Mastering Online

Discussion Board Facilitation

Resource Guide

Copyright 2009
TeacherStream, LLC
 Table of Contents

Mastering Online Discussion Board Facilitation

Section 1: Best Practices 2

Overview

Purpose

Netiquette

Facilitation

Assessment

Section 2: Strategies ..... 8

Ask Experts

Debates

Polling

Role Play

Small Groups

Peer Review

Content Area

Section 3: Management Tips ... 11

Time Management

Student Engagement

Common Pitfalls

Appendix . 14

Communication Plan
Best Practices: Overview

Introduction

Discussion boards, or threaded discussions, are one of the most commonly used tools in online teaching. Discussion
forums provide the ability for asynchronous discussion to occur over a period of time. The ability to learn asynchro-
nously is one of the primary benefits of online learning. Students are able to reflect upon their ideas before sharing
them with the class, leading to more reflective responses and in-depth learning.

This guide has been designed to provide some practical suggestions to assist you in making the most of this
versatile tool. A number of topics have been addressed, including: facilitation tips, content area suggestions, time
management strategies and much more.

Benefits of Using Online Discussion Boards

Builds class community by promoting discussion on course topics

Allows time for in-depth reflection- students have more time to reflect, research & compose their
thoughts before participating in the discussion

Facilitates learning by allowing students to view & to respond to the work of others

Develops thinking & writing skills

Allows guest experts to participate in the course by posting information & responding to questions

Resources
The Tools for Successful Online Teaching, Lisa Dawley, 2007
Essential Elements: Prepare, Design, and Teach Your Online Course, Bonnie Elbaum, Cynthia McIn-
tyre, Alese Smith, 2002
Teaching Online: A Practical Guide, Susan Ko, Steve Rossen, 2001
Facilitating Online Learning: Effective Strategies for Moderators, George Collison, Bonnie Elbaum,
Sarah Haavind, Robert Tinker, 2000
Keys to Developing Successful Online Discussion
http://www.uwsa.edu/ttt/raleigh.htm
Online Teaching and Classroom Change: The Trans-Classroom Teacher in the Age of the Internet
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=446

Page 2
Best Practices: Purpose

Discussion Boards with a Purpose Resources:

Discussion Board activities can serve a variety of The Nature and Purpose of Online Conversations: A
purposes and can be used to meet a wide range of Brief Synthesis of Current Research
instructional objectives. Instructional Discussion http://carbon.cudenver.edu/~lsherry/pubs/
Boards should be used to meet specific course dialogue.htm
objectives and should be aligned with course content. Using Online Discussions to Enhance Face-to-Face
Well-designed discussion board activities can be used to Instruction
encourage the following: http://www.sandiego.edu/soetech/onlinediscussions/
Defining the Purpose of Your Community
Demonstration of Knowledge of Key Concepts - www.fullcirc.com/community/communitypurpose.htm
Using the discussion board to discuss key concepts
allows students to learn from one another and share Tips & Strategies: Facilitating Online Discussions
ideas. When students submit an assignment directly http://members.shaw.ca/mdde615/
to a teacher, this sharing of ideas is lost. howcommunicate.htm

Community Building - One of the primary reasons

for using discussion boards is to build a community of Icebreakers/Introductory Activities
learners. This tool allows students to become part of Icebreakers are a good example of Social
a vibrant learning community, rather than an just an Discussion Boards. They provide students with
independent learner completing & submitting an opportunity to get to know one another and to
assignments with no real peer interaction. interact in an Informal way. They should be fun
and non-threatening and require participants to
Reflection - Reflective activities require students to find something in common with others in the
share a synthesis of the learning experience, or to group.
describe how a situation or experience has personal
value to them. These kinds of activities should allow Personal Introductions - ask each student to
for honest and open responses. introduce themselves on the discussion board
at the beginning of the term. Respond to each
Consensus Building - Consensus building activities student & encourage the class to respond to
require students to work together to create a product one anothers introductions.
or to come to an agreement on some topic.
Portrait - students create a portrait of them-
selves in any medium, digitize the portrait and
Critical Thinking - through the use of higher order share it on the discussion board.
questioning techniques and activities, the discussion
board can be used to encourage critical thinking Interviews - have pairs of students interview
skills. each other on a given topic and post the
interview results in the discussion board.
Student Leadership: the effective use of discussion More Information on Icebreakers
forums can encourage student leadership by giving
them a voice in the classroom. Students can be given http://www.ion.uillinois.edu/resources/
the opportunity to pointersclickers/2002_01/index.asp

