Asynchronous Discussions
Discussion Prompts
Discussions boards are essential for engagement in asynchronous classes. Productive discussions start with effective prompts. Ask yourself, what is the learning goal for the discussion? What is it that you want students to discuss? Here are some tips for creating an effective discussion prompt:
- Limit the number of questions or subjects to 2-3 so that students can respond thoughtfully.
- Pose questions that ask students to analyze, interpret, or synthesize material.
- Ask students to put forth their opinions based on their professional and personal experience, as a way to allow them to connect with the course subject matter.
For additional ideas for discussion criteria, see the OTL blog post, Utilizing the Canvas Discussion Tool.
Student Responses
It鈥檚 recommended that instructors require students to respond to one another on the discussion board. If students aren鈥檛 incentivized to respond to each other, the discussion board becomes static, a series of monologues rather than a robust conversation.
Students don鈥檛 necessarily need to respond with written posts; Canvas allows students to record audio or video posts. Students can also link to other content, such as videos, memes, and articles. These multimedia posts can make discussion boards feel more personal and dynamic.
A suggested practice is to ask students to reply to at least two of their fellow students鈥 posts within 48-72 hours of the initial post鈥檚 due date. Replies help put students鈥 at the center of the classroom discourse and encourages them to take ownership of the course and of their learning.
Facilitating Discussions
Facilitating a discussion online isn鈥檛 actually that different from facilitating one in a physical classroom 鈥 steer the conversation down productive avenues, ask questions, and encourage active learning by letting students engage with each other and the course material.
Online discussions are most effective when instructors participate regularly. This doesn鈥檛 mean commenting on every student post, which is time-consuming and can actually inhibit students from diving deeper into concepts. Instead, one option is to wait for students to post and then respond in the discussion by synthesizing the discussion鈥檚 ideas and posing follow-up questions for students to consider. Instructors can also comment strategically on posts that are particularly well-written or that offer engaging ideas or questions. A few comments in the discussion during the week go a long way in establishing a teaching presence.
Strategies to Build Community in Asynchronous Discussions
Let the Discussion Be a Discussion
Encourage students to write succinctly, share multimedia images and videos, and bring personal stories into the discussions - all of which creates a social atmosphere and digestible content for everyone.
Use Student's Names and Pronouns
Using names and pronouns provides an inclusive learning environment and goes a long way in establishing connection.
Create a Virtual Student Lounge
Set up a discussion that encourages students to talk about non-classroom topics or post a weekly off-topic conversation to connect students. You can establish a separate "student lounge" discussion or a "water cooler" discussion allows students to share things like restaurant recommendations and good hiking spots.
Add Your Expertise
Connect with students by adding your expertise in the discussion and clear up any misconceptions or misunderstandings with the course material, and facilitate the discussion by asking questions that will deepen their understanding.
Keep the Conversation Going
Highlight important points and cheer students on when they contribute in meaningful ways.
Ask questions to stimulate responses. If there are students not participating, send them a private message and offer advice on how to contribute.
Summarize Highlights
In a weekly email or announcement, summarize highlights from the previous week's discussion and preview what is coming up.
For more ideas of how to engage with听 students via discussion boards, take a look at the chart below:
| Identifying areas of agreement and disagreement and linking. | "Joe, Mary has provided a compelling counter-example to your hypothesis. Would you care to respond?"
"How is that similar to what we read earlier?
"How does your view compare to Valerie's" |
Seeking to reach
consensus/understanding. | "I think Joe and Mary are saying essentially the same thing."
"What interests you about this issue?" |
| Encouraging, acknowledging or reinforcing student contributions. | "Thank you for your insightful comments."
"Thanks for sharing this new perspective." |
| Drawing in participants, promoting discussion. | "Who has some thoughts on this issue?"
"What stands out from what we discussed?"
"What big question still lingers?" |
| Assess the efficacy of the process | "I think we're getting a little off track here."
"What's the most important value or principle we should consider here?" |
(Adapted from Garrison, 2017, p.75)
Video
Welcome Videos
Discussion boards, though, are just one tool for building community and fostering engagement in an asynchronous course.
The first day of class is crucial for any course, and all the more so for asynchronous courses. One of the best ways to begin building a classroom community for such courses is for the professor to create a video introduction.
You could use your video to explain your areas of research or scholarship, how long you鈥檝e been with DU, what courses you teach, and, if you鈥檙e comfortable, your hobbies or a bit about your personal life. These videos don鈥檛 need to be (and shouldn鈥檛 be) too long; five minutes or less is a good rule of thumb. The more you make your video feel personal, the more you鈥檒l be able to connect with your students.
As a next step, you can also encourage students to make their own videos and post them to a discussion. This allows students to begin getting to know each other as more than just names on a discussion board. If students aren鈥檛 comfortable uploading a video, they can introduce themselves with audio recordings, a written post, or in other creative ways, like making an infographic with a website like .
Weekly Mini-Lectures
Short weekly videos are a helpful tool for students to enhance their learning and connect with you as the instructor. These mini-lectures can be used to clarify the weekly topic and highlight important points for students to consider. In addition to course content, it鈥檚 also a way to build a connection with students by offering encouragement and summarizing overall concepts where students are struggling. Weekly Announcements are a great way to leverage these mini-lectures in Canvas.
Rubrics
How instructors choose to grade and comment on student work can also play an essential role in establishing presence. Especially for discussions, rubrics can do a lot of the heavy lifting to let students know they did well and where they can improve.
Instructors can then use SpeedGrader to offer in-text comments on documents or provide 听written or media comments, along with submitting the grade. These strategies help students understand how their work is being evaluated, and therefore, offers them an opportunity to connect with their instructors.
Instructors can then use听SpeedGrader听to offer in-text comments on documents or provide听 written or media comments, along with听submitting the grade. These strategies help students understand how their work is being evaluated, and therefore, offers听them an opportunity to connect with their instructors.
Announcements and Messages
Messages to students, via emails, Canvas messages, or Announcements, are yet another way for instructors to make their presence felt. The Announcements feature on Canvas is a particularly good way to communicate with the class as a whole.
For example, instructors can use announcements to highlight compelling moments from a discussion board, or communicate with students about grades and feedback. And, like a discussion post, the Announcements feature enables the use of hyperlinks, videos, or other media. Students can also directly comment on or 鈥渓ike鈥 an announcement, which can facilitate discussion.
Canvas messages are usually better-suited for individual communications. And while instructors sometimes need to reach out to students who seem to be having difficulties, it鈥檚 also a good idea to let students know when they鈥檙e doing well.
Furthermore, instructors might consider reaching out to students with a brief message around the mid-point of the quarter for an informal check in; such messages not only show students that instructors care about their success, but can also yield important information that can help an instructor make beneficial adjustments to the course.
Conclusion
The potential for asynchronous courses to build connections and support student learning depends on the active participation of both students and professors. 听As stated in the blog post, Engagement and Interactivity in Online Synchronous Learning, 鈥渢he creative leveraging of both ed-tech tools and instructor presence can go a long way towards establishing a learning environment where students feel a sense of community and find themselves motivated to participate.鈥 The same is true for asynchronous courses. By engaging in best practices like those listed in this post, professors can begin creating a dynamic online classroom community that is vital to maintaining interest, motivation, and engagement.
Citations
Garrison, D. R., (2017). E-learning in the 21st century: A framework for research and practice (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.
