Managing Effective Online Discussions

In order to create an effective online discussion, it must be carefully constructed and well managed by the instructor. This begins by making sure the students recognize the relevance of this learning activity by aligning it with a learning objective, and relating the discussion to supporting course materials. It is also important to provide students with clear guidelines about participation expectations for the appropriate content, quality, length, and number of posts. A grading rubric should be made available for the students that explains the criteria for assessment levels and scores, and to further clarify and define the requirements for a successful discussion post.

Instructors need to allow the students to do most of the discussing, yet also be sensitive about the appropriate times to enter the conversation. The instructor must be aware of when to intervene and re-direct the conversation if it starts getting off-track, or when incorrect ideas begin to steer the conversation in an inappropriate direction. The instructor also serves as a moderator, who assures that participants are following the rules of good netiquette, and are responding to one another in a constructive manner. A productive discussion should promote a safe environment that encourages an open sharing of ideas and personal expression. This is essential for creating a learning activity where the intended outcome is to stimulate interpretations and examine diverse perspectives about the course content.

The instructor should also facilitate the discussion by providing positive feedback to reinforce the comments that are most relevant and promote further examination of the topic. The discussion benefits when the instructor elicits additional responses by questioning and requesting more explanations about particular perspectives or ideas. The instructor should attempt to extend the dialogue by encouraging interactions, interpretations, examples, and advocating different viewpoints. It is important to continue stimulating the discussion towards generating personal ideas, deeper processing, and critical thinking about the topic. These activities engage students with higher-levels of learning such as synthesis and evaluation of the course materials. Additionally, online discussions requires students to reflect about the content, and interact with other learners to construct new knowledge. This comprehensive guide provides many strategies and management ideas for developing effective online discussions.