Steps to Implement Online Discussions Today
Now that you've explored the benefits of online discussion and checked out some tools and parameters as well as Canvas' capabilities, let's take a look at some steps to get you started with implementing online discussions in your course.
1. Syllabus: Include information about class discussions, expectations and grades in your syllabus so that students regard participation in the online forums as important as the effort they would put into more traditional assignments and assessments.
2. Start with IceBreakers: Be sure to start your course with an Ice Breaker to get students comfortable with the online discussion environment. Some examples of introductory icebreakers include personal intros, portraits and interviews. For more on these types of icebreakers as well as a guide on facilitating online discussion boards, check out this guide from Edutopia: http://www.edutopia.org/pdfs/stw/edutopia-onlinelearning-mastering-online-discussion-board-facilitation.pdf Links to an external site.
3. Try online office hours and quiz reviews: Consider experimenting with online office hours and quiz reviews via online discussion (as an addition to your current methods) or chat if you have a large course.
4. Develop a rubric: Spend time on a Discussion Rubric that focuses on the quality and type of response. Check out some sample rubrics and guidelines for developing your own:
http://www.udel.edu/janet/MARC2006/rubric.html Links to an external site.
http://www2.nau.edu/d-elearn/support/tutorials/discrubrics/disc1.php Links to an external site.
5. Try the chat function: Use a guest speaker as an opportunity to experiment with synchronous discussion - try out the chat function when you have a guest speaker. Facilitate with intention - ask students to submit questions via the chat and ask them to discuss the speaker's points, clarify concepts and engage in discussion with each other during the talk. Pose questions to the guest speaker during or after their talk or ask for/offer clarification if you discover some confusion in the chat room.
6. Think about your discussion prompts: In his post "Blended Learning: Adding Asynchronous Discussions to Your F2F Classrooms Links to an external site.", Eric Brunsell points to studies that suggest 4 common themes in asynchronous discussions, one of them being an insight about the type of discussion prompt that generates self-directed research and increased participation and quality of response. Some examples of types of prompts that will result in higher value discussion responses are provided:
Example Prompt Types:
| Question Type | Example |
| Teacher Led | "As you read these two chapters, identify one or two quotes that really stick out for you. Write a discussion post in the Week 1 area that explains why you selected these quotes. Also, include a question related to this week's question work that you are interested in learning more about." |
| Student Led | "This reflection is up to your group -- the first person to post is the leader who starts off the discussion. Everyone else should participate in the discussion with at least two postings throughout the week." |
| LAW (reflective) |
"Please write a reflection about what you personally learned from this experience, looking at the list you originally wrote, and then what you learned about strategies. Please implement LAW: L = what you learned A = how does it apply to you, your content area, your classroom W = what are you wondering Please go back and respond to the person who posted a reflection before you and the person who posted after you." |
Resources & Examples to help you get started
Reinventing class discussion online: http://www.apa.org/monitor/apr00/reinventing.aspx Links to an external site.
Blended Learning: Adding Asynchronous Discussions to Your F2F Classrooms: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/blended-learning-research-eric-brunsell Links to an external site.