Print bookPrint book

BOOK: AOD Foundations

Site: SCoPE - BCcampus Learning + Teaching
Group: FLO MicroCourse: Write a compelling discussion prompt 2024 OER
Book: BOOK: AOD Foundations
Printed by: Guest user
Date: Monday, 1 December 2025, 1:13 AM

Description

This book will provide an overview of some of the background and considerations in designing and facilitating an AOD. It's full of resources and examples to inspire your thinking.

Table of contents

1. Welcome to This Book!

What is this Book?

The following book provides foundational principles, inspirational examples, and many resources to guide our work as we design, develop, and facilitate an engaging asynchronous online discussion prompt.

Some of the chapters begin with a video where educators from around the world with experience designing and facilitating engaging AOD share their expertise and knowledge. These are optional to watch but are there in case you like to hear from peers.

How to Navigate This Book

To read this book, you can read each page and click the Next button at the top and/or button of the page. You can also navigate to specific chapters using the table of contents on the right. To return to the FLO MicroCourse homepage, use the breadcrumbs at the top of the page (the "file structure" that appears at the top of every page... to return to the homepage, look for FLO MicroCourse: Write a compelling discussion prompt 2024).

What to Prioritize

While we hope that you will find every chapter in this book useful, we recognize that educators are busy and that you simply may not have the time to read the entire book. If that is the case, we recommend you prioritize the following chapters, as they are more likely to provide inspiration for the design of your own AOD this week:

Attributions

Some chapters in this book were adapted from CC BY NC resources. These sources are cited at the bottom of the relevant chapters. Other chapters were written by Annie Prud'homme-Généreux, 2024. All images were created by ChatGPT 4.0 and DALL-E 3.

The license is copyrighted BY (must cite the name of the author) and NC (can only be used for non commercial purposes).The license for this book is CC BY NC, so you are welcome to reuse and adapt any part of it for your purposes, so long as those purposes are not commercial and you give credit to the authors.

2. Learning Objectives

After reading this book, you should be able to:

  1. EXPLAIN how asynchronous online discussions (AOD) can expand learning opportunities
  2. LIST and then APPLY the steps to creating an engaging AOD
  3. WRITE an engaging AOD prompt aligned with your objectives
  4. SELECT the platform and format most conducive for an online discussion's goals
  5. LIST strategies that promote high quality online discussions and ANALYZE which strategies would work best in your own online discussions
  6. DESCRIBE how instructor presence can affect discussion quality and MAKE A PLAN to facilitate and promote active and engaging online discussions.
  7. KNOW resources that can be consulted for inspirations and ideas in designing your own AOD.

3. Benefits of Online Discussion

Introduction 

Why do we assign asynchronous online discussion activities? What is the evidence of their benefit?

To begin this chapter, consider viewing an interview with Dr. Leicha Bragg, a faculty who trains mathematics teachers at Deakin University in Australia [6min]. Although the video is somewhat dated (it was published in 2011), some of the ideas and ways in which Dr. Bragg uses discussion boards in her online classes are still valid.

 


What is an AOD?

An online discussion is defined as communication between instructors and learners using interactive communication tools. These tools can take many forms, from chat sessions (e.g., the chat during a Zoom session), to asynchronous discussion forums (e.g., the threaded discussion board of your LMS), to video chat (e.g., breakout rooms in a Zoom class). 

In this FLO MicroCourse, we will focus on asynchronous online discussions (AOD), which are online discussions that take place over the course of several hours or days and where participants enter the discussion at different time points. The AOD can take place in many formats, from textual, to visual, to video, to audio.

An AOD is very similar to an in person discussion in that both require moderation and active management by the instructor, preparation time, and summarization of the concepts covered.

Benefits of AOD

There are many benefits to having classroom discussions, whether they are online or in person. Whatever the format, discussions allow learners to expand their learning outside the classroom through interactive dialogue with their peers and the instructor.

The value of an AOD in particular is that every learner, including those who are shy and typically do not participate in an in person discussion, can express their views. It's a more democratic discussion than in person ones, which are typically led by a few learners who are either comfortable speaking in front of others or who are fast thinkers. AOD can sollicit more thoughtful responses since participants have the time to consider their responses for minutes, hours, or even days. AODs also allow users to bring in outside content, for example images they took to illustrate a concept they want to convey (e.g., take pictures of store signs that show a specific marketing technique).

