Community of Inquiry (COI)

Community of Inquiry (COI)

As a learning consultant in the corporate learning space, I often design and deliver onboarding training.Click on the icons to view how a COI model maps the facilitation strategies I use to strengthen teaching, social, and cognitive presence in my sessions.

TeachingPresence

LearningExperience

CognitivePresence

SocialPresence

Teaching Presence

Clarify flow, roles, and expectations

Structured feedback

Technology demo and walkthroughs

Cognitive Presence

Reflective workbook activites

Blended learning journey

Sandbox systems practice

Social Presence

Community support in Teams

Icebreaker activities

Guided group discussions

References

Boettcher, V. (2006-2022). Ten best practices for teaching online. Designing for Learning. http://designingforlearning.info/writing/ten-best-practices-for-teaching-online/ Dunlap, J. C., & Lowenthal, P. R. (2018). Online educators’ recommendations for teaching online: Crowdsourcing in action. Open Praxis, 10(1), 79. https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.10.1.721 Lalonde, C. (2020, August 23). Facilitation in a community of inquiry [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nv1bUZv5PLs Vaughan, N. D., Cleveland-Innes, M., & Garrison, D. R. (2013). Teaching in Blended Learning Environments: Creating and Sustaining Communities of Inquiry. https://www.aupress.ca/app/uploads/120229_99Z_Vaughan_et_al_2013-Teaching_in_Blended_Learning_Environments.pdf

Reflective workbook activities

• I provide a learner workbook to prompt short reflections that link the training to real work. Prompts include what was learned, where it will be used, if anything will be adapted, and any quick tips.
• Learners can note next steps and include additional reflections that they have from their learning experience.

Technology demo and walkthroughs

• I use short, step-by-step demos to provide direct instruction. In a sandbox with dummy data, I show the standard workflow in the system (for example, how a complaint moves through Salesforce), name required fields, and explain key choices and common errors.
• I also record the walkthrough and share it on Sharepoint for learners to review and keep procedures consistent across sites.

Blended learning journey

• By designing a blend of self-paced and live activities, I can guide learners to move from understanding to application.
• Pre-session resources including short eLearning or videos introduce key concepts and terms. Live sessions focus on connecting those dots through discussion and applied tasks.
• I also provide learners with demos, job-aids, and other resources to support them after training.

Clarify flow, roles, and expectations

• To provide clarity from the start of training sessions, I introduce the facilitator, site coordinator, and team leads with their contact details.
• I also walk through the agenda with goals, timing, and planned activities, to set expectations.
• Additionally, I point everyone to the training SharePoint page where all the resources including learning workbooks, presentation slides, and demos are available.

Guided group discussions

• I set up guided discussions throughout the training to support discourse. These opportunities invite personal stories tied to the content.
• To support equitable participation, I suggest assigning roles (timekeeper, scribe, speaker, etc.) and encourage rotating turns.

Sandbox systems practice

• I provide a risk-free sandbox environment with dummy data so learners can practice full workflows and common scenarios.
• During this activity, I ask them to make choices at key points and explain their reasoning. We review common errors and compare alternate paths.

Community support in Teams

• Between sessions, I stay active in a dedicated Teams channel. I post reminders, answer questions, and tag experienced peers who can help.
• I pin key links to the SharePoint hub, recordings, and job aids. Often learners also share quick updates or wins and this extends the learning community beyond the live session.

Structured feedback

• I incorporate mechanisms for immediate feedback through Teams polls, Microsoft forms, and Kahoot activities.
• I also provide timely, structured feedback for roleplay or scenario based activities. I use a rubric style template to structure my feedback and make sure to share two strengths and one focused improvement. Whenever possible, I provide links to the exact resource on SharePoint that can help with their next attempt.

Icebreaker activities

• I start sessions with brief, relevant icebreakers so people can learn names, roles, and context. I also incorporate icebreaker questions before assigning breakout rooms and group discussions. This help learners build connections and rapport in their teams.