presented by

Cindy Underhill, Strategist, Learning Support Resources, Office of Learning Technology,UBC

&

Emily Renoe, Course Technologies Training and Support Liaison, Office of Learning Technology,UBC

January 22, 2008 10am (PST)for the LCIN Spring Series

Effective Online Discussions

Session Learning Objectives

By the end of this session, participants will:

take away at least one new idea, perspective or strategy related to online discussion to apply in their own context.

We hope that participants will extend their personal exploration of resources, accessing the OnlineDiscussions Wiki and adding additional resources that they wish to share.

Session Breakdown

section 1 section 2 section 3

Effective Discussions Tools for Support Recap

Planning

• Bloom’s Taxonomy

• Learning Objectives

Presence

• Community of Inquiry Model

• Roles

Provocation

• Good Questions

• Case Study Example

Grading Rubrics

Types of discussion: threaded, blog, journal

Creating discussion categories and topics

Creating, viewing, posting and managing messages.

Tips

Resources

Ongoing Discussion

Slide 4

Effective Discussions Need...

Planning

Presence

Provocation

Slide 5

Planning…

Learning Objectives: Course/ActivityLearning Objectives: Course/Activity

Using Bloom’s Taxonomy in Using Bloom’s Taxonomy in Developing Learning ObjectivesDeveloping Learning Objectives

Learning Domain Verbs to support measurable learning objectives

Cognitive

Remembering -- Can the learner recall or remember the information?

arrange, define, duplicate, label list, memorize, name, order, recognize, relate, recall, reproduce, list, tell, describe, identify, show, label, collect, examine, tabulate, quote

Understanding -- Can the learner explain ideas or concepts?

classify, describe, discuss, explain, express, interpret, contrast, predict, associate, distinguish, estimate, differentiate, discuss, extend, translate, review, restate, locate, recognize, report

Applying – Does the learner use information in a new way?

apply, choose, demonstrate, dramatize, employ, illustrate, interpret, operate, practice, schedule, sketch, solve, use, calculate, complete, show, examine, modify, relate, change, experiment, discover

Analysing – Does the learner break information into its components to see interrelationships and ideas?

analyze, appraise, calculate, categorize, compare, contrast, criticize, differentiate, discriminate, distinguish, examine, experiment, question, test, separate, order, connect, classify, arrange, divide, infer

Evaluating – Does the learner assess the value of information based on established criteria and begin to talk like an expert?

appraise, argue, assess, attach, defend, judge, predict, rate, support, evaluate, recommend, convince, judge, conclude, compare, summarize

Creating – Is the learner composing, creating or designing something original?

arrange, assemble, collect, compose, construct, create, design, develop, formulate, manage, organize, plan, prepare, propose, set up, rewrite, integrate, create, design, generalize

Affective

- involves emotional factors such as awareness, attention, motivation, interests and values.

accept, attempt, challenge, defend, dispute, join, judge, praise, assess, question, share, support, listen, attend to, react to

Psychomotor

- involves perception, readiness, response, adaptation.

Bend, grasp, handle, operate, reach, relax, shorten, stretch, differentiate (by touch), express (facially), perform (skillfully)

Another way to look at Bloom’s TaxonomyAnother way to look at Bloom’s Taxonomy

Learning Objectives: ComponentsLearning Objectives: Components

3 Essential Parts:

Description of what the learner will do (verb).

Conditions under which this will happen.

Level of proficiency.

Example:

Think about one of the theoretical perspectives presented in the readings. In the discussion thread titled Theoretical Perspectives, express an opinion about the relevance of this perspective in understanding human behavior. Support your opinion with examples.

Why are learning objectives Why are learning objectives important?important?

Learning objectives are your guides to:

selection of content. development of an instructional strategy. development and selection of instructional materials. construction of assessments/ evaluating student learning

outcomes. students monitoring their own learning.

Tips for PlanningTips for Planning

Think about how discussion fits into your course. What do you want learners to achieve?

Make learning objectives/ evaluation methods clear to students.

Consider how you will prepare students for participation. What skills/understandings do students need in order to be effective?

Balance workload (for you and your learners). What form will discussions take? Will they comprise the majority of the course content? Will they supplement the readings?

Avoid viewing discussions as an "add on".

Slide 12

Presence…

Community of Inquiry ModelCommunity of Inquiry Model

Tips for FacilitationTips for Facilitation

Summarize: pull together common threads/ areas of agreement, disagreement or emerging questions.

Moderate: to refocus the group, model effective facilitation, be aware of cultural references and their impact on the group.

Guide: content re-framing.

Prompt: using socratic questioning techniques.

Troubleshoot: technical, managerial, process.

Mediate: conflict, personality clashes.

Problem Solve: off topic posts, silent participant.

Reference: Facilitating Online Learning: Tips and Suggestions by Gail Mathews-DeNatale and Sue Doubler:

Slide 15

Provocation…

Socratic Questioning TechniquesSocratic Questioning Techniques

Conceptual clarification questions—questions that get students to think about concepts behind their arguments: Why are you saying that? What exactly does this mean? How does this relate to what we have been talking about? Can you give me an example?

Probing assumptions —questions that get students to think about the beliefs that they base their arguments on:,What else could we assume? How did you choose those assumptions? How can you verify or disprove that assumption? What would happen if …?

