“…Social presence is an important construct for online learning. In an online class, a higher degree of social presence enhances learning interaction, fosters the development of critical thinking skills, improves learning performance, and leads to greater learning satisfaction with a course (Garrison, Cleveland-Innes, & Fung, 2010;Gunawardena & Zittle, 1997;Wei et al, 2012;Weinel, Bannert, Zumbach, Hoppe, & Malzahn, 2011). Consequently, social presence should be created and maintained in an online learning community.…”