In a case study involving three asynchronous online professional writing courses, this research investigates students' abilities to establish a social presence and build team cohesion via collaborative, team-based writing projects. Using the Community of Inquiry (COI) framework, this study is situated in the understanding that teaching and…

Virtual teamwork in higher education is increasingly common. Asynchronous course delivery may provide additional challenges, particularly when collaborating on projects. In this study, we examine the influences of personality and teamwork attributes using regression and correlation analysis to determine which factors contribute the most to real…

Although researchers recognize the importance of discussing support for math learning within online learning communities, there is a lack of relevant network classifying methods and analyses at the group level to understand the behavioral differences between groups with varying levels of activity, including their mathematical literacies. In this…

As the food industry becomes globally connected, it is essential to provide Food Science students with experience working in virtual teams before they enter the workforce. Working in teams virtually brings extra challenges due to a lack of face-to-face interactions. FSHN 230, Professional Issues in Food Science (asynchronously online), allowed…

This paper reports on research undertaken in two fully online, asynchronous university courses. Representing two masters' programs, one led to a degree in reading as a reading specialist, and the other, to a degree in special education as an educational diagnostician. This investigation explored how writing conferences helped graduate students to…

Motivation, belonging, and inclusion are all critical factors for student success but can be difficult to support in asynchronous online courses. Active learning and required group work have been shown to increase student motivation in in-person and synchronous online courses, but little is known about their impact in online asynchronous settings.…

This scoping review summarizes studies on passive participation in collaborative online learning activities that used computer-mediated communication tools in school settings. A total of 42 articles spanning about 20 years were explored. ERIC and three main journal indexes from Web of Science were used to locate articles. For each year searched,…

Collaborative learning, social interdependence and computer mediated communication (CMC) have been broadly studied in higher education research. Collaborative learning has often been associated with a social interdependence understanding. However, this study explores the relationship from an exclusively student motivation perspective in order to…

With the rise of online instruction, a better understanding of the factors that contribute to belonging and motivation in these contexts is essential to creating optimal learning environments. Although group work is known to be beneficial to student success, few studies have investigated its role in the context of asynchronous online courses. The…

This study explores the relationships between peer-to-peer interactions and (1) group formation among students, (2) choice of research, and (3) course performance in an online asynchronous ecology course at a research-intensive university. Peer-to-peer interactions have been known to enhance learning experience for students in a wide array of…

Researchers have been investigating social presence in online learning for decades. However, despite this continued research, questions remain about the nature and development of social presence. The purpose of this mixed method exploratory case study was to investigate how social presence is established in online discussion forums in an…

Previous studies on web-based collaborative writing have shown that task modality impacts peer interaction patterns and attention to form. However, these studies have primarily focused on contrasting a face-to-face oral condition with a text-based synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) environment. Few studies have compared peer…

Given the growing trend of delivering classes through online and virtual environments, it is vital to gain a nuanced understanding of students' online research learning experiences, the factors that contributed to their choice of learning modality, the challenges they encountered, and the effective online research teaching practices and strategies…

This study examined the influence of various group diversity dimensions on collaborative creativity related to the healthcare system. Research findings on the association between diversity and brainstorming performance has been mixed. Diversity that increases cognitive stimulation or promotes elaboration has been shown to increase group…

Although online learning has increased as a delivery method of instruction in higher education, learners may still feel isolated from the instructor and peers due to a lack of physical presence. Thus, intentional and purposeful online course design is necessary. To remediate feelings of isolation, cooperative learning strategies have been…