Creating Community Without the Classroom: Lessons from a Year of Remote Learning

Concurrent Session 9

Brief Abstract

After a year of remote learning, how have instructors built a sense of community even without face-to-face interaction? This panel will bring together experts in instructional design and pedagogy to discuss how inquiry-based discussion can foster peer-to-peer interaction, help students formulate inquiries, and create community even in an online context.

Presenters

Lead Presenter: Marie Cini, ED2WORK

MARIE CINI, PH.D Acting Chief Executive Officer Marie is the acting chief executive officer and Chief Strategy Officer of Ed2Work, a higher education solutions group. An accomplished senior executive in higher education and nonprofit associations, her career spans more than 25 years including extensive experience as a leader in organizations serving working learners. Through her work, Marie advocates for a shift in perspective that places adult learners directly at the core of education and employment. Most recently, Marie served as president of the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL). Marie also serves on the Board of Directors at Bryant & Stratton College. She is a strategic advisor for Packback, an AI solution to help faculty lead online discussions more effectively and efficiently. She served on the board of the Online Learning Consortium (OLC) where she was chair of the board for two years. Previously, she served as provost and senior vice president at the University of Maryland University College (now University of Maryland Global Campus). Marie has also administered programs for adults at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and held increasingly responsible positions at Thomas Edison State College in Trenton, New Jersey, and at City University of Seattle in Washington. An innovative, strategic leader focused on post-traditional learners as the 'new normal' in higher education, she has extensive experience in online and open education and champions those organizations that remove barriers for working/adult learners. She possesses deep knowledge of the changing nature of higher education as a faculty member and administrator, board member and chair, and author. As a member of the LBGTQ community, she is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. Marie earned her doctoral (Ph.D.) and master’s degrees in social psychology from the University of Pittsburgh and holds a master’s degree in counselor education from the Pennsylvania State University. Marie was inducted into the International Adult Continuing Education Hall of Fame in 2016. She has published widely on a variety of topics related to adult and working learners.

Co-presenter: Shannon McCarty, Bay Path University

Co-presenter: Michael Medlock, Rio Salado College

Michael is the interim Dean of Instructional Technology & Support at Rio Salado College in Tempe, Arizona. He oversees the Instructional Design, Instructional Media, Course Production, and Course Support departments. Michael has been at Rio since 2007 as an instructional designer, director, and more recently as the Associate Dean. He has served as a subject matter expert for eLearning Design and English Courses. He is the Principal Investigator of Rio’s First In The World Grant, a research grant that includes designing adaptive courses and providing student coaching support for new students pursing a degree or intending to transfer to a university.

Co-presenter: Allison Rief, University of Arizona Global Campus

Dr. Allison Rief is an Associate Professor and Lead Faculty for the AA Early Childhood Education, BA Early Childhood Education, and BA Early Childhood Education Administration programs within the Department of Education and Liberal Arts at the University of Arizona Global Campus. Allison earned a Doctorate of Education with a specialization in Teacher Education in Multicultural Societies from the University of Southern California; a Master of Education from the University of California, Los Angeles; and a Bachelor of Arts in Literatures in English at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Rief began her career as an elementary and preschool teacher. She maintains a National Board Certification and was awarded the Teacher of the Year for both the Los Angeles Unified School District and Los Angeles County. Within higher education, she has had experience launching new programs and revising existing programs, developing courses, providing professional development, and working with collaborative teams across the university. Currently, Dr. Rief is a member of the Change Advisory Group, Student Conduct and Community Standards Committee, and oversees the partnership with No Excuses University schools. Beyond the programs she leads, she also serves on Doctoral committees and teaches the Doctoral In-Residence.

Additional Authors

Extended Abstract

Over the past year, online learning has become a necessity at many institutions where it was previously a “nice to have.” The sudden shift to remote courses last spring has sparked critical questions about how to ensure that the online experience is as engaging and fulfilling for students as in-person classes. Is it possible to foster the same spirit of inquiry and camaraderie in an online context?

For many colleges and universities that already have deep experience with online coursework, COVID-19 posed another type of challenge: how to meet the needs of students who often juggled work or family commitments along with their studies, and now had to grapple with the economic and personal impacts of the pandemic. How can the broader community of faculty, instructional designers, and administrators learn from those institutions’ experience building community in remote classes?

This panel will feature insights from teaching and learning leaders at National University, University of Phoenix, and Rio Salado College, three institutions that have taken on this challenge by implementing new approaches to class discussion.

A robust body of research indicates that quality online discussion can lead to better discussion quality and interaction, greater faculty satisfaction, and improved course outcomes. Pedagogy that supports intrinsic student motivation—by supporting robust peer-to-peer interaction, asking students to formulate and pose inquiries, and encouraging them to assume a kind of teaching role with peers—can be especially powerful. 

At National University, Phoenix, and Rio Salado, instructors used an inquiry-based discussion tool, powered by artificial intelligence, with the aim of boosting engagement in online classes. What they found was that this approach didn’t just improve students’ participation. It also enabled them to build meaningful and engaged communities that kept learning going even outside the context of specific assignments. The discussion platform’s instant feedback tools to help students edit their contributions in real time, as well as its ability to encourage students to cite sources and ask deeper questions, led to deeper engagement in discussion -- and, in turn, a sense of understanding and respect between students who were able to understand and reflect on one another’s viewpoints.

Participants at the panel will learn about the challenges that National and Rio Salado have faced over the past year and the way that new technologies have helped them to both respond to students’ needs during a challenging year, and encourage the creation of new and enriching communities through discussion.