and the Online Discussion Environment

ASSESSMENT IN THE ONLINE COURSE THE TEACHER MIGHT ASSESS THE STUDENT’S ONLINE COURSE WORK WITH: OBJECTIVE TESTS; GROUP WORK; ESSAYS; DISCUSSION;

THE DISCUSSION BOARD MANY PEOPLE SAY THAT DISCUSSION IN ONLINE COURSES IS WHAT MAKES ONLINE WORTH DOING; OTHERS SAY THAT COURSES THAT SEEK DISCUSSION ARE BEST CARRIED OUT FACE-to-FACE; WHERE DO YOU STAND? IF YOU HAD TO GUESS, WHICH COURSES DO YOU THINK ARE TOP CANDIDATES FOR ONLINE –COURSES WITH LOTS OF FACTUAL INFORMATION; –COURSES THAT ALLOW FOR AND EVEN THRIVE ON DISCUSSION OF CONTROVERSIAL TOPICS; –WILL STUDENTS DISCUSS ONLINE OR ONLY POST THEIR THOUGHTS TO DO THEIR HOMEWORK?

ASSESSING DISCUSSION WHAT DO YOU WANT OUT OF DISCUSSION IN YOUR ONLINE COURSES?  TESTING STUDENT KNOWLEDGE FOR TEXTBOOK CONTENT?  STUDENT-to-STUDENT INTERACTION?  GENUINE GIVE AND TAKE OF IDEAS, DEBATE, CRITICAL THINKING?

What makes for a good discussion? What motivates students to actively participate and engage one another in online discussion?

GOOD DISCUSSION Whether labeled “discussion,” “dialogue” or “conversation,” the liveliest interactions are critical. When participants take a critical stance, they are committed to questioning and exploring even the most widely accepted ideas and beliefs. Conversing critically implies an openness to rethinking cherished assumptions and to subjecting those assumptions to a continuous round of questioning, argument, and counterargument. One of the defining characteristics of critical discussion is that participants are willing to enter the conversation with open minds. This requires people to be flexible enough to adjust their views in the light of persuasive, well-supported arguments and confident enough to retain their original opinions when rebuttals fall short. Although agreement may sometimes be desirable, it is by no means a necessity (Brookfield and Preskill, p. 7).

DISCUSSION-continued WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH THE DISCUSSION IN YOUR ONLINE COURSE?  STUDENTS ENGAGE ONE ANOTHER IN MEANINGFUL DISCUSSION, INCLUDING DISAGREEING OVER IDEAS, SUBSTANTIATING IDEAS, CONNECTING TO OTHER STUDENTS’ IDEAS;  STUDENTS POST THEIR EXPERIENCES WITHOUT REALLY ENGAGING ONE ANOTHER—POST AND FLEE;  STUDENTS OFFER THEIR THOUGHTS EARLY IN THE WEEK AND RESPOND TO ONE ANOTHER;  STUDENTS WAIT UNTIL THE END OF THE WEEK TO POST AND FLEE;

DISCUSSION This presentaton is about assessing discussion in the online course; It presents some findings on the question: Does the Use of Rubrics Influence Level of Student Interaction and/or Level of Critical Thinking in Online Discussion?

PROCEDURE IN ONE SECTION (2008) IT WAS SUGGESTED THAT STUDENTS POST ACROSS THE WEEK AND THAT THEY SUPPORT THEIR POSTS WITH EVIDENCE; IN THE OTHER SECTION (2009) STRICT RUBRICS WERE PRESENTED TO THE STUDENTS AT THE OUTSET OF THE COURSE, AND STUDENTS WERE GIVEN A TABLE SHOWING VARIOUS LEVELS OF QUALITY IN POSTS; STUDENTS WERE TOLD THAT THEIR POSTS WOULD BE GRADED WEEKLY BASED ON THE RUBRICS;

PROCEDURE: TWO SECTIONS OF THE SAME INTRODUCTORY COURSE IN COMMUNICATION, WITH THE SAME TEACHER IN EACH WERE COMPARED FOR THE AMOUNT OF STUDENT-to- STUDENT INTERACTION, AND THE QUALITY OF STUDENT-to-STUDENT POSTS;

DO RUBRICS INFLUENCE STUDENT INTERACTION AND LEVEL OF CRITICAL THINKING? WITH RUBRICS, STUDENTS DID POST THEIR INITIAL POST FOR A FORUM EARLIER IN THE WEEK THAN WITHOUT RUBRICS; WITH RUBRICS, STUDENTS DID POST THEIR INITIAL RESPONSE TO OTHER STUDENTS’ POSTS EARLIER IN THE WEEK THAN WITHOUT RUBRICS—IN OTHER WORDS, MORE INTERACTION; WITH RUBRICS, STUDENTS USED SOMEWHAT HIGHER LEVELS OF CRITICAL THINKING THAN WITHOUT RUBRICS—THOUGH, IN PRACTICAL TERMS, THE INCREASE WAS VERY SMALL;

SO, WHAT IS OUR ADVICE FOR ONLINE TEACHING AND DISCUSSION? UNTIL THESE FINDINGS ARE REPLICATED AND TRIED OUT NUMEROUS TIMES, WE WANT TO BE CAUTIOUS IN COMING TO CONCLUSIONS, BUT IT DOES APPEAR THAT: –RUBRICS HELP; –SHOWING STUDENTS WHAT YOU MEAN BY QUALITY DISCUSSION HELPS; –MOTIVATING EARLY POSTING HELPS; –MOTIVATING EARLY RESPONSES HELPS;

Personal relevance of topic? Trust? Professor Involvement? Rubrics?

CAN WEEKLY GRADING PRODUCE HIGHER LEVELS OF CRITICAL THINKING AND INCREASED INTERACTION? Grading Student Posts

STUDY 5 PROCEDURE

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