scholarly journals A STUDY OF STUDENTS’ SENSE OF LEARNING COMMUNITY IN ONLINE ENVIRONMENTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Shea
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Learning Environments ◽  
College Campuses ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Theoretical Assumptions ◽  
Core Elements ◽  
Pedagogical Models

This paper looks first at some of the often unspoken epistemological, philosophical, and theoretical assumptions that are foundational to student-centered, interactive online pedagogical models. It is argued that these foundational assumptions point to the importance of learning community in the effectiveness of online learning environments. Next, a recent study of 2314 online students across thirty-two college campuses is presented. This study reports on learners’ sense of community and it is concluded through factor and regression analysis that elements of the Community of Inquiry model —specifically learners’ recognition of effective “directed facilitation” and effective instructional design and organization on the part of their instructor contributes to their sense of shared purpose, trust, connectedness, and learning—core elements of a community of learners. Gender also appears to play a small role in students’ sense of learning community with female students reporting higher levels than their male classmates. Implications for online learning environments design are discussed.

Electronic Classroom, Electronic Community

2010 ◽  
pp. 439-456
Author(s):  
Lisa Harris
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Learning Environments ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
Electronic Classroom ◽  
Electronic Community ◽  
Quality Learning ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
The Relationship

The capacity for online learning environments to provide good quality learning experiences for students has been the focus of speculation and debate in the higher education sector from the late 1990s to the present day. In this area, “quality” has become synonymous with engaging students in a learning community. This chapter reports on a qualitative research project designed to explore the significance of community for students studying online. Using three fundamentally different types of online learning environments as case studies, this research explored the relationship between the constructed online learning environment and the development of learning communities or what the author has termed social learning support networks (SLSN). Exploring the common themes to emerge from these three case studies, this research provides new evidence of the benefit of community for students studying online and argues that future online learning environments should be shaped by five key principles designed to foster a sense of social connection between students.

Learning Styles and Cultural Differences in Online Learning Environments in the Twenty-First Century

2021 ◽  
pp. 1630-1642
Author(s):  
Blessing F. Adeoye
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Learning Environments ◽  
First Century ◽  
Cultural Backgrounds ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Centered Learning ◽  
Twenty First Century ◽  
Nigerian University

The nature of learning is changing, especially learning in the twenty-first century. It's increasingly becoming more to do with student-centered learning. It emphasizes digital literacy, critical thinking, and interpersonal skills. This chapter revisited online learning environments in terms of differences in the learning styles of Nigerian university students according to their cultural backgrounds. The author also reviewed past research that focused on culturally different learning styles in online learning environments. Of specific interest are the studies that examined the same issue in the twenty-first century. This chapter concluded based on the review of literature that a person's learning style could affect how they react to any learning situation, including learning online; therefore, knowledge of learning styles could help in the selection of appropriate instructional designs and teaching strategies for courses. In the case of the students at the University of Lagos, it was found that students with different learning styles have different responses to online learning within their culture.

Applying Grounded Conversation Design to Instruction

2008 ◽  
pp. 203-217
Author(s):  
Rocci Luppicini
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Learning Environments ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Online Learning Community ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
The Social ◽  
Conversation Theory

A grounded conversation design approach is posited as a way to study complex conversational processes within online learning environments. This approach is applied to online learning contexts to leverage conversation quality and learning. Study I examines conversations emerging within an online learning community created within an undergraduate class to critically discuss research. Study II applied conversational protocols derived from study I within an undergraduate online editorial board simulation intended to generate critical discourse. The chapter suggests how basic grounded conversation techniques can be applied in a variety of online learning environments to study conversation and develop grounded conversation theory within the context of online learning. Grounded conversation design is based on the assumption that conversation is situated and grounded within the social contexts from which it emerges.

Learning Styles and Cultural Differences in Online Learning Environments in the Twenty-First Century

2019 ◽  
pp. 63-74
Author(s):  
Blessing F. Adeoye
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Learning Environments ◽  
First Century ◽  
Cultural Backgrounds ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Centered Learning ◽  
Twenty First Century ◽  
Nigerian University

The nature of learning is changing, especially learning in the twenty-first century. It's increasingly becoming more to do with student-centered learning. It emphasizes digital literacy, critical thinking, and interpersonal skills. This chapter revisited online learning environments in terms of differences in the learning styles of Nigerian university students according to their cultural backgrounds. The author also reviewed past research that focused on culturally different learning styles in online learning environments. Of specific interest are the studies that examined the same issue in the twenty-first century. This chapter concluded based on the review of literature that a person's learning style could affect how they react to any learning situation, including learning online; therefore, knowledge of learning styles could help in the selection of appropriate instructional designs and teaching strategies for courses. In the case of the students at the University of Lagos, it was found that students with different learning styles have different responses to online learning within their culture.

Electronic Classroom, Electronic Community

2010 ◽  
pp. 87-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Harris
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Learning Environments ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
Electronic Classroom ◽  
Electronic Community ◽  
Quality Learning ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
The Relationship

The capacity for online learning environments to provide good quality learning experiences for students has been the focus of speculation and debate in the higher education sector from the late 1990s to the present day. In this area, “quality” has become synonymous with engaging students in a learning community. This chapter reports on a qualitative research project designed to explore the significance of community for students studying online. Using three fundamentally different types of online learning environments as case studies, this research explored the relationship between the constructed online learning environment and the development of learning communities or what the author has termed social learning support networks (SLSN). Exploring the common themes to emerge from these three case studies, this research provides new evidence of the benefit of community for students studying online and argues that future online learning environments should be shaped by five key principles designed to foster a sense of social connection between students.

scholarly journals DEVELOPING LEARNING COMMUNITY IN ONLINE ASYNCHRONOUS COLLEGE COURSES: THE ROLE OF TEACHING PRESENCE

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Shea ◽  
Chun Sau Li ◽  
Karen Swan ◽  
Alexandra Pickett
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Learning Environments ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Teaching Presence ◽  
College Level ◽  
Online Learning Community ◽  
Online Learning Environments

This paper builds on the model we have developed for creating quality online learning environments for higher education. In that model we argue that college-level online learning needs to reflect what we know about learning in general, what we understand about learning in higher-education contexts, and our emerging knowledge of learning in largely asynchronous online environments. Components of the model include a focus on learner roles, knowledge building, assessment, community, and various forms of “presence.” In this paper we focus on two components—teaching presence and community—and review the rationale and benefits for an emphasis on community in online learning environments. We argue that learning is social in nature and that online learning environments can be designed to reflect and leverage the social nature of learning. We suggest that previous research points to the critical role that community can play in building and sustaining productive learning and that teaching presence, defined as the core roles of the online instructor, is among the most promising mechanism for developing online learning community. We present a multi-institutional study of 2,036 students across thirty-two different colleges that supports this claim and provides insight into the relationship between online learning community and teaching presence. Factor and regression analysis indicate a significant link between students’ sense oflearning community and their recognition of effective instructional design and directed facilitation on the part of their course instructors—and that student gender plays a small role in sense of learning community. We conclude with recommendations for online course design, pedagogy, and future research.

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