A Diet of Daily Bread, Food for Thought, and CoFI (Communities of Faithful Inquiry): Key Factors in LMS Decision-Making for Online Catholic Education
Keywords:
Catholic Online Education, Community of Faithful Inquiry, Pastoral Presence, Technology in Faith-Based LearningAbstract
As Information and Communication Technology (ICT) becomes more ubiquitous in postsecondary education, and pressures from Learning Management System (LMS) manufacturers on universities become heavier, the leadership at Catholic postsecondary schools must have a clear idea of how exactly technology and online learning can and should be used in a way that is consistent with Catholic principles in order to guide their decision-making with regards to the school’s online platforms and resources. Using Ex Corde Ecclesiae as a guide, this paper takes the standard model of online learning as requiring a Community of Inquiry (CoI) and suggests that a Catholic university should be a Community of Faithful Inquiry (CoFI), which requires having pastoral presence in its online work. This takes the form of using technological aids to foster the spiritual lives of its students, ensure that a genuine community is being built, and find ways to equip online students to live out their faith outside of the digital realm.
References
Abdrasheva, D., Escribens, M., Sabzalieva, E., Nascimento, D.V., & Yerovi, C. (2022).
Resuming or reforming?: Tracking the global impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on higher
education after two years of disruption. UNESCO.
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000381749
Ally, M. (2011). Foundations of educational theory for online learning. In T. Anderson (Ed.),
Theory and Practice of Online Learning (2nd Ed.) (pp. 15-44). Athabasca University.
Arroyo, A.T. (2010). It's not a colorless classroom: Teaching religion online to black college
students using transformative, postmodern pedagogy. Teaching Theology & Religion
(1), 35-50.
Ascough, R., (2002), ‘Designing for online distance education: Putting pedagogy before
technology’, Teaching Theology and Religion 5(1), 17–29. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9647.00114
Bailey, A., Henry, T., Laverdiere, R., Pugliese, L., & Vaduganathan, N. (2018). Making digital
learning work: Success strategies from six leading universities and community colleges.
The Boston Consulting Group.
https://edplus.asu.edu/sites/default/files/BCG-Making-Digital-Learning-Work-Apr-2018
%20.pdf
Barbour, M.K., Siko, J.P., Beadle, M., & Bitgood, G. (2019). Schism or communion? A
discussion of the morality of online learning through a Christian/Catholic lens. Journal of
Catholic Education 22(1), 249-276. https://doi.org/10.15365/joce.2201092019
Bervell, B., Nyagorme, P., & Arkorful, V. (2020). LMS-enabled blended learning use intentions
among distance education tutors: Examining the mediation role of attitude based on
technology-related stimulus-response theoretical framework. Contemporary Educational
Technology 12(2). https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/8317
Beyer, G.J. (2021). Just universities: Catholic social teaching confronts corporatized higher
education. Fordham University Press.
Casamento, A. & Riondno, M. (Eds.) (2022). Ex corde ecclesiae: Reflections after 30 years. St.
Pauls Publications.
Catholic Church (1983). Code of canon law. Canon Law Society of America.
Catholic Church (2000). Catechism of the Catholic Church: revised in accordance with the
official Latin text promulgated by Pope John Paul II. United States Catholic Conference.
Chetty, D. (2013). Connectivism: probing prospects for a technology-centered pedagogical
transition in religious studies. Alternation, 172-199.
Congregation for Catholic Education (2021). Instruction on the use of distance learning in
ecclesiastical universities and faculties.
http://www.educatio.va/content/dam/cec/Documenti/Insegnamento%20a%20distanza%20EN.pdf
Contact North. (2020, June 17). Ten guiding principles for the use of technology in learning.
Dorr, D. (2016). Option for the poor and for the earth: from Leo XIII to Pope Francis. Orbis
Books.
Fiock, H. (2020). Designing a community of inquiry in online courses. The International Review
of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 21(1), 135–153.
https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v20i5.3985
Fisher, B.C. (1989). The idea of a Christian university in today's world. Mercer University Press.