Below is a list of the benefits of AOD.

  • Equal Chances. In an in person discussion, there is limited time for everyone to talk; as soon as the class discussion time is over, the discussion is over. The online format is a great place to continue the classroom discussions, allowing all learners, even the timid ones or the ones that need more time to think, a chance to have their say. This also allows learners to participate at the same time in multiple lines of thought (threads) within the same discussion theme.

  • Depth of conversation. If the instructor makes the expectations and requirements clear then, given that learners have time to reflect on their discussion contributions before posting, they can offer more resources and interesting facts than they could in an in person discussion on the same topic, thus increasing the quality of the discussions.

  • Expanding Classroom Learning. A classroom discussion can only last as long as the class hours allow and may take time away from lectures and other activities that the instructor needs to give to learners. Having online discussions allows the learning community to continue course discussions even once the in person time wraps up. It can also be a great way for learners to integrate learning from classroom lectures or activities into discussion conducted online.
  • Preparation. In an in person discussion, learners may or may not have prepared or read the material, but in online discussions they always have time to look up the information and study the item prior to posting a response about it, particularly useful for English Language Learners who may need extra time to prepare in advance of discussions.
  • Netiquette. Today, much of communication is online, requiring learners to become proficient in a set of social communication skills: how to politely discuss topics in the online format. This is different to social media participation where professionalism is not necessarily required. The instructor is integral in helping learners find their online voices and personalities in a polite and socially acceptable manner that is conducive to a warm and inviting learning community for all; a skill learners will use in their personal and professional lives.
  • Writing Skills. If the instructor has high expectations on the quality of the writing that learners post, then students will have the opportunity to improve on their writing skills. This can be an essential practice of writing for English language Learners.
  • Active Management. As the instructor follows discussion threads, they can see misconceptions or logical errors and fallacies right as they occur and offer the information or guidance students need to stay on the right learning path in class.
  • Global Connections. Some online course discussions are conducted across different course sections at the same campus, or across several campuses, or even between the same course at two different universities in the same or different countries (think, for example, of a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC)). These kinds of online global connections allow the students a chance to improve on their cultural perspectives and to network internationally.

Many students have said that they write their posts in MS Word first to check for grammar and spelling before posting them to be viewed by other students. When asked why, some said they don’t mind making mistakes when submitting writing to the instructor as he/she is an expert in this area, so is used to seeing errors! When submitting threaded posts in the discussion forum however, they feel their writing should be as flawless as possible so their peers will think well of them. – Triona Finucane

Reflection

Look over the listed benefits of online discussions. Which do you feel would most apply to your course and why?

Resources

Want to learn more about the evidence supporting the use of AOD for learning? Consider the following resources.

The following is probably the best peer-reviewed resource that you will find on this topic. It is a literature review that is communicated in the form of a document aimed at practitioners who want information about evidence-informed best practices. Table 2 is a summary of evidence-based practices, and Table 4 provides example of prompts that serve different purposes like brainstorming or asking learners to defend a position.

Aloni, M., & Harrington, C. (2018). Research based practices for improving the effectiveness of asynchronous online discussion boards. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 4(4), 271–289.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/stl0000121
(Hint: If your library does not have access to this article, try Google Scholar at access a copy).

Though somewhat dated, this next review similarly converts the peer reviewed literature into a series of best practices that are useful for educators. One section that is particularly interesting is how to deal with "lurkers," learners who read but who do not contribute posts.

Thompson, J. T. (2006). Best practices in asynchronous online course discussions. Journal of College Teaching & Learning (TLC), 3(7).

This next review investigated some of the common challenges for lack of student engagement in an AOD and identifies some of the best practices in overcoming these challenges. It also reviewed the common reasons that learners feel motivated to engage with an AOD.

Hew, K. F., Cheung, W. S., & Ng, C. S. L. (2010). Student contribution in asynchronous online discussion: A review of the research and empirical exploration. Instructional science, 38, 571-606.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11251-008-9087-0

Attributions

This chapter was adapted from the following CC BY NC resource:

Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. Authored by: Michelle Rogers-Estable, Cathy Cavanaugh, Michael Simonson, Triona Finucane, Andrew McIntosh. Located at: https://www.ck12.org/user:bWVzdGFibGUzN2VkdUBnbWFpbC5jb20./book/Virtual-Learning-Design-and-Delivery/. Project: Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. License: CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial

All images were created using the generative AI tool ChatGPT and serve a decorative purpose only.