Page 3
Best Practices: Netiquette

Encouraging Courteous Discussion

Netiquette is the term used for etiquette on the Internet. This term extends to email, chat, discussion boards, and live
sessions. As an online teacher, it is important to educate yourself and your students about using good manners on
the Internet. Just as in a classroom setting, teachers must define rules on the first day of class and enforce them
throughout the school year.

Its a Democracy, Right?

Consider involving your students when creating rules for online communication. Ask students to conduct an
online search on this topic and then post 5 - 7 rules on the Discussion Board explaining why the class
should adhere to these rules when communicating online. Ask them to explain their choices and tell why it is
important to have these kinds of guidelines. Use this student input when creating the list of rules your class
will follow.

Resources: The Use of Appropriate Writing Styles

Net Etiquette Dont assume that students automatically know

http://www.albion.com/netiquette how to communicate appropriately in an online
Learn the Net Netiquette environment. While they may be accustomed to
www.learnthenet.com/english/html/09netiqt.htm participating in social forums, the guidelines for
an educational setting can be quite different.
NetLingo
Establish guidelines for the level of formality you
http://www.netlingo.com
require. If one of your goals is to encourage
Webopedia online dictionary and search engine good writing skills, it is important for students to
http://www.webopedia.com follow acceptable writing conventions in regards
E-mail, Online Chat, & Text Messaging Acronyms to spelling, grammar & punctuation.
http://www.sharpened.net/glossary/acronyms.php

Tips for Electronic Discussion (Discussion Boards)

http://tlt.its.psu.edu/suggestions/etips/examples.htm#Tips

http://www.siue.edu/~dknowlt/DiscussContributes.htm

Page 4
Best Practices: Facilitation

Encourage Critical Thinking

Questions to Consider When Planning
The effective use of the Discussion Board goes far Discussion Board Activities
beyond simply asking students to respond to textbook
readings. There are many ways it can be used to foster How do the ideas & information to be
critical thinking skills. discussed fit into the course as a whole?

Asking good questions is an a great place to start. Davis What skills, knowledge, perspectives, or
(1993) provides a comprehensive list of questions types sensibilities do you want students to walk
designed to jump start discussion. Consider using some away from the discussion with?
of these to generate discussion in your classes:
How will you make sure your students meet
Exploratory: probe facts & basic knowledge
those objectives?
Challenge: interrogate assumptions, conclusions or
interpretations Adapted from Carnegie Mellon: design & teach
Relational: ask for comparisons of themes, ideas, or a course: Discussions
issues http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/
Diagnostic: probe motives or causes teach/instructionalstrategies/discussions.html
Action: call for a conclusion or action
Cause & Effect: ask for causal relationships be-
tween ideas, actions or events Resources:
Extension: expand the discussion
Crafting Questions for Online Discussions -
Hypothetical: pose a change in the facts or issues aligns questioning strategies with Blooms Taxonomy
Priority: seek to identify the most important issues http://tlt.its.psu.edu/suggestions/online_questions/
index.html
Summary: elicit synthesis
For the Best Answers, Ask Tough Questions
Adapted from Carnegie Mellon: design & teach a course: http://www.joycevalenza.com/questions.html
Discussions Instructional Strategies for Online Courses
http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/ http://www.ion.uillinois.edu/resources/tutorials/
instructionalstrategies/discussions.html pedagogy/instructionalstrategies.asp

Strategies to Facilitate Online Discussions

Give students clear expectations about online discussion requirements, deadlines, and grading procedures.
Assess the quality as well as the quantity of the students' online posts. Using rubrics will allow students to
have a clear guideline of your expectations for quality of their posts.
Provide a schedule for students of upcoming discussion board deadlines. Give as much notice as possible.
Provide structure for students to post to threads. A good structure lessens the frustration of what to write.
Make yourself visible in the discussion. Students will be more likely to engage in the discussion if they see
you as being a part of it.
Do not allow domination of the discussion. If students are dominating the discussion, privately ask them to
slow down a little.