Freehill, L.M. (2024). Digital inclusion and the internet of things: Convenience and the
choice‐compulsion continuum. Policy and Internet 16(2), 272-293.
https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.403
Flanagin, A.J. & Metzger, M.J. (2013). Credibility and trust of information in online
environments: The use of cognitive heuristics. Journal of Pragmatics 59(1), 210-220.
Francis (2015). Laudato si. The Vatican.
Garrison, D.R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2000). Critical inquiry in a text-based environment:
Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education 2(2-3), 87-105. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1096-7516(00)00016-6
Gilliat-Ray, S. (2020) Learning about Islam and Muslims online: Reflections on the design and
delivery of a massive open online course (MOOC) 2014–2019. Teaching Theology &
Religion 23(4), 252-264. https://doi.org/10.1111/teth.12568
Glanzer, P.L. & Ream, T.C. (2013). The idea of a Christian college: A reexamination for today's
university. Wipf & Stock Publishers.
Grant, G. (1998). The George Grant reader (Christian, W., Ed.). University of Toronto Press.
Hanchin, T. (2019). Encounter and/as pedagogy for Catholic higher education in our time. The
Official Journal of the Religious Education Association 114(5), 565-580.
https://doi.org/10.1080/00344087.2019.1631975
Hill, P. (Host). (2020, June 9). The future of learning management systems [Webinar]. In
Contact North Webinars. https://tinyurl.com/44adfkaj
Hill-Smith, C. (2011). Cyberpilgrimage: The (virtual) reality of online pilgrimage experience.
Religion Compass 5(6), 236-246. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-8171.2011.00277.x
Holdener, J.M. (2010). Instructional design: Seminary faculty teaching experience and spiritual
formation in an online environment [Doctoral dissertation, Capella University]. ProQuest Dissertation Publishing.
Holmes, A.F. (1977). All truth is God’s truth. InterVarsity Press.
Holmes, A.F. (1987). The idea of a Christian college (2nd ed.). William B. Eerdmans Publishing
Company.
Hung, L.I. & Lu, J. I.-C. (2022). Exploring student learning effectiveness in a case study of
asynchronous online instruction for promoting intercultural church ministry in a
Chinese-American seminary. Practical Theology 15(4), 379-393.
John Paul II (1990). Ex corde ecclesiae. The Vatican.
Kowch, E. (2016). Surviving the next generation of organizations – as leaders. In N. Rushby &
D. Surry (Eds.), The Wiley handbook of learning technology (pp. 484-507).
Wiley-Blackwell.
Krzyszkowska, K., & Mavrommati, M., (2020). Applying the community of inquiry e-learning
model to improve the learning design of an online course for in-service teachers in
Norway. The Electronic Journal of e-Learning, 18(6), pp. 462-475.
Lamb, L. (2019). Enabling diverse learners to thrive in the online homiletics classroom. Teaching
Theology & Religion 22(2), 92-101. https://doi.org/10.1111/teth.12476
Lawler, A. (2011). LMS transitioning to 'Moodle': a surprising case of successful, emergent
change management. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology 27(7), 1111-1123.
Malesic, J. (2013). A Catholic case against MOOCs. The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/A-Catholic-Case-Against- MOOCs/141611/
McLuhan, H.M. (1951). Joyce, Aquinas, and the poetic process. Renaissance 4(1), 3-11.
McLuhan, H.M. (1964). Understanding media: The extensions of man. McGraw-Hill.
McLuhan, H.M., McLuhan, E., & Hutchon, K. (1977). City as classroom: Understanding
language and media. Book Society of Canada.
McLuhan, H.M. & Power, B.R. (1989). The global village: Transformations in world life and
media in the 21st century. Oxford University Press.
Meishar-Tal, H., Kurtz, G., & Pieterse, E. (2012). Facebook groups as LMS: A case study. The
International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning 13(4), 33-48.
https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v13i4.1294
Newman, J.H. (1992). The idea of a university (Svaglic, M.J., Ed.). University of Notre Dame
Press.
Ngumba, L. J., Mutula, S., & Arbuckle, K. (2019). Learning of Catholic theology in the digital
age. Hervormde Teologiese Studies (75)4, a5418. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v75i4.5418
Nichols, M. (2011). The akadameia as paradigm for online community in theological distance
education. Journal of Christian Education 54(1), 5-23.
