The paper investigates interactions on five online courses involving staff that currently lecture or support learners in further and higher education at the University of Glamorgan, and its partner colleges throughout Wales. The qualitative research involves an ethnographical study of the ethos of the online communities of students. The findings suggest that if Stage 1 of the model is effectively designed and facilitated then socialization occurs at this stage. The design of Stage 2 of the "Model of teaching and learning online through online networking" is problematic. The paper calls for a review of the relationship between the strategic objectives and their relative tasks in these important early stages of development.