Creating community is essential for quality online instruction, leading to greater engagement, satisfaction and achievement. However, fostering meaningful connections can be challenging without in-person interactions.
In “Pillars of Online Pedagogy: A Framework for Teaching in Online Learning Environments,” Leanna Archambault, Heather Leary and Kerry Rice provide timely guidance for faculty seeking to actively build community in online courses. Grounded in learner-centered principles, their framework identifies five pillars of online pedagogy.
The first pillar, “Build Relationships and Community,” offers actionable best practices such as:
- Establishing instructor presence through regular communication.
- Facilitating meaningful peer interactions with group tasks.
- Inviting students to co-construct norms and climate.
- Integrating informal community-building activities.
Intentional relationship-building and community development emerge as essential instructional competencies for online faculty seeking to improve outcomes. This fosters class cohesion, trust and interpersonal bonds vital for satisfaction and achievement.
Archambault, L., Leary, H., & Rice, K. (2022). Pillars of online pedagogy: A framework for teaching in online learning environments. Educational Psychologist, 57(3), 178–191. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2022.2051513