Tena Crews

Donna,

Ah - the "book club" idea. That can be very effective. Anything we can do to engage students in the conversation - the better.

Donna Thompson

I really like the idea of the discussion forums as a 'bookclub meeting'! So many time students will post the same information over and over again. I try to steer the discussion in other directions by bringing in other content material to advance the discussions. As often as I can, I will insert videos related to the content material. Students seem to like that format thus student engagement is higher. I like the 'lurking' just by adding some comment without going into great detail - students are more like to participate if they are not expected to respond to a right or wrong answer. Donna

Tena Crews

Victor,

Discussion boards can be so helpful to students and instructors. They can engage students in conversation or simply host information students need. Thanks!

Victor Malo

We don't have group projects in my class, it's not designed for it, but the discussion boards are where everyone congregates, so I like posting open ended questions for them to answer and discuss, later in the lecture, I'll mention those discussions, too.

Tena Crews

Krystal,

The weekly instructor labs sound helpful and beneficial to the students.

Thanks for your input.

krystal turner

I use the discussion board and weekly instructor labs. I can typically introduce a situation that relates to our discussion question and allow the students to add their opinions and comments. I also have a presentation that is used in weekly instructor labs allowing students to work together for answers and discuss the answers.

Tena Crews

samia,

Thanks for repeating the info. It is helpful. Take care.

samia friesen

As I mentioned in an earlier post, other than the use of group projects and group discussion forums, the frequent polls and and live chat discussions have proven to be great strategies.

Tena Crews

Jean,

Ah - great! The students then feel as though their tips are helping others - and, they are. This gets them communicating and sharing. Nice job.

Jean Graham

Encouraging individual practices in a group discussion is effective in a Live Chat . Unfortunately, I do not have any group projects in a History course ( not yet anyway)

Many times I pose a question and have the students engage each other with their best practices.

For example: How to write effective papers? Students share their habits with each other and I get a feel for experience and expertise of students in the current course.

Tena Crews

Phyllis,

Suggested timelines can help many students. I even have part of the project due periodically to ensure they are working on the project. They get points for turning the part of the project in and it does help them stay on track. These benchmarks (as you note) are helpful!

Phyllis Gooden

To help students manage their workload, I send an email, especially for group projects that includes a suggested schedule that outlines what they should be accomplishing each day for the week-long project. While some students follow the schedule and others fall behind the schedule, the aspect of students having benchmarks and target dates, provides a plan for them to begin working and moving toward completion of the project.
Phyllis Gooden

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Thomas,

Agreed. I do this all the time with my huge online courses. I even assign them to be responsible for facilitating their own discussions, etc. Nice job.

Thomas Matula

Breaking discussions into small groups, 5-7 students, works well in getting students more involved in the discussion thread.

Tena Crews

Theran,

Keeping the student involved in interactive discussions, assignments and projects. It's a great opportunity for them to learn from others and we learn from them as we assess their work in connection to the learning outcomes. Thanks!

Theran Mugleston

Interactive assignments include discussion boards, and group/team assignments, as well as live chats.

Students are encouraged to participate in each of these, offering assistance, comments, and doing their part in responding to the assignments.

I try to point out that I learn more from them than they will actually learn from me. Students in our classrooms have lots of experience, valuable work talents, and have been exposed to things we probably won't face, so why not learn from them?

Tena Crews

francis,

So, what does "substance" mean to you? How do the students know what "substance" means? Thanks!

francis hoban

I look for a post that has substance in regrds to the issues. I do not give credit for just saying good job on your post etc. The posts should carry on the thought of the discussion board it self.

Frank Hoban

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Stanley,

Getting them involved is great. It's always good to encourage students to answer each other's discussion board posting.

Thanks!