Share Paper: A longitudinal investigation of changes in perceived social presence of off-site students in a blended M.Ed. program

  1. Monique Bournot-Trites, University of British Columbia, Canada
  2. Victoria Surtees, University of British Columbia, Canada
Wednesday, March 4 3:00-3:20 PM Amazon T

Abstract: At the graduate level, where negotiation and discussion are paramount, asynchronous delivery may be insufficient for developing a community of inquiry in which knowledge is created through group construction. One solution is a blended approach in which off-site students participate in traditional classes with on-site peers through videoconferencing and online discussions. This paper reports on one such program, focusing on how the social presence of off-site participants was perceived by on-site and off-site students and how perceptions changed over the two-year program. Initial findings suggest that low perceived language ability negatively impacted social presence; however, following a three-week mid-program course ...