Discussion forums are likely the most used teaching tool in online classes, and their success depends greatly on a number of things, such as:
- How is the discussion structured time-wise? Is there enough time to make a post and reply to others?
- How is the grading set-up for assessing the discussion posts?
- Are there clear expectations for content, length, format, and number of posts?
- Do the students have enough resources and background knowledge to contribute quality posts?
- Are there too many or too few participants in the discussion, making it either too much to read or not enough?
- Are the prompt questions phrased in a way to promote unique ideas and opinions?
- Is the instructor involved in the discussion and do they provide meaningful feedback?
- Does the instructor provide follow-up questions that further the discussion?
As you can see, there are many factors to a great discussion and each of these could be their post. However, I am going to address the last three points regarding the prompt questions and instructor’s involvement.
Successful conversations begin with quality questions. It is critical that instructors formulate the right type of question to spur discussion and inspire the students to participate. The following resources may be useful examples to help with writing discussion prompts and follow up questions.
Some key points are to:
- Not ask questions that simply ask for a recollection of facts or data.
- Ask questions that require interpretation, evaluation, debate, or brainstorming.
- End your post with a question that invites students/peers to draw different conclusions or ideas
Examples of questions to further a discussion (included at the end of your post):
- “Did anyone else reach a different conclusion based on the reading?”
- “I was able to relate this to ______________, did anyone else make an interesting connection to the this topic?”
- “I am confused about ______________. Does anyone have any ideas or insights that might help me understand?”
- “Answering this question made me wonder _______________?”
- “This topic was not presented in the question, but does anyone have an opinion about __________________?”
- “On the other hand, has anyone considered ______________?”