Nichols, M. (2015). A comparison of the spiritual participation of on-campus and theological
distance education students. Journal of Adult Theological Education 12(2), 121–136.
https://doi.org/10.1179/1740714115Z.00000000041
Nichols, M. (2016). The formational experiences of on-campus and theological distance
education students. Journal of Adult Theological Education 13(1), 18–32.
https://doi.org/10.1080/17407141.2016.1158495
Noone, T.B. (2018). Christian inspiration and the identity of the university as an institution.
Documentos Core Curriculum 3(8), 1-11.
Oliver, KM. (2019). Networked religion meets digital geographies: Pedagogical principles for
exploring new spaces and roles in the seminary classroom. Teaching Theology & Religion
(1), 3-15.
Palka, J. (2004). Defining a theological education community. International Review of Research
in Open and Distance Learning 5(3), 471–489. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v5i3.197
Papert, S. (1986). Constructionism: A new opportunity for elementary science education.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Media Laboratory, Epistemology and Learning
Group.
Pontifical Council for Social Communions (2002). The Church and Internet. The Vatican.
Roberts, J.J. (2019). Online learning as a form of distance education: Linking formation learning
in theology to the theories of distance education. Hervormde Teologiese Studies 75(1), 1-
https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v75i1.5345
Salvatori, R. (2017). In S. Hošková-Mayerová, F. Maturo, & J. Kacprzyk (Eds.), Mathematical-
statistical models and qualitative theories for economic and social sciences (pp. 333-342). Springer International Publishing.
Schade, L.D. (2022). Who is my neighbor?: Developing a pedagogical tool for teaching
environmental preaching and ethics in online and hybrid courses. Religions, 13(4), 322.
https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13040322
Shimabukuro, G. (2008). Toward a pedagogy grounded in Christian spirituality. Journal of
Catholic Education 11(4), 505-521.
Siemens, G. (2005). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. International Journal of
Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, 2(1). Retrieved from http://www.itdl.org/
Soukup, S.J., Paul A. (2012). McLuhan, religion, ground, and cause. Revista Latinoamericana
de Ciencias de la Comunicación 14-15(8), 205-212.
Steel, C. (2009). Reconciling university teacher beliefs to create learning designs for LMS
environments. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology 2009, 25(3), 399-420.
Thorsen, D. E., & Lie, A. (2006). What is neoliberalism? Retrieved from
http://folk.uio.no/daget/What%20is%20Neo-Liberalism%20FINAL.pdf
Tran, N. (2010). Transformative learning in online theological education: A case study of an
online program at a theological seminary [Doctoral dissertation, University of North
Texas]. ProQuest Dissertation Publishing.
Troftgruben, T.M. (2018). Decentered online Bible instruction: How active learning enhances
the study of Scripture. Teaching Theology & Religion 21(1), 33-46.
https://doi.org/10.1111/teth.12418
Vasiljevic, M. (2018). On digital iconicity. Communication Research Trends 37(2), 20-24.
Vázquez-Cano, E. & Díez-Arcón, P. (2021). Facebook or LMS in distance education? Why
university students prefer to interact in Facebook groups. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning 22(3), 120-141.
Walker, B.E. (2013, August 22). Online university 'reignites enthusiasm' for faith, says its
president. National Catholic Reporter. https://www.ncronline.org/news/spirituality/online-university-reignites-enthusiasm-faith-says-its-president
Wright, G. (2024). Sacred virtualities: Exploring a Protestant seminary's transition to online
learning in the post-Covid era [Master’s thesis, Eastern University]. ProQuest
Dissertations Publishing.
Young, W. (2022). Virtual pastor: Virtualization, AI, and pastoral care. Theology and Science
(1), 6-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2021.2012915
Zelensky, E. & Gilbert, L. (2005). Windows to heaven: Introducing icons to Protestants and
Catholics. Brazos Press.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Brett Fawcett
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors retain copyright of their papers, including publishing and commercial rights. Attribution should be given to EPIGREP when publishing a previously published article in another venue, including personal websites and blogs.
Copyright information for readers can be found here: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
