Fostering collaboration and interaction: an analysis of student–teacher dynamics and affective expressions in online mathematics education

This paper presents a thematic analysis of the experiences of a group of teacher educators and student teachers during an action research project that examined how collaborative learning can be fostered in online mathematics teacher education. Data were collected via written reflections from teacher educators and a questionnaire completed by student teachers. Guided by the Community of Inquiry framework, we investigate the three presences of both students and teacher educators in the online environment. Our results indicate that the course design met participants’ expectations regarding cognitive presence, while teaching presence requires further development. With respect to social presence – particularly, affective expressions – our findings suggest that emotions mediate the relationship between teaching presence and cognitive presence. For example, feelings of curiosity transformed instructional scaffolding into active exploration. Conversely, frustration moderated collaboration: when left unaddressed, it reduced students’ willingness to engage, but when acknowledged by peers or educators, it became a driver for problem-solving.