Probing rationale, reasons, and evidence —questions that get students to think about the support for their arguments: Why is that happening? How do you know this? Can you give me an example? What do you think causes …?

Questioning viewpoints and perspectives —questions that get students to consider other viewpoints: What are some alternate ways of looking at this? Who benefits from this?

Probe implications and consequences —questions that get students to think about the what follows from their arguments, for example, Then what would happen? What are the consequences of that assumption?

Questions about the question —questions that turn the question in on itself, for example, What was the point of asking that question? Why do you think I asked this question?

Reference: Paul, Richard, Critical Thinking: How to Prepare Students for a Rapidly Changing World, 1993.

Case Study: Introductory PsychologyCase Study: Introductory Psychology

Dr. Bill Pelz`s Introductory Psychology is a  survey course intended to introduce students  to the major concepts, theories and research findings in

the field of psychology. (from Sloan-C's effective practices).

Context: - small community college - class sizes of about 25 students

Focus for Case Study: student – led discussion (example) - worth 50% of grade - supports a culture of inquiry - requires students to use higher order thinking skills - matches well with teaching philosophy – highly constructivist.

Learning Objectives: Course LevelLearning Objectives: Course Level

Sample learning objectives for an Introductory Psychology course:

By the end of the course, students will be able to: apply critical thinking to assumptions, claims, and common sense ideas

about behavior. analyze, synthesize and make connections between theory and ideas

presented and real-world situations. participate in a culture of inquiry by posing questions, supporting the

discussion with evidence and facilitating dialogue.

Learning Objectives: Activity LevelLearning Objectives: Activity Level

Sample learning objectives for an student-led discussion:

Students will:

Read and think about the concepts presented in the readings.

Analyze concepts in order to compose an original and provocative question for the class to discuss. Create a new topic thread in the discussion for each weekly unit. Post your discussion question at the beginning of the week and facilitate the discussion on your question.

Participate effectively in the discussion on at least 2 other discussion questions during each week.

Learning scaffolds:

Series of ice-breakers related to good question design, online discussion and facilitation.

Guidelines for developing a good discussion question.

Guidelines for facilitating effective discussions.

Evaluation:

Students are evaluated using a grading rubric.

Slide 20

What Makes a Good Discussion Question?

Dr. Pelz: A good question:

requires respondents to use critical analysis skills. encourages demonstration of both factual knowledge and

comprehension of how it applies to the social behavior of people.

should not be a "look up in the text" question or "what's your opinion" question.

Your thoughts?

Slide 21

What Makes a Good Discussion?

Dr. Pelz:

3 things:

The quality of the question. The quality of the responses. The “depth” of the discussion. Are participants

demonstrating higher order/ critical thinking?

Your thoughts?

Example…Example…

.

Application Share (in Vista) …Application Share (in Vista) …

.

Link to UBC and other rubric examples.

Link to OnlineDiscussions wiki

RecapRecap

Plan effectively. Be present and care. Clearly state your expectations for learners and your role in the

discussions. Develop your skills as a facilitator. Be provocative with a purpose (socratic questioning techniques

help). Reflect on successes and failures and use what you learn to build

better discussions.

References and ResourcesReferences and Resources

Resources

UBCWiki: Online Discussion: http://wiki.elearning.ubc.ca/OnlineDiscussion

Planning:

Benjamin S. Bloom. Taxonomy of educational objectives. Published by Allyn and Bacon, Boston, MA. Copyright (c) 1984 by Pearson Education.

Meredith College’s application of Bloom’s Taxonomy to the design of learning objectives: http://www.meredith.edu/rpa/sourcebook/bloomstaxonomy.htm (retrieved July 10th, 2007).

San Diego State University's Encyclopedia of Educational Technology: http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/ Search for Bloom's Taxonomy: revised.

Rourke, L., D.R., Anderson, T., Garrison, D.R., and Archer, W. Assessing Social Presence in Asyncronous Text-based Computer Conferencing. Journal Of Distance Education ,2001: http://cade.athabascau.ca/vol14.2/rourke_et_al.html∞ (accessed Jan. 9, 2008)

Best Practices:

Greenlaw, S. A. and DeLoach, S. B. (2003). Teaching Critical Thinking with Electronic Discussion: http://www.indiana.edu/~econed/pdffiles/winter03/greenlaw.pdf

Pelz, B. (2004). (My) Three Principles of effective Online Pedagogy. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks. Vol. 8 Issue 3: http://www.sloan-c.org/publications/JALN/v8n3/v8n3_pelz.asp

Sloan –C: Bill Pelz’s Student Led Discussions: http://www.sloan-c.org/effective/details3.asp?LE_ID=36

Strategies for Promoting Online Discussion in Your Course: http://www.onlinelearning.net/InstructorCommunity/tips_oct2000.html?s=625.5060x282p.031f403l80

Facilitating Online Learning: Tips and Suggestions: Mathews-DeNatale and Doubler: http://scienceonline.terc.edu/facilitating_online_learning.html (accessed: January 7th, 2008)

Grading Rubrics:

Sloan-C: Frank McClusky’s Discussion Grading Rubric: http://www.sloan-c.org/effective/details3.asp?LE_ID=18

Cal State University: http://www.csulb.edu/lats/itss/design/discussionrubric.html

Issues:

J. Freedman and M. Anderson. Lurking: A Valid Learning Style? Magna Publications’ Online Classroom: July 2007 Issue.