Managing the Discussion Board
Effective Discussion Board Management
Becoming an online educator can seem overwhelming, as students needs are many and varying, but the following article informs online teachers about what they should know:
One of the points discussed in the article highlights social presence, most online platforms have a discussion board. Online facilitators must understand that this is where the heart of the learning happens as students construct knowledge through conversation.
Exceptional facilitators must have a frequent and active presence in the discussion. It is recommended that you respond to at least three student responses to the discussion assignment on four different days during the assignment week.
When you ask students’ questions, it is important to validate the students’ answers with a confirmation post. Without doing this, you do reinforce the student’s learning and do not place value on their opinions and responses.
You should never reprimand a student in the discussion area. These comments should be expressed in a constructive manner during grading or through a personal email. Remember, discussion boards are public!
Instructor presence, when frequent and planned, on discussion boards increases student engagement in the boards – both in the quantity and quality of postings. However, it can be exhausting to maintain numerous conversations over the course of a semester, the following articles offers insights to becoming an effective online teacher:
General Tips for Online Instructors:
- Be active on the boards so students know you’re listening.
- Summarize students’ thoughts, tie points together from various posts, or ask probing follow-up questions to encourage students to think more deeply or about a different aspect of the prompt.
- Anticipate this natural fatigue. Don’t be afraid to reach out to students, individually and as a class, reminding them of discussion board participation expectations.
- The lowest number of student responses occur in discussion board activities asking students to critically evaluate their peers or voice disagreement.
- Set clear expectations for etiquette, tone, and participation in activities that will ask students to critique their peers. If possible, save these types of prompts for the middle or end of the course, after students have already formed a community and gotten to know each other.
- Looking for ways to recognize the students that are writing thoughtful posts? Consider taking bits and pieces of their discussion and quoting them in a weekly announcement. Pulling the best conversations for that discussion can be motivating to others as well as rewarding!
Resources for Student Discussions
Creating opportunities for student to become engaged in discussions is challenging, the following articles identifies three reasons students will not engage:
Managing the Discussion
Discussions can be excellent alternatives to traditional tests or exams and can be measurable based on specific rubrics for the discussions, such as word count, synthesis and evaluation requirements. In the video below, The State University of New York interviews online instructors about the benefits of the online discussion. Many online discussions tend to be stronger and more focused due to the time available for reflection that students don’t always have in face-to-face courses.
Dr. Curtis Bonk from Indiana University discusses some specific discussion management strategies to help ensure productive engagement and assessment in the video below.
Figuring out the best manner in which to assess student learning from discussions is an arduous task, but the following article offers insightful ideas to consider when creating opportunities for student learning:
Hungry for more?
Please check out our website for more details about course and support services. For any other questions please contact onlinefaculty@vcu.edu