Frameworks Informing
the Teaching Practices
Explore evidence-based frameworks and pedagogies that help create brave, engaging, and supportive online learning environments.
Why use a framework? Because it provides a structured, research-informed foundation that guides content delivery while creating a sense of community.
Community of Inquiry (COI) Framework
The Community of Inquiry (COI) framework (Garrison et al., 2001), is commonly used in online education to create an engaged and meaningful learning space. The community is comprised of three main parts:
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Social Presence: “The ability of learners to project their personal characteristics into the community of inquiry, thereby presenting themselves as ‘real people.’”
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Cognitive Presence: “The extent to which the participants in any particular configuration of a community of inquiry are able to construct meaning through sustained communication.”
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Teaching Presence: “The design, facilitation, and direction of cognitive and social processes for the purpose of realizing personally meaningful and educational worthwhile learning outcome.”
Expanding the Framework to Address Belonging
Peacock & Cowan (2019) addressed belonging by adding trust, meaning-making, and deepening understanding to the COI framework. Peacock et al. (2020) further highlighted three key components of belonging in online postgraduate students:
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Engagement: Instructors who were friendly, helpful, and consistently present (through videos or other course content) helped students feel connected. Discussion boards and group work also decreased feelings of isolation.
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Culture of Learning: Having access to clear course materials and spaces to talk about challenges made the environment feel more inclusive. Instructors joining discussions made the experience more humanized. However, if the group dynamics were negative or peers gave hurtful feedback, it could make students feel less connected.
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Support: Using different ways to engage, like videos, group projects, and peer feedback, also helped make the environment feel more supportive.
Culturally Responsive Pedagogy
Cultural Responsive Pedagogy (Gay, 2021; Ladson-Billings, 2014) recognizes the importance of students' cultural backgrounds, experiences, and identities in the teaching process. It is built on the understanding that students learn best when their lived experiences are acknowledged and validated. Here are some reflective questions to consider:
1. How do you acknowledge and celebrate the diverse identities and backgrounds of your students in your course materials and discussions?
2. In what ways can your course materials better reflect the diverse experiences of your students?
3. How can you adjust your teaching methods to respond to your students' unique needs? (This might include being mindful of differences in communication and learning styles.)
4. How can you empower your students to use their knowledge and experiences to challenge inequities in their education and beyond?
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Trauma-Informed Pedagogy
Trauma-informed Pedagogy acknowledges the impact that trauma (personal, generational, or systemic) can have on students' ability to learn. Although we can't control how safe someone feels, using trauma-informed pedagogy reinforces that students can be brave in what they share and how they interact with the class. Here are five principles of trauma-informed pedagogy in classrooms (Carello & Butler, 2015):
Safety: Students learn best when they feel safe. How can you create an online classroom environment where students feel more safe?
Trustworthiness and Transparency: Clear communication and consistency are part of what makes people feel safe. Be transparent about expectations, course structure, and feedback so students feel supported and know what to expect.
Choice: Give students choices in their learning process as often as you can. This may include offering flexible deadlines or allowing students to select their own topic for a project.
Collaboration: When students and educators work together to create a supportive community, sense of belonging and mutual respect are improved.
Empowerment: Validate your students' experiences and perspectives while giving them the tools and confidence to take ownership of their learning. Recognize their strengths and be growth-focused.
Liberatory Consciousness Framework
The Liberatory Consciousness Framework (Love, 1993) encourages both educators and students to engage in an ongoing process of self-reflection and action to challenge systems of oppression.
Here are some questions to ask yourself using the 4 A's:
Awareness: How might the dynamics of oppression and privilege in society, your classroom, and within yourself influence your students' learning experience?
Analysis: How do these dynamics play out in the school as a whole? How might they impact your online classroom?
Action: What intentional steps can I take to challenge oppressive systems and behaviors?
Accountability/Allyship: What changes do I need to make in order to be a better ally both inside and outside of the classroom?
*Rutgers School of Social Work adopted LCF in Fall 2022 to guide antiracism and oppression in all facets of the school. It also serves as the foundation for all of Bravitas' teaching approaches.
