Digital distance learning communities: teachers’ beliefs about community in K-12 online education

This study was designed to look at K-12 teacher beliefs about the role that community plays in their online learning classes and how instructors use communication, technology and pedagogical methodologies to form class communities. This study sought to answer three major questions: 1) What are instructor beliefs about the role that community plays in online learning and what are the challenges to forming those communities? 2) Which methodologies and technologies do instructors use to promote a feeling of community for their online students? 3) Which artifacts of teaching provide evidence of the formation and continuation of digital distance education communities? This study used a qualitative multi-case research methodology which included teacher interviews and teaching artifact observations from eight online instructors who taught high school online credit classes. Findings from the study indicated that among the sample population, teachers who believed in the value of community, integrated community building features into their courses. Secondly, technologies which permitted interactive online classes produced the highest operating online learning communities. Finally, institutional support of online educational communities, including technology availability and high expectations, produced the highest operating communities. This study is important because community features such as trust, interdependence and feelings of connectedness have been associated with student persistence in online higher education and this study demonstrates these features have been found to be important in K-12 education too. Also, significant shifts of educational delivery are expected to include more digital distance education and future course designers can utilize this information as they build new K-12 online learning communities.Ed. D.Includes bibliographical referencesby Cynthia Pop