Creating Dynamic Learning Communities in Synchronous Online Courses: One Approach from the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL)
- Resource Type
- Journal Articles
Reports - Research
- Authors
- McDaniels, Melissa; Pfund, Christine; Barnicle, Katherine
- Source
- Online Learning. Mar 2016 20(1):110-129.
- Subject
- Graduate Students
Online Courses
Synchronous Communication
Computer Mediated Communication
Student Attitudes
Satisfaction
Sense of Community
Communities of Practice
Integrated Learning Systems
STEM Education
Student Educational Objectives
Mentors
Asynchronous Communication
Online Surveys
Likert Scales
Self Esteem
Barriers
Program Effectiveness
Qualitative Research
Statistical Analysis
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 1939-5256
The ability to convert face-to-face curricula into rigorous and equally rich online experiences is a topic of much investigation. In this paper, we report on the conversion of a face-to-face research mentor training curriculum into a synchronous, online course. Graduate students and postdoc participants from the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL) reported high satisfaction with the online training and increased confidence in their mentoring. Both quantitative and qualitative data indicate that the synchronous environment was successful in creating a strong sense of community among the participants. Specific pedagogical approaches for cultivating learning communities online as well as implications for scaling up such efforts are discussed.