Open Access Kent State (OAKS)

In this exploratory study, a community of inquiry framework was used to investigate students' perceptions of the efficacy and quality of online information organization and abstracting and indexing classes. It was found that participants valued not only the flexibility of online education, but also the instructor's timely engagement and reflection. Study participants emphasized the necessity of the instructor's frequent engagement through various modes of communication, such as virtual and face-to-face office hours and email. Participants' interest in asynchronous instruction mode was also observed. These findings are in line with previous studies emphasizing the importance of teaching presence in online classrooms. This study contributes to understanding students' perceptions of the quality of online learning and teaching.