What is Teaching and Social Presence?

What do we mean by presence?

A useful way to consider the interactions that promote student learning is the Community of Inquiry model, developed by Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2000). This model identifies three dimensions of presence that define learning interactions: social, cognitive and teaching. The model suggests that effective learning experiences occur when the three dimensions coincide.

• Social presence is about interaction with peers.
• Cognitive presence is the extent to which learners are able to construct meaning through reflection and interaction with content.
• Teaching presence is the design, facilitation and direction of cognitive and social processes to achieve learning outcomes through interaction with instructors.