Online discussion forums

What are they?
Why use them?
What are their advantages?
What are their disadvantages?
How can I use them?
Tips for Success
Guidelines for staff and students
Skills required
Conclusion
References
Recommended reading

What are they?

Discussion forums are a form of online communication which may involve:

students with staff (‘one to many’, ‘one to one’)
students with students (‘many to many’, ‘one to many’, ‘one to one’)

Discussions occur asynchronously – messages may be posted at different times; removes the constraint of time as well as place.

Discussion forums may be either ‘moderated’ or ‘unmoderated’. Discussions may be moderated by the teacher or a student. There are advantages and disadvantages with both forms and which is used will depend on a range of factors including the aims of the discussion and the nature of the student group.

Discussion forum is a very broad term. Discussion forums take various forms and. may be called different things.

Some common terms: ‘tutorials’, ‘computer conferencing’, 'bulletin boards', ‘cafe’, ‘coffee shop’, 'Project group'. It is worth remembering that just as the physical details of the on-campus classroom can influence classroom interactions, so the definition of the online environment can have similar effects. Students tend to transfer their traditional behaviours from face to face environments to representations of these online.
Some different forms:
- whole group discussion - the discussion is open to the whole group (15-20),
- small group activities/discussions – students’ are allocated to groups of 3-7
- Socratic dialogue (moderated) - teacher poses a question which the student answers, then another is asked, thus delving deeper and eliciting a deeper understanding
- brainstorming – every member contributes ideas/comments and discussion is held off until these are collected. Contributions random or directed. Tone positive.
- debate – structured or unstructured – points and counterpoints are put forward on a particular topic
- guest lecturer – an invited guest is invited to participate in a discussion or to field questions
- role play – a setting is described and students take various parts

Why use them?

‘ students interacting can use their dialogue to create knowledge ’ ( Moore 1991)

‘the way we think is a function of talking with one another, and so the provision of a socially constructed environment can make learning more effective’ (Vygotsky 1978 in Deakin University 1998, p25)

‘most face to face activity can be replicated in the conferencing environment, but there are also new possibilities to be explored which cannot be efficiently be conducted in real time’ (Deakin University 1998, p5)

‘effective learning environments should involve frequent and meaningful interactions among the learners, among the instructional materials, and between the learners and the instructor’ (Ragan 1999, p4)

What are their advantages?

can create feeling of a true ‘class’, a group of people who are learning together
give students the opportunity to learn from and with each other – supports the ‘social construction of knowledge’
allow students to test their ideas and views on each other, to negotiate meaning and to measure their progress against their peers
allow students to play with the language and the concepts of the discipline area – to complete their ‘cognitive apprenticeship’
support the ‘learning conversation’ between the student and the various parts of the educational context – teachers, fellow students, learning materials, the organisation
allow you to ‘extend the teaching environment’ to include a range of ‘virtual teaching areas’ which can be used in a variety of ways
can save you time – by enabling you to answer student queries in a convenient and time effective way, helps to identify FAQ, may reduce e-mails
asynchronous communication can be an advantage for English as another language (EAN) and international students, students who fear losing face, who are unsure of their verbal abilities as there is no pressure to provide a quick response
asynchronous can also be an advantage for staff – allows time to consult references or colleagues before replying.

What are their disadvantages?

asynchronous discussions - sometimes difficult to maintain group momentum
‘lurkers’ (students who observe the discussion but don’t participate)– more likely to occur in large groups where the purpose of the electronic forum is for general communication rather than activities or discussions with a particular focus
‘flaming’ – (comments within messages that spark off emotional reactions in the receiver or readers such that they respond with a counter attack). Often occurs because on-line discussion lacks the body language and finer nuances of the spoken word, so it is not uncommon for misunderstandings to occur.

How can I use them?

to structure and support a carefully planned series of collaborative learning activities which constitute the assignments of the course
to ‘internationalise’ the curriculum through content and skills development
or to achieve a range of aims (see Table 1)

If your aim is to:	Use a(n)...
clarify or expand on course materials, assigned readings or activities	Whole group discussion
stimulate class discussion	Whole group discussion
maintain regular interaction with students	Whole group discussion
answer student queries in a convenient and time effective way	Whole group discussion
get students to work productively in small groups on given tasks or assignments	Small group activity/assignment
develop students’ interpersonal and team-building skills	Small group activity/assignment
teach team-building skills	Small group activity/assignment
motivate students	Small group activity/assignment
provide peer support/mentoring	Small group activity/assignment
explore issues in depth	Socratic dialogue
test students knowledge	Socratic dialogue
explore ideas	Brainstorm
apply lateral thinking to a problem	Brainstorm
encourage participation in an activity	Brainstorm
stimulate discussion	Brainstorm
provoke critical thought and discussion	Unstructured debate
get students to articulate knowledge	Unstructured debate
develop students’ presentation skills	Unstructured debate
get students to explore issues	Unstructured debate
revise or summarise a topic or course	Unstructured debate
provide access to expert input	Guest lecturer
expose students to different views	Guest lecturer
teach particular specialist components	Guest lecturer
develop students’ problem-solving skills	Role-play
teach interpersonal skills	Role play Small group activity/assignment
teach professional skills	Role-play
provide opportunities for experiential learning	Role-play

