How to Structure Online Discussions
As use of elearning becomes more common, it is increasingly important to determine what techniques are most effective. In the January 2005 issue of the British Journal of Educational Technology, Patricia K. Gilbert (Pearson Prentice Hall) and Nada Dabbagh (George Mason University) published a paper reporting the results of research on how best to facilitate students' asynchronous online discussions of course material.Gilbert and Dabbagh tested the effectiveness of online discussion protocols for promoting meaningful discourse, defined as:
the ability of learners to demonstrate critical thinking skills by (1) making inferences, (2) relating course content to prior knowledge and experience, and (3) interpreting content through the analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of others' understandings.Gilbert and Dabbagh's main finding was that "guidelines that assist the facilitation and evaluation of online discussions increased the cognitive level of student postings[,] promoting a deeper understanding of course content."
As an outgrowth of their research, Gilbert and Dabbagh propose the model for structuring asynchronous online discussion illustrated in the graphic below.
The model highlights the three elements of online discussion structure that proved most important in helping students discuss and think critically about a topic:
- Facilitator guidelines
- Evaluation rubrics
- Content protocol items
Labels: Critical thinking, eLearning, Evaluation of training, Teaching
posted by Karen Nelson @ 3:10 PM
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