Dewey Online: A Critical Examination of the Communities of Inquiry Approach to Online Discussions
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2019-11-06
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Abstract
Online teachers in the U.S. and internationally see their discussion boards as communities of inquiry (CoI) which promote sustained communication and higher level learning. The CoI approach to online discussions is based on John Dewey's conception of education in which teachers and learners are participants in activities working towards a common goal. CoI to date have produced mixed results. One study indicated they have "great difficulty" sustaining communication and achieving higher level learning. In my own study, implementing the CoI approach in a history and philosophy of education course, this difficulty was overcome when students and I worked towards, not just any common goal, but the goal Dewey advocated in his analysis of the concept of education. Basing our "new modes of practice" more firmly on Dewey's "new order of conceptions," students and I were able to sustain communication longer and achieve higher levels of learning than we had been in the past.
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