MODALITIES OF

DISTRIBUTED TEACHING

PRESENCE IN

ASYNCHRONOUS

DISCUSSION GROUPS

http://www.psyed.edu.es/grintie

Bustos, Engel, Rochera, de Gispert&Coll

UNIVERSITAT DE

BARCELONA

Theoretical background: Distributed

Teaching Presence (DTP)

Teaching Presence (TP) is

dynamic and evolves in line

with the responsibility and

control that all the

participants in a community

can exercise (Garrison &

Anderson, 2003).

The most significant aspect of

the notion of TP Is its potential

for distribution

As a reinterpretation of the

concept of TP from both

theoretical and

methodological perspectives

(Shea, Li & Picket, 2006;

Morgan, 2011).

Based on the assumption that

students' learning is mainly

related to the educational

influence of others (Coll,

Bustos& Engel, 2011).

Teaching Presence (CoI)DTP from a socio-cultural

approach

Theoretical background: Modalities

of DTP

All participants can exercise TP in the three constitutive dimensions (Bustos 2011; Coll, Bustos& Engel,

2009; Engel, Coll&Bustos, 213): social participation,

task, and

shared meanings.

Teaching presence may take on different modalities depending on:

the focus of

participants' activity:

Who, how and when

each participant

contributes about each

dimension:

reminders, requests,

reviews, questions,

contribution of

information, synthesis,

recaps, etc.

Aims of the study

To analyze the contributions of participants to an

online forum in order to identify different

modalities in which teaching presence is exercised

inside the dimensions of the management of

social participation (MSP), management of the

academic task (MAT) and management of shared

meanings (MSM).

Content analysis:

To explore the focus and modalities of DTP,

transcripts of interactions between two groups of

postgraduate students in Educational Psychology and

their teachers (n = 23, n =16) were analyzed by two

independent coders

Methodology

Methodology

The posts were coded following the 3 sequential levels

of analysis for each ofthedimensions (MSP, MAT &

MSM):

• Who contributes, and how much?

1) the general results for each dimension

• Who contributes, how much, and how?

2) the specific results of certain categories for

each dimension • Who contributes, how much and how, over the periods of activity?

3) the contribution of certain participants to

each dimension from a temporal perspective

Results: Distribution of TP

A total of 601 fragments were coded in Group 1 and 631

in Group 2 for the three dimensions: MSP, MAT and

MSM. (Cohen's kappa κ =.85 to .91)

According to our first level of analysis (Who contributes and

how much?):

We identified several participants as top contributors to

Teaching Presence: 15/23 in Group 1, and 11/16 in Group

2. (total of fragments coded per participant, in one or more

dimension, higher than average)

Results: Modalities of TP

According to our second and third level of

analysis (Who contributes, how much, and how? &

over the periods of activity…):

We identified several participants as relevant

contributors to Teaching Presence: (9/23 in Group

1, and 6/16 in Group 2). (their contributions included the

significant categories in one or more dimensions, and were more

or less constant throughout the all activity phases)

Results: Modalities of TP

Group 1 Group 2

Teacher, S8 -• MSP+MAT+MSM

Whole management

Focus in all three dimensions

• MSM+MAT

• MSM+MSP

• MSP+MAT

Mixed management

Focus mainly in two dimensions

• MSM

• MAT

• MSP

Single management

Focus mainly in one dimensions

- S13, S15

- S3

S18 Teacher

S10, S12,

S2

S6

S5 S11

S16, S19 -

Accordingly

to previous

results, 7

modalities

of

Distributed

Teaching

Presence

were

identified

Finals remarks and open

questions Distribution and modalities are main topics in order to

better understanding issues like emerging vs. scripting

roles (Strijbos; 2010).

Both could be interpreted as mechanisms that enable

collaborative groups manage their processes in order to

improve learning outcomes. Our results do not yet provide

information about this issue.

A main aspect of the teachers’ role should be to ensure of

TP distribution between participants and, therefore, the

emergence of various forms of TP.

MODALITIES OF

DISTRIBUTED TEACHING

PRESENCE IN

ASYNCHRONOUS

DISCUSSION GROUPS

http://www.psyed.edu.es/grintie

abustos@ub.edu

alfonso.bustos@gmail.com

UNIVERSITAT DE

BARCELONA