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Running and facilitating online discussions LTU Training 20 April 2020…
Running and facilitating online discussions
LTU Training
20 April 2020
Outline the instructions of how to engage for participants
Session aims
Design an online discussion activity
Apply different questioning techniques
Facilitate discussion activity
Evaluate engagement with the online discussion
Case study
Designing a curriculum unit
students came together physically twice. All else online. 2 week blocks including an online discussion
3 activities as examples
Introduction: students post an introduction to themselves
low interaction. Students did as they were asked, they weren't asked to interact with each other. No moderators to encourage interaction.
Learning outcomes: post your own larning outcomes and give feedback on two of your peers
53 posts, 11 participants. Minimal moderation. Timing is of the essence when discussion is happening. If they miss the timing of when others are completing, then low engagement
Technology topic: respond to two questions. One on online discussions and the other on flipped classroom model.
78 posts, 17 participants. Having moderation is important to engagement. Did you go in and prompt students? This encourages the discussion. Be there in the beginning and then students start to get into the flow and your presence can check in as needed.
Optional and not a requirement of the unit to pass.
Applying in practise
Are the questions/discussion points aligned to the curriculum?
linked to learning outcomes
Linked to Teaching and Learning activities
Linked to Assessment
Setting expectations
Structure of the discusssion. Are you going to have this disucssion all together or break into groups.
Tone/length: Give examples and model the behaviour such as posting first. Character/word limits.
Assessment: be clear that if it relates to assessment that you make that clear
Scheduling
Deadlines and stick to them. Setting up the culture.
Mini, staggered deadlines: discussion goes for 2 weeks but expect you to make a post before the end of the first week and then again in the second.
Roles
You don't always have to be the leader of the discussion
Assign roles to students
Shift your role as participant over time
Questions
The wrong questions won't go anywhere
If your questions are broad and vague then discussion will wander.
Student-generated questions/topics
Industry partner questions
Types of questions
Exporatory: not to borad but facts and basic knowlege
Challenge: interrogate assumptions, conclusions or interpretations
Challenge: 'Employers aren't recruiting because of COVID-19'
Relational: comparisons of themes/ideas/issues
Diagnostic: probe motices and causes
Action: call for conclusion or action
Cause and effect: causal relationshiops between ideas, actions or events
Extension: expand the existing discussion as a moderator
Hypothetical: pose a change in the facts or issues
Priority: seek to identify the most important issues (come up with consensus on top 3 most important out of 10)
Summary: elicit synthesis. What are they learning from being part of the discussion? What do they need to do at the end to bring together their knowlege.
Support
In how to participate in discussion
How to support students to be part of an online discussion. What should they expect, how can they contribute.
Sometimes they have difficulty framing the issue on their own
Difficulty keeping the issue open for continued discussion - if it's too narrow or too broad.
Tendancy to create a set of parallel monologues i.e. say the same things. Expand - point out where they could go next/promt for expanding on their contribution.
Give an introduction to how a discussion forum works - video (discussion board etiquette/discussion board basics):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVqWcrMPxfY
Technical. Canvas has some guides
Social: How do they know it is safe and they won't be laughed at for their contributions. How much time they can have to put together their thoughts is a contributing factor. Keep it a positive experience.
Managing online discussions
Allow the students to do the talking
Set a beginning, middle and end to the discussion
Ask probing questions
Use the question examples
what would happen if?
is there a connection between what you've said and X's comment?
Can you put it another way?
How might x have affected y?
What remains unresolved?
Address incivilities
you can do this offline if needed
you can highlight publicly what is innapropriate behaviour but address directly with the student afterwards.
Do not allow domination
Watch for orphaned comments and silent students
Tie it all together before you end the discussion
synthesis and summary
How discussion threads die
discussion is exhausted
discussion is too confrontational or threatening
loss of interest
competition between threads
Clunkers
questions that students drop on you and don't link to the discussion or are incredibly contraversial
you can acknowledge the question but that's not what we're here to talk about
Discussion off topic
Lack of moderator's interest/attention