textThis study explored students’ sense of community in an online collaborative
learning environment, focusing on the factors influencing students’ sense of community,
the relationships among the factors, and the influences of a sense of community. The
setting of this study was a graduate-level online course on Computer Supported
Collaborative Learning in which all course activities were conducted collaboratively
through online communications. Data were collected from multiple sources including
participants’ electronic messages posted in public areas of the computer conferencing
system, transcripts of online chats, interviews with the participants, participants’ written
reflections on their learning process, and an instrument measuring students’ sense of
community.
Data were analyzed using the coding procedures for developing grounded theory
proposed by Strauss and Corbin (1998). Results of the data analysis indicated that
students established their sense of community by experiencing a sense of coaccomplishment
through collaboration. Results also indicated that the factors influencing
students’ sense of community related to three dimensions: group interaction, course
context, and individual differences. Students’ sense of community was influenced
primarily by the outcomes of interactions with group members, such as group members’
behaviors showing consideration for others, responding to their contributions, and
contributing to the group collaboration. Factors related to the course context, such as the
collaborative nature of the course, the technology used for the course, and the instructor’s
role, influenced students’ sense of community by either facilitating or interfering with the
group interactions. In addition, some factors resulting from individual differences in
backgrounds and characteristics, such as personalities and attitudes toward collaborative
learning, were critical for students to develop a sense of community. Once a sense of
community was established, students developed a sense of camaraderie with their group
members, felt more comfortable in working together, developed a greater sense of
responsibility, and developed trust in their group members. The consequences of a sense
of community, in turn, influenced the factors that promoted a sense of community when
the students engaged in the next collaborative task.Curriculum and Instructio