Page 5
Best Practices: Facilitation

When designing discussion board activities for your students, consider ways that you can encourage critical thinking
skills. From lower level activities designed to assess students knowledge of a particular topic, to higher level
activities that require students to think critically, they all have their place in the online classroom. The table below
offers some suggestions for using discussion board activities across the spectrum

Discussion Board Activities Aligned to Blooms Taxonomy

Learning Objective Outcome Discussion Forum Activities

Knowledge: defines; describes; enumer- Using a jigsaw (http://jigsaw.org) technique, students work in small
ates; identifies; labels; lists; matches; groups to locate & compile a list of web resources on a given topic
names; reads; records; reproduces; area. These resources are then shared ion the discussion board with
selects; states; views the remainder of the class.
Comprehension: classifies; cites; The teacher poses a question asking students to estimate the num-
converts; describes; discusses; estimates; ber of hours most kids watch TV per week After providing their esti-
explains; generalizes; gives examples, mations, students are then asked to locate data to verify their
estimation.

Application: assesses; charts; collects; Working in pairs, students design a customized online lesson for
computes; determines; develops; estab- each other on a topic of their choice related to the course content.
lishes; implements; informs; predicts; These are posted for feedback before the student proceeds with the
provides; relates; solves; teaches; uses. instruction.

Analysis: breaks down; correlates; Students view or listen to recordings of political speeches
diagrams; focuses; illustrates; infers; out- (www.c-spanclassroom.org) & write a comparison of points of
lines; points out; prioritizes; separates; discussion. The comparison is posted and a discussion of political
subdivides. candidates ensues.
Synthesis: adapts; categorizes; collabo- Provide students the opportunity to create their own special interest
rates; compiles; designs; formulates; group via the discussion board forum. The student is then in charge
integrates; models; modifies; reconstructs. of moderating their forum.

Evaluation: appraises; compares & Students are assigned to comment on an issue using the persona of
contrasts; concludes; criticizes; critiques; a fictional character (role play). Examples of characters: Dr. Spock,
defends; interprets; judges; justifies; Timothy Leary, Maria Montessori, etc. Comments are posted on dis-
Reframes. cussion boards. Class members respond to each other maintaining
their assigned persona.

Adapted from The Tools for Successful Online Teaching by Lisa Dawley, 2007

Additional Resources:
The following websites offer additional information on using Blooms Taxonomy to develop learning activities for your
students. In addition to offering descriptive verbs, they are also include sample skills, activities & links to related re-
sources.

Kinetic Connections: Blooms' Taxonomy in Action http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/bloom0405-1

Blooms Taxonomy & Related Skills: http://www.coun.uvic.ca/learning/exams/blooms-taxonomy.html
Critical & Creative Thinking - Blooms Taxonomy: http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic69.htm
Page 6
Best Practices: Assessment

Assessing Discussion Board Activities

APA Online
Assessing discussion board activities can take many Assessment CyberGuide for Learning Goals & Outcomes
forms. Regardless of the type of assessment strategy or
This site contains a comprehensive list of
tool that you use, there are some key points to
assessment strategies, including pros and cons of
remember:
each, as well as recommendations for their use.
Many of these tools could be adapted for use with
Assessment must be matched to learning outcomes discussion board activities.
Assessment must be aligned with instruction.
Students must be given clear guidelines regarding http://www.apa.org/ed/eval_strategies.html
how their work will be assessed.