TABLE 1: Using online discussion groups to achieve teaching and learning goals

Tips for Success

plan carefully and make links between the online discussion and the course aims, objectives and assessment activities clear to students
set up structures and protocols and communicate expected behaviour and guidelines to participants from the beginning (‘netiquette’) - Discussion tips is a good place to start
at the beginning of the course students should be encouraged to introduce themselves and write about themselves for other students online; teacher can model this
teachers should adopt an informal, friendly tone
group size is important and will depend on nature and purpose of activity and the nature of the group
use of small groups encourages participation and ‘lurking’ is less of an option
there is, however, a ‘critical mass’ required to foster excitement, commitment and discussion
online discussion forums are less successful when they are voluntary and non-assessed
try not to respond immediately to every comment, but allow students to do so. It is easy for students to come to expect the teacher’s immediate response and this contradicts the purpose of online discussion for student interaction and learning through dialogue
careful attention should be given to structuring and moderating online interaction between students
each online discussion will need a clearly defined purpose, with intentions and objectives clearly communicated.

Some guidelines for staff and students:

pay attention to structure of the conference when determining the appropriate area in which to place your message
keep messages short and to the point, but substantive
stick to one subject per message
make subject headings clear. If you make a reply, change the subject heading if it’s about something else
read all the messages before responding – sometimes your concern has been raised or answered already
respond to others messages – try not to ‘lurk’. We have a commitment to each other to join in and let the other person know we’ve read their ideas, even if we don’t have a lot to say about them.
use humour carefully – to avoid misunderstanding and offence
always respect the views of others, whether or not you agree with them

Traps to Avoid

filling the time with digression rather than useful discussion
conferencing areas that are simply empty rooms – students get annoyed if teachers never enter the space or never teach in the space
discussion groups require maintenance and this should be considered in the planning stages – setting up discussion groups for large numbers of students may not be practical.

Skills required

The role of the teacher in an online discussion can be that of facilitator and /or moderator of learning. Many of the skills required do this well in an online discussion are the same as those required in a face-to-face learning environments such as tutorials.

So, apart from:

being accepting and caring about learners and the project/problem
being helpful, approving, supportive, encouraging and friendly
regarding the learner as an equal
creating a warm, relaxed atmosphere
having confidence in your learner’s ability to plan for learning
believing in dialogue and listening rather than controlling or manipulating the learning environment

(Tough, 1979)

... in an online teaching environment a good teacher should also:

monitor posted messages
facilitate and steer the discussion
pre-moderate messages to prevent duplicated or irrelevant items
set the objectives of the discussion
set the tone of the discussion and procedures for contributing
set expectations for contributing
review and pick up important points
ask challenging questions which encourage a deeper level of thinking and discussion
keep the discussion on track
restrain those who tend to dominate the discussion and elicit contributions from the reticent
conclude the discussion

(Collis, 1997)

All of the above implies, of course, being able to use the technology to do these things! However, the technical skills and knowledge required are no more than being able to use a mouse and a keyboard to send an email.

Conclusion

As with face to face teaching decisions concerning how and when to use online teaching tools need to be taken after careful consideration of a range of factors. The nature of the student population, the nature of the course content and the course objectives will need to be considered. Transparent links between the assessment tasks, the course objectives and the teaching and learning arrangements and activities are as important in online teaching as they are in face-to-face teaching. It is not the tool itself which will make the difference, but how it is used.

References

Brown, S. and Knight, P. 1995. Assessment in Higher Education, Kogan Page, London.
Collis, B. 1997. Tele-learning in a Digital World: The Future of Distance Learning. International Thompson Computer Press, London.
Day, I. 1999. ‘Web-based Teaching and Learning’ University of South Australia: Adelaide
Deakin University . 1998. Study Guide and Readings: Computer Conferencing Deakin University: Melbourne.
Gilbert, K.R. 1997. ‘Teaching on the Internet: the World Wide Web as a Course Delivery System’
Harasim L., Hiltz, S.R., Teles, L. & Turoff, M. 1995. Learning Networks: A Field Guide to teaching and Learning Online, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass
Moore, M. 1991 ‘Computer Conferencing in the context of theory and practice of distance education’ in Applications of Computer Conferencing to Teacher Education and Human Resource Development, ed A. Miller, Proceedings of the International Symposium on Computer Conferencing, Ohio State University, Columbus, pp.1-9
O’Reilly, M & Patterson, K. 1998. Assessing Learners through the WWW. Paper presented at WWW7, Brisbane, April, 1998.
Ragan L.C. 1999 ‘Good Teaching is Good Teaching: An Emerging Set of Principles and Practices for the Design and Development of Distance Education’ in CAUSE/EFFECT journal, Volume 22 Number 1 1999.
Tough, A. 1979. The Adult’s Learning Projects. Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Toronto.
Vygotsky, L. 1978. Mind in Society: the Development of Higher Psychological Processes, Harvard University Press, Cambridge.