Exploring the Community of Inquiry model: Students’ attitudes towards e-learning

E-learning is the use of information and communications technologies to support teaching and learning. This study sought to determine students’ attitudes toward e-learning as it is used at The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago. Garrison’s (2000) Community of Inquiry model was used to evaluate how students viewed teaching presence, cognitive presence and social presence impacting on their satisfaction and learning outcomes. This research used a mixed-methods approach and used factor analysis, structured equation modelling and thematic content analysis. The findings indicate a statistically significant relationship between the dependent and independent variables in three hypotheses relating to satisfaction and two hypotheses relating to learning.