There are times when using a simple system such as

awarding points for participation is appropriate. At other
times, you may give whole class feedback incorporating Who is Responsible for Student Assessment?
individual student posts. However, there are also times
when a more detailed assessment may be desired. Teacher Assessment - teacher assessment is
Below is a list of assessment tools to consider. All could probably the most commonly used assessment.
be adapted for use on the discussion board. Any of the tools listed on this page can be used by
teachers to assess their students. However, there
Sample Assessment Tools are many advantages to using self-assessment
and peer assessment tools as well.
One Minute Papers
Graphic Organizers Self Assessment - encourages students to think
about their own learning and to reflect upon areas
Concept Maps of strengths and weaknesses.
Checklists/Rubrics
Sample Self-Assessment Checklist
Reflective Journals http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/policy/
studeval/questass.pdf
Assessment Resources Sample Self-Evaluation Prompts
Kathy Schrock: Assessment & Rubrics http://www.evergreen.edu/washcenter/
Collection resources/acl/e3.html
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/
schrockguide/assess.html Peer Assessment - actively involves students in
the assessment process and encourages critical
Sample Rubrics thinking skills. Students often respond more posi-
http://www.uwstout.edu/soe/profdev/ tively to feedback from their peers.
rubrics.shtml
Assessing Learning: Peer & Self Assessment
Student Assessment http://www.nclrc.org/essentials/assessing/
http://vudat.msu.edu/assessment peereval.htm

Page 7
Strategies: General
With a little planning & adaptation for online learning, all Small Groups
of the instructional strategies listed below are suitable
discussion board activities: Many of the small group activities & projects
that can be accomplished in a face-to-face
Ask Experts - Inviting an expert to field questions on classroom can be adapted for use in an online
your discussion board is a great activity. Consider inviting environment. Most high school students enjoy
a local historian, meteorologist, dentist, veterinarian or working in groups and like the social aspect that
any expert related to your field of study to participate. accompanies working together. For more
However, if you cant find someone to personally fill that information on a variety of topics related to
role, allow your students to use one of the many expert small groups, including: strategies, grouping,
sites to get answers to their questions and then they can assessment, & links to additional resources,
post them on the class discussion board. visit:
Managing Groups
Pitsco: Ask an Expert
http://tep.uoregon.edu/technology/blackboard/
http://www.askanexpert.com
docs/groups.pdf
Ask an Expert Sources
http://www.cln.org/int_expert.html Take it to the Next level

Debates - Debates encourage students to think critically Consider allowing students to participate in
and to organize their thoughts in a clear, cohesive a collaborative project where they will share
& convincing manner. Discussion boards provide information with students in other learning
opportunities for online instructors to use this engaging communities.
strategy with their students.
www.k12science.org/collabprojs.html
Debates in the Classroom
http://www.epals.com/projects/book_club
www.education-world.com/a_curr/strategy/
strategy012.shtml
Suggestions for Using Small Groups
Polling - Introduce the science of polling to your
in an Online Environment
students & then ask them to create/conduct their own poll
or survey. Follow-up activities can include discussing the Use Google Tools to encourage file sharing and
results on the discussion board, creating a graph or chart collaboration among group members:
to show results, or summarizing results in an article. http://www.google.com/educators/index.html
http://www.educationworld.com/awards/2007/r0207-
The Gallup Organization
23.shtml
http://www.gallup.com
The Roper Center of Public Opinion Research Sample Small Group Activities
http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu
Literature Circles
Role Play - Role play encourages students to look at an
http://www.stemnet.nf.ca/CITE/lang_lit_circles.htm
issue from the viewpoint of another. Assign roles based
http://www.litcircles.org
on course objectives and allow students to respond to
http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/curr259.shtml
questions on the discussion board by answering them as
their character would. Newspapers - students can work together to create a
newspaper/newsletter highlighting a topic currently
Role Playing Exercises- nice collection of resources
under study.
from a geosciences view; can be adapted for other
areas. Collaborative Writing & revision with Google Docs
http://www.google.com/educators/weeklyreader.html
http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/roleplaying
Page 8
Strategies: General

Peer Review - the use of peer review on the discussion

Take a Field Trip
board serves a variety of purposes. It allows students to
learn from one another as they view each others work. It Virtual Field Trips are a wonderful way to get dis-
can also encourage quality by making student work cussion flowing. Locate an interesting place for
public and providing practice adhering to assessment your students to travel to, and once they return,
guidelines when providing feedback to others. Peer have them describe their experiences on the
review can be used to assess writing assignments, as discussion board. Provide guidelines for their
well as student produced products. exploration and discussion.

