Frontiers of Research on the Community of Inquiry Model

• In Event: The Community of Inquiry Framework: 20 Years and Going Strong

Abstract

The conceptual value of the Community of Inquiry framework is unquestioned. Hundreds of researchers have used the CoI model to conduct foundational work to understand the nature of teaching and learning in technology-mediated environments. From large scale survey research we now understand relationships between the forms of presence including the contributions of teaching and social presence to the development and advancement of cognitive presence. From content analysis we better understand how faculty and students exhibit the presences under varying conditions in asynchronous threaded discussions and other forums in online courses. Research continues to develop additional insights and constructs that may be absent from the model. The next stage of CoI research may require that we connect various research methods with more complex and nuanced learner data to more closely analyze the impacts and interactions of CoI constructs on individual student learning and development in a variety of contexts over time.

Author

• Peter Shea, University at Albany - SUNY