Cari Lara

OMDE 601 Section 9040

22November2015
Essay Assignment 3
Community of Inquiry within Distance Education
Distance education has evolved greatly since the first correspondence courses were
distributed and one highly studied theory is the Community of Inquiry (COI) framework.
Garrison and Cleveland-Innes describe it as being a purposeful educational environment which
combines elements of social, cognitive, and teaching presence to allow for critical reflection
and discourse (2010, p. 20). Establishing a synchronous educational community within the
constraints of distance education is a challenge that all programs face. This paper will discuss
this further by examining studies and literature with regards to each element of COI.
In order to understand COI as a theory, it must be broken down into its elements. As
stated above, the three elements of COI are the social presence, cognitive presence, and teaching
presence (Garrison & Cleveland-Innes, 2010, p. 20). Dr. Swan explains that social presence is
the degree to which learners feel socially and emotionally connected while online (as cited in
Garrison & Cleveland-Innes, 2010, p. 123). This can be managed by the use of discussion
boards, audio/visual conferencing, or social media. In the same text, she describes teaching
presence to be the design, facilitation, and direction of cognitive and social processes to create
significant experiences (2010, p. 124). Teaching presence is a very important aspect, as the
instructor has the ability to create more social and cognitive presence. Lastly, Dr. Swan
describes cognitive presence as the extent learners are able to construct and confirm meaning

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through the variety of course requirements and activities (2010, p. 124). Cognitive presence can
be determined by the activities within the class and requires variety when appropriate. These
elements do not work independent from each other, rather collectively to enhance all the areas.
COGNITIVE PRESENCE
It has been shown that certain areas may have less influence than others when examined
in different educational environment. Lambert and Fischer (2013) point out that cognitive
presence may be higher is soft disciplines such as applied sciences since the focus is more
constructive learning, as opposed to math or social studies where the focus is more instructive.
They go on to write that students in the soft disciplines are more likely to collaborate with other
students, boosting the cognitive presence. In the hard disciplines, rote memorization and linear
thinking is a focus (Lambert and Fischer, 2013). This is an important concept for instructors to
understand in order to have a more balanced COI within their classes. An instructor cannot teach
a class on statistical analysis the same way they would a class on social work. They much find a
way to increase cognitive presence in their statistics class, possibly through the use of social
media such as YouTube or Twitter when applicable. A social work class has likely created a
community through the use of discussion posts, group projects, or other activities that would not
be appropriate for a math class.
SOCIAL PRESENCE
One variable that is often discussed with regards to COI is time. Is there a magic number
of weeks that a course should last? How long does a community take to develop within a class?
Several studies have been done to try to determine how time effects the levels of COI within a
class. One such study by Akyol, Vaughan, and Garrison (2011) examined the same course given

COMMUNITY OF INQUIRY WITHIN DISTANCE EDUCATION

in a 13 week and six week term. The results of the study are very interesting. With regards to
cognitive presence and the development of a community, it was noted that students in the short
term course established a community quicker, while the students in the long term course sought
to deepen that community by getting to know each other more personally (Akyol, Vaughan, &
Garrison, 2011). The authors write the students in the short term had to do the same amount of
work in a much shorter timeline, so they had to establish the community immediately (2011).
With regards to social presence, the short term course had to make contact with each other
immediately out of necessity. This is an important point with regards to the COI framework in
that logical thinking would dictate a high social presence would be higher in the longer course.
One takeaway during course design is to plan the course keeping COI in mind and design it in
such a way that the students do interact with other continuously. While this is done in most
courses through introduction posts and later discussion boards, some instructors also introduce
group work when appropriate. While this can be a challenge in any course, online or traditional
face to face, it can be argued that there is a greater challenge when online. Instructors must
remain flexible when assigning group work as the basic challenge of simply having students
from across the world in one class is unique to online education.
TEACHING PRESENCE
Garrison, Cleveland-Innes, & Funk wrote in one 2010 study that teaching presence is essential
in establishing a sense of social presence by engendering an atmosphere of trust, open
communication and group cohesion. This is another key point when discussing the COI
framework. While all three elements must be balanced and present in order for a student to have
satisfaction with a course and arguably for the course to be successful, it can be argued that
teaching presence is the foundation for COI. An instructor cannot teach a course online in the

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same manner as a traditional face to face course is taught. When face to face, body language,
facial expressions, and changes in tone and voice inflection are all factors used in student-teacher
interaction. Those important indicators are lost when in an online environment, if some sort of
video or teleconferencing is not utilized. Teachers must constantly interact with students by
timely responses to questions, personal and appropriate feedback, and they must also set clear
course guidelines and instructions. In the same way courses must be designed within the
framework of COI, instructors must be aware of the framework as well and put it into practice.
To underline this point, Garrison, Cleveland-Innes, & Funk write that there are three teaching
responsibilities. These include establishing curriculum content, learning activities, and
timelines, monitoring and managing purposeful collaboration and reflection, and lastly,
ensuring the intended learning outcomes are reaching by diagnosing needs and providing timely
information and direction (2010). A teacher cannot simply inherit a course and present it as is.
They must take ownership of that course to ensure the community is receiving the best product
available in order to be successful.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, this essay has described the Community of Inquiry framework by
discussing the three elements of teaching presence, social presence, and cognitive presence.
While they were discussed separately, it is important to note that all three elements must be
present in a course for it to be successful. In one example of this, Garrison, Cleveland-Innes, &
Funk write that it was shown through student perceptions that teaching presence directly
influences the perception of social and cognitive presence (2010). While some disciplines may
have a lower level of one presence over another, it is the instructors responsibility to monitor
and adjust their instruction when warranted. The COI has been proven to be a successful

COMMUNITY OF INQUIRY WITHIN DISTANCE EDUCATION

framework in multiple studies and should be consulted during the design, implementation, and
evaluation phases of a course.

References
Akyol, Z., Vaughan, N. & Garrison, D.R. (2011). The impact of course duration on the
development of a community of inquiry. Interactive Learning Environments, 19(3), 231246. Retrieved from
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=526517c28eef-45aa-94e8-bd2bb261daf4%40sessionmgr115&vid=5&hid=126
Garrison, D. R. & Cleveland-Innes, M. F. (2010). An introduction to distance education:
Understanding teaching and learning in a new era. New York and London: Routledge.
Garrison, D.R. Cleveland-Innes, M. & Fung, T. (2010). Exploring causal relationships among
cognitive, social and teaching presence: Student perceptions of the community of inquiry
framework. The Internet and Higher Education, 13(1-2), 31-36. Retrieved from
http://www.sciencedirect.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/science/article/pii/S1096751609000591
Lambert, J. L., & Fisher, J. L. (2013). Community of Inquiry framework: Establishing
community in an online course. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 12(1), 116.
Retrieved from http://www.ncolr.org/jiol/issues/pdf/12.1.1.pdf