Everybodys a Critic - provides guidelines & sample Virtual Field Trips: Why, Where & How-To
feedback for students to follow. http://www.internet4classrooms.com/vft.htm
http://www.tnellen.com/cybereng/peer.html
Google Lit Trips
How Do You Make Peer Review Work? - geared for http://www.googlelittrips.org
using peer review in a writing course, this web site
provides also provides suggestions that could be Science Explorations
adapted for other subject areas. http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/
http://mendota.english.wisc.edu/~WAC/page.jsp? explorations/
id=29&c_type=category&c_id=21
Smithsonian - NMAH Online Exhibitions
http://americanhistory.si.edu/exhibitions/
Whats in the News?
Focusing on Current Events is a great way to
use discussion boards. Students can read or
listen to news stories about current topics and
discuss their views on the discussion boards. In Online Video
addition, they can practice their writing skills by
creating their own articles and editorials. Video is a powerful educational tool and can
easily be used to generate discussion among
Why Teach Current Events? your students. Check out tips for planning a
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/ lesson using video & then explore online video
curr084.shtml resources for use with students:
www.ciconline.org/learningwithcable
100 Ways to Use a Newspaper
www.fredericksburg.com/nie/content/ Cable in the Classroom - Online Video
LessonPlans/100.htm http://www.ciconline.org/video
New York Times Learning Network NOVA Online Video
http://www.nytimes.com/learning http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/programs

NewsHour Extra News for Students American Field Guide

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra http://www.pbs.org/americanfieldguide/
index.html
CNN Student News
http://www.cnn.com/studentnews Nature
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/video.html
Ask a Reporter
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/students/
ask_reporters
Page 9
Strategies: Content Areas

Content Area Strategies Science:

All of the following activities can be completed by WebQuests: Allow students to participate in a
students and then shared on a discussion board. WebQuest focusing on science objectives. Make
necessary adaptations so students can share their
Language Arts: work on the discussion board.
http://webquest.org/search/index.php
Use Inspiration or word processing software to create
a family tree of the Greek or Roman Gods. Marine Science Expeditions: Allow students to
participate in a virtual expedition and discuss their
Provide students with a list of commonly used experiences on the discussion board, or use one of
idioms. Ask them to research the meanings online the many lesson plans or marine science resources
and then use as many as they can in a one page to encourage active participation & discussion of this
short story. interesting topic.
http://www.marine-ed.org/bridge/expedition.html
Ask students to choose a prominent person to http://www.marine-ed.org/bridge
research and then to use the information they find to
create a resume for that person. Details for this The Arts:
project & other biographical activities can be found at
http://www.aetv.com/class/biography/index.html PBS Teachers: The Arts: Use the PBS Teachers
searchable database to find resources & activities on
Social Studies: a wide variety of topics including art, dance, music,
visual arts, photography and much more.
Time Capsule: Provide students with a year and a http://www.pbs.org/teachers/arts
location (Ancient Egypt, 2200 B.C) and ask them to
create a time capsule & list items that they would Art Critics: Ask students to visit an online museum
include in it and tell why they selected those items. exhibit and use the guidelines below to write a
critique for a work of art. Students can post and
A Day in the Life: Using sites like This Day in respond to one anothers critiques on the discussion
History & InfoPlease: Year by Year, ask students to board.
research life during a specific year and compose a http://www.metmuseum.org/home.asp
Day in the Life from a teenage point of view. http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/content/3338
www.history.com/this-day-in-history.do
www.infoplease.com/yearbyyear.html Interdisciplinary:

