general. Using this worksheet, write your responses to the following questions in the boxes provided:
What strategies do you currently use in your course to create a social presence, cognitive presence, and teaching presence? (Current Strategies)
What strategies would you now add after reading about the three types of instructor presence? (New Strategies).
This video below provides a good explanation of Community of Inquiry as well as some critiques and shortcomings of the framework.
Activity
Activity
Read this article: Five Key Lessons Learned from Faculty and Instructors Moving Their Courses Online as a Result of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Can you identify elements of social presence, cognitive presence and teaching presence?
Read this article: Designing a Community of Inquiry in Online Courses. Refer to Table 1: Summary of Instructional Activities for CoI. You will find a list of learning activities under each category, i.e., social, cognitive and teaching presence. You can adopt and adapt any of the activity in your online course design.
FURTHER READING
FURTHER READING
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