International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning June 2011 Vol. 8. No. 6. 31 Editor’s Note: Student feedback provides valuable guidance to those who design and those who implement distance learning programs. Exploring Community College Student Perceptions of Online Learning Terry Ann Morris USA Abstract Successful completion of online courses by community college students is an issue both at the national and local level. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore community college student perceptions of online learning within the theoretical construct of the Community of Inquiry (CoI) model, which describes the manner in which the elements of social presence, teaching presence, and cognitive presence interact to create an educational experience. An online questionnaire, interviews, and artifact reviews were employed in the study. Interpretive analysis was utilized to identify themes and provide insights into student perceptions of satisfaction and success with online learning. The findings of the study revealed aspects of community college student perceptions about online courses, related these perceptions to the social presence, teaching presence, and cognitive presence components of the Community of Inquiry model, and provided examples of successful instructional design and course facilitation techniques utilized in the online courses. The study findings provided insights about student perceptions related to communication and interaction, isolation, preferred course activities, and the positive impact of prompt and helpful instructor feedback. Recommendations for practical applications by instructional designers and instructors are provided. Keywords: online learning, community college, distance education, community of inquiry, social presence, cognitive presence, teaching presence, online student perceptions, student success, student satisfaction, instructional design. Introduction Higher education online enrollments in the United States continue to grow each year (Allen & Seaman, 2010). Lower retention of online students than of traditional face-to-face classroom students has been a concern for institutions of higher education for quite some time (Carr, 2000; Conklin, 2008; Diaz, 2002; Patterson & McFadden, 2009). A national survey of community college distance education administrators indicated low course completion rate as one of the top challenges faced by respondents with an average course completion rate of 65% for distance education courses and 72% for traditional courses (Instructional Technology Council, 2009). In a study of community college students enrolled in online and traditional courses during a five-year time span (2001-2006), Conklin noted a significantly higher rate of dropout for those enrolled in online courses. With growing enrollments, successful completion of online courses continues to be a concern. The lower course completion rate for the increasing population of distance learning students needs to be addressed to promote online student success. A qualitative study of community college student perceptions about online courses will address this problem and has the potential to provide insights and reveal themes, online pedagogy techniques, and methodologies which promote student satisfaction and successful completion of online courses. Purpose The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore community college student perceptions of online learning within the theoretical construct of the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework proposed by Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2000), which describes the manner in which the