Creating Online Learning Communities

    There are many ways for instructors to promote a sense of community in an online learning environment.  Here I will share three of the techniques I've researched.  The first is creating a plan for communication.  Even if the class is asynchronous the instructor should still communicate to students regularly either through announcements at the beginning of each week or giving feedback on assignments that students turn in.  Another way to communicate would be touching base with students through email before a larger assignment is due.  Instructors can also promote student to student communication through the use of discussion boards by requiring students to make an initial post and also respond to a peer's post with their thoughts.

    Another way for instructors to promote a sense of community in an online learning environment is by using collaborative learning techniques.  Collaborative learning requires students to work with each other, which can help reduce feelings of isolation.  In addition to simply being glad to know that other are in the same boat, many online students seem to value interacting and forming relationships with peers.  Getting to know their peers in an online environment can improve students' overall experience.  Online collaborative learning provides a solid foundation on which such relationships may be founded.

    The third way instructors can promote a sense of community in an online learning environment is by creating opportunities for information and expertise sharing.  One way to do this is by creating study groups for the course.  By putting students together in small groups it can help them learn to work together and make connections with other students.  Another way is by including a "relevant resource" section for the course.  Here students can find information that may be relevant to their course and students could be encouraged to add other information they think might be relevant.  Instructors could also create a common space(such as the discussion boards previously mentioned) so that students can bounce ideas back and forth with each other.

    The method I find the most appealing is creating opportunities for information and expertise sharing.  I like this method because it doesn't force the students to interact with each other but instead makes it the student's responsibility to reach out to peers.  I also like this method because I think it's the best way to simulate a traditional classroom discussion; students are able to communicate ideas with each other in order to find the best solution for a problem and they can communicate with the instructor as well.