A Different Outcome: Ask students to research key PBS Teachers: Thematic Teaching: Use the
Civil War battles and list 3 things that could have thematic teaching archives to search for activities &
changed the outcome. For example, list 3 things that resources across the curriculum. Many of them can
might have changed the outcome of the Battle of Bull be adapted for use in a variety of subject areas.
Run. http://www.pbs.org/teachers/thismonth/archives.html

Math: Adventures of CyberBee: This site includes a

number of resources and activities that can be used
Real Life Math: use activities from real life math across the curriculum. Recent topics include: 2008
sites to help prepare students for living on their own. Elections, African American Experiences, & the
http://themint.org Library of Congress. Click on Curriculum Ideas for
http://score.kings.k12.ca.us/real.world.html many more ideas & resources.
http://www.cyberbee.com

Page 10
Management Tips: Time Management

Additional Resources:
Time Management As online learning becomes more prevalent, the number
of articles and websites related to this topic increases.
Online instructors can often learn from strategies that
have been successful for their peers. The following
There is no question that using Discussion Boards to resources address time management strategies for
enhance your instruction can be a time consuming online instructors:
venture. However, there are a few things you can do to
manage your time and make the use of this instructional
Online Learning.net: Its About Time!
tool, as well as all communication tools, more efficient. https://www.prep2teach.com/InstructorCommunity/
tips_aug2000.html?s=526.807019838.0424122241

Time Saving Strategies & Tips for Instructors Using

Establish a Plan for Communication
Online Discussion Forums
http://www.tact.fse.ulaval.ca/ang/html/timesaver.html
Create a list of communication tasks that need
to be addressed in your course: replying to
emails, reading & responding to discussion
Generating & Facilitating Engaging & Effective Online
board posts, telephone conferences, etc. Discussion
http://tep.uoregon.edu/technology/blackboard/docs/
Assign an amount of time to each task. discussionboard.pdf
Inform students of your availability - how often
you will be participating on the discussion
boards, when to expect a response to email,
etc. Email Newsletters

Balance private email & public discussion by E-newsletters can be great sources of inspiration.
setting guidelines about the types of communi- Sign-up for newsletters that contain teaching tips
cations that are appropriate for each avenue of and resources related to your subject area. When
communication. you see an idea or resource you can use, add it to
your discussion board folder.
Maintain a nurturing pace of responding so that
students are aware of your presence and active PBS Teachers Newsletter
participation in the course. http://www.pbs.org/teachers/newsletter

Exploratorium Newsletter
http://www.exploratorium.edu/educate/
While there are some time management tips related
newsletter.html
directly to discussion boards, there are also generic
organizational teaching tips that can apply to use with Web English Teacher Newsletter
discussion boards. Consider using both. http://www.webenglishteacher.com/
newsletter.html

Organizational Tip National Geographic Newsletters

http://newsletters.nationalgeographic.com/p/
Create a Discussion Board Ideas folder in My
National%20Geographic%20Society/
Favorites, so online resources can be quickly added
NG_Registration_Page
and organized for easy reference later.

Page 11
Management Tips: Student Engagement

Discussion Boards need engaged participants in order

Additional Resources
to be successful, but how do you encourage that?

Generating & Facilitating Engaging & Effective

Get Them Involved! Online Discussions
http://tep.uoregon.edu/technology/blackboard/
Design activities that are interesting & motivat- docs/discussionboard.pdf
ing. These types of activities are much more
likely to encourage active participation. Eight Ways to get Students More Involved in
Online Conferences
Allow students to suggest discussion topics. http://resources.blackboard.com/scholar/
general/pages/ictraining/
Create discussion boards for small group use to
Eight_Ways_Engage_Conferences.pdf
encourage discussion among group members.

Email students who are not participating as they

should and offer assistance, if needed.

