Online Learning Experiences in the COVID-19 Era: A Look at the Collaborative Learning, Sense of Community, and Social Presence of University Students in the UAE

Almahdi, Maryam Husain; Murshidi, Ghadah Al; Al-Mahdi, Osama

doi:10.2139/ssrn.3874431

Cited by 3 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 42 publications

(62 reference statements)

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“…The subjective perception analysis showed that students reported that there was more interaction between group members and more collaboration, efficiency, self-expression and listening with the avatar. Hence, learning in this way had social benefits (Jordan and Métais, 1997;Kamps et al, 1994;Slavin, 1996), and students strengthened the sense of community, cooperation and social presence and, hence, the positive relationship between the three (Almahdi et al, 2021). This may be due to the way the avatar facilitated, e.g., addressing specific students to encourage them to speak, thus causing group members to be aware of others in the group and encouraging better collaborative learning and sense of community.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The social side of online learning is the main difference with traditional learning; therefore, the connections between the sense of community (which includes social feelings, identity, belonging and attachment) and collaborative learning and social presence were also studied (Almahdi et al, 2021). A high level of social presence is associated with a high level of collaborative learning and a sense of community, and high levels of collaborative learning are associated with high levels of a sense of community.…”

Section: Mainmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the context of group cohesion, when performing CSCL activities, the social aspects are different than traditional learning in the classroom. Due to the results that a high social level leads to a higher level of collaborative learning (Almahdi et al, 2021), we implemented behaviour that, when the system detects that there are incorrect answers of the group members, the avatar opens the discussion by addressing the quietest group member by name. This is to encourage the student to participate and that he or she belongs.…”

Section: The Avatarmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Investigation of Group Dynamics in Video-conferencing Activity Facilitated by a Virtual Agent

Gordon

Mizrahi

Danzig

2022

Preprint

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Small group activities have many educational advantages. In this contribution, we present a novel system for monitoring and analysing real-time group dynamics in a video-conferecing environment, with and without an autonomous virtual robot facilitator, which was programmed with group facilitation best practices. Groups of tenth-grade students interacted with the system, where we examined subjective perceptions of the activity, group dynamics and the facilitator, as well as analysed real-time speaker and facial expression recognition data. Our results show that students reported the activity with the virtual robot facilitator to be significantly more efficient, more understandable and more motivating of participation compared with activities without facilitation. Furthermore, students also spoke more, were happier and were significantly more engaged with virtual robot facilitation. Analyzing subjective and object measures showed significant correlations between the students' perceptions of the group activity and their own participation in it. Finally, it was found that group dynamics, as measured by time-series speaker and facial expression data, can be clustered into groups with similar behavioural characteristics and that facilitation with a virtual robot facilitator changed these dynamics. This study suggests that online group activities, facilitated by an autonomous virtual agent, are a promising tool to investigate group dynamics in educational scenarios.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Mainmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Avatarmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Investigation of Group Dynamics in Video-conferencing Activity Facilitated by a Virtual Agent

Gordon

Mizrahi

Danzig

2022

Preprint

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“…Several studies have examined factors related to student satisfaction with face-to-face and online learning [2,19,22,25]. Their findings suggest that social presence and social interaction are primary components influencing student satisfaction [5,14,34,35] as well as the online learning experience [36], alongside course structure, instructors' technopedagogical skills [37], and the learning environment [33,34].…”

Section: Student Satisfactionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Who Needs Zoom? Female Arab Students’ Perceptions of Face-to-Face Learning and Learning on Zoom

Assaly,

Atamna

2023

Sustainability

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Zoom has been adopted by Al-Qasemi Academic College of Education as an alternative to face-to-face teaching/learning since the outset of COVID-19. The study explores female students’ perceptions of social presence, social interaction, and satisfaction in Zoom learning compared to face-to-face learning, along with the overall factors shaping their perceptions. All 228 participants were female students who learned via Zoom during the pandemic for at least one semester before switching back to face-to-face learning. A mixed-method design was used in the study, which included a questionnaire to learn about students’ perceptions and semi-structured interviews to gain in-depth understanding of the factors affecting their attitudes. The results indicate that students’ perceptions of social presence, social interaction, and satisfaction tended to be higher for face-to-face learning than Zoom learning. They also suggest a significant relationship between the students’ satisfaction and their perceptions of social presence and interaction. Furthermore, the students’ degrees and majors seem to have had a significant bearing on their level of satisfaction with Zoom learning. Finally, the findings of the thematic analysis of the interviewees’ responses show that there were other factors influencing the participants’ perceptions. Thus, an informed combination of face-to-face and Zoom learning is encouraged as a sustainable solution to enhance student satisfaction.

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“…From the earlier discussion, it becomes clear that the concepts of social presence, sense of community, and collaborative learning are important variables to consider when discussing students' experiences on online learning environments. Moreover, it appears that these concepts are connected as a part of the student's online learning experience (Almahdi et al. , 2021).…”

Section: Research Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Being socially present in a time of social distancing: investigating the online social learning experiences of teacher-trainees during COVID-19

Almahdi

Murshidi²,

Al-Mahdi³

2022

HESWBL

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PurposeThis paper investigates the social online learning experiences of teacher trainees during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study's model gauges the relationships between social presence, sense of community, and collaborative learning in online work-based learning environments.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a cross-sectional design, specifically an online questionnaire, to collect data from teacher-trainees in different years of their university programs.FindingsThe findings indicate significant and positive relationships between social presence and both sense of community and collaborative learning, and between collaborative learning and sense of community in a work-based online learning environment. Moreover, collaborative learning was found to mediate the relationship between social presence and sense of community in the study's model.Research limitations/implicationsThe use of questionnaires to collect self-reported data from a mostly female undergraduate sample is expected to affect the generalizability of the results. Experiments or observation methods and a wider sample of participants can be used in future research to build on the findings of this study.Practical implicationsThe authors recommend that educators play an active role in improving the students' online social learning experiences, especially their social presence and collaborative learning. By using different interactive methods (e.g. encouraging students to ask questions, express emotions, share resources, and reflect on their learning in a group), educators can help students achieve a sense of community and, hence, realize the many beneficial outcomes tied to community creation in online learning environments.Originality/valueThe study contributes to knowledge by highlighting students' social experiences while learning online, a usually overlooked area of study. These insights are especially important in a time when online learning has become a necessity rather than a choice and when students are in dire need of social support and community. Researching the online social learning experiences of teacher-trainees lends additional value to the study, as it is necessary for future teachers to experience and master this type of learning during their pre-service training so they can apply it with higher levels of confidence and efficacy in their future classrooms.

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Online Learning Experiences in the COVID-19 Era: A Look at the Collaborative Learning, Sense of Community, and Social Presence of University Students in the UAE

Cited by 3 publications

References 42 publications

Investigation of Group Dynamics in Video-conferencing Activity Facilitated by a Virtual Agent

Investigation of Group Dynamics in Video-conferencing Activity Facilitated by a Virtual Agent

Who Needs Zoom? Female Arab Students’ Perceptions of Face-to-Face Learning and Learning on Zoom

Being socially present in a time of social distancing: investigating the online social learning experiences of teacher-trainees during COVID-19

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