Encourage Collaboration
Discussions should encourage interaction be-
Additional Suggestions:
tween students rather than individual responses
from the teacher. Structure lessons to facilitate
Before beginning a new unit, ask students to student interaction.
complete and post a KWL on the discussion board to
assess background knowledge and to find out what Ask students for their opinions
types of things students would like to learn. At the Encourage peer feedback
end of the unit, they can write about what they Use critical thinking questioning strategies
learned.
www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer/pdf/kwl.pdf
Establish a minimum posting requirement to
require student participation. Encourage
students to respond to each other, in
Use Brainstorming to generate problem solving skills addition to responding to the main prompt.
http://olc.spsd.sk.ca/DE/PD/instr/strats/brainstorming/ Assure students that you are reading every
index.html post, but dont respond to each one. Instead,
establish the expectation that students are
the central focus of the discussion boards.
Consider using some of these Active Learning
Strategies:
http://trc.ucdavis.edu/trc/ta/tatips/activelearning.pdf

Consider This
Explore ideas for using Active Learning in an Online
environment: Consider conducting your own informal survey
http://www.acu.edu/cte/activelearning/ using an online survey tool such as Survey
classroom_main.htm Monkey to ask students what kind of activities they
like. You may be surprised. The survey results could
Incorporate the Comic Creator into your lesson: then be considered as you work to create interesting
http://www.readwritethink.org/student_mat/ activities to motivate & engage your students.
student_material.asp?id=21
http://www.surveymonkey.com

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Management Tips: Common Pitfalls

Discussion Board Pitfalls

While Discussion Boards are a great tool for building community and providing a means for students to share their
ideas with the group, there are some common problems and pitfalls:

Students may misunderstand directions or may be unsure of what is expected of them.

Student comments can become off track or go in a direction that is not supported in the lesson.
Students may stall or put off participating in the discussion board until the last minute.
Students may not feel a sense of connection with their classmates.
Students may react in an inappropriate way by flaming other students or making disinterested or disrespectful
comments to their peers or in response to assignments.

Tips for Avoiding Common Discussion Board Pitfalls

Structure online discussion board activities carefully - provide clear guidelines for posting material, how
often to comment, length of comment, what information to include in the comments. Ask students to
respond using specifics from their textbook readings or other sources.

Encourage students to contact you if they dont understand the assignment or are having technical
difficulties.

Demonstrate ways to support arguments, cite textbook references/online resources to support a point of
view In your own postings.

Establish guidelines for giving students credit for discussion board participation - give points for posting
regularly, responding to classmates posts, staying on topic and responding in a thoughtful manner.

Use small group activities to help build community and establish peer communication and connection.

Encourage students to interact informally. Create discussion threads or areas for personal introductions
and social interaction.

Establish clear Netiquette guidelines and acceptable behavior policies at the very beginning. Monitor
discussion boards regularly to ensure no inappropriate behavior is occurring. Contact students privately
regarding inappropriate behavior and be prepared to ban individual students from posting on discussion
boards if necessary.

Resources:
The Tools for Successful Online Teaching, Lisa Dawley, 2007
Wikiversity: Facilitating Online: http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Facilitating_Online

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Appendix: Communication Plan

COMMUNICATION PLAN

The Communication Plan is useful tool to help you organize the multiple communications you encounter in your
online classes. It is a fairly simple set of prescribed routine tasks you should complete once you log in to your course
with the inclusion of contingency plans for common issues in discussion forums.

PART 1: ROUTINE TASKS (add additional tasks as needed)

Check content area discussion forums for new posts

Respond by gathering 3 or 4 student comments and do one or all of the following:

Develop a question to shift the view.

Generate a deeper understanding of the content being discussed.
Develop a theme which will provide a new frame of reference.
Highlight tensions in the dialogue.
Model effective feedback to promote peer responses (include questions).

Check social discussion threads (include your personal introduction below)

Check private discussion forums and emails (attach student communication guide)

PART 2: CRITICAL THINKING PROMPTORS

Develop a series of questions that will encourage your students to reach higher levels of thinking within the context
of your own class.

PART 3: MANAGEMENT ISSUES AND STRATEGIES (CONTIGENCY PLAN)

Sample issues include:

Inactivity (group)
Inactivity (individual)
Dominant student
Digressions
Misconceptions
Inappropriate Communications (flaming)

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