4. Steps to Designing an AOD Prompt

Steps to designing an AOD. LO, Structure, Prompt, Format/Platform, Evaluation, Instructions.

Step 1. Determine the learning goal of this activity.

Ask yourself: Is this a goal that would best be met through a discussion? Remember that a discussion is about the exchange of information between learners. A reflection is personal – not a good fit for a discussion. A problem set usually has one correct answer – again, not a great choice for a discussion because once the correct answer has been provided, the discussion is over. A discussion requires that every participant has something unique to contribute. There needs to be a foundation for them to contribute and everyone should come at it from slightly different directions. Also, there should be a benefit to seeing how others view the topic. It should enrich everyone’s understanding.

Example 1. Learners will be able to explain the strengths and weaknesses of using different types of student-centered activities in the classroom.

Example 2. Learners will be able to recognize the concept of oxidation in the world around them.

Step 2. Determine the structure of the discussion.

Once you have determined that a discussion is the appropriate activity to meet the learning goal, consider the task that you wish learners to engage in. In this book, we call it the structure of the discussion. Choosing a structure will depend on the learning goal. For example, if the learning goal involves students understanding the perspective of various stakeholders in a scenario, a Role-Play may be a good way to go. If the learning objective is for students to recognize a concept in different settings and/or to learn from examples (i.e., inductive learning), then Picture This Example is a good choice. If the learning outcome is focused on assembling a toolkit or preparing for professional life, then Crowd-Sourced Research is a good structure.

Of course, a discussion can also be structured in the traditional manner, with a prompt and responses. In this case, something to consider is whether it would be helpful to create smaller groups so as to not overwhelm learners in a large class, and to create a more intimate discussion. You may even consider whether the structure Cross Pollination could be layered on, to help spread some of the ideas from one small group to another.

Example 1. Traditional discussion. Groups of 5 students. At the end of the discussion, each group summarizes their discussion in one paragraph and posts to the whole class discussion.

Example 2. Picture This Example.

Step 3. Write the prompt.

This is probably the most intensive step. The question should align with the learning outcome. It should also align with the structure you have chosen (if any). The prompt should be clear, succinct, and focused. Remember that the question should be open-ended (closed-ended discussions end the second one student posts the correct answer). To make it engaging, ask participants to draw from their unique background, perspective, knowledge, or experience. This will make them want to engage, and others to engage.

Example 1. Using one example from your own experience of using student-centered activities in the classroom, describe one way in which the activity worked and one way in which it did not.

After you have each contributed one example, identify commonalities of what worked and suggest ways to modify the aspects that did not work.

Example 2. Find an example of oxidation in the world around you. Take a picture. Your post should include the image as well as a description of what the image represents. Then, you must find one post that has not received a comment and explain the nature of the oxidation taking place (a chemical equation is preferred, but if none can be found, explain which atom is being oxidized).

Step 4. Choose a platform or format.

What is the best medium to convey the responses to the prompt? For example, if learners are asked to find examples of a concept in their environment, then a photo might be a good way to report back. If learners are describing a personal experience, a video might be able to convey the emotions that the person felt most authentically. But when engaging in analytical work, then text is the best way to structure thought.

Identity the best medium for your prompt, and from that, choose a platform to use for the discussion.

Example 1. The LMS’s discussion board using text entries. There will be two discussion threads. One for the small groups, and one for the summary of each small group discussion.


Example 2. A Padlet will allow learners to post images and words, and for others to view all examples of oxidation at once on the canvas.

Step 5. Determine how the discussion will be evaluated.

Discussions can be evaluated in many different ways. It can be done automatically, where learners get full make if they engage in a set number of posts and replies. Some educators use more elaborate schemes that give users choice, for example, they must engage in 3 of the course’s 5 discussion, and during these posts they must make 2 significant contributions that advance the discussion and must make 4 small posts that simply encourage the discussion (e.g., giving kudos to their peers).

Grading can also be done using a rubric which describes the elements of a quality post. It can be done as part of participation marks, so that each discussion is not graded, but rather contributions overall are taken into account. Or, it can be done with no grades at all. You should determine how you plan to evaluate the discussion.

FYI, the research suggests that grades are an important motivation factor in obtaining quality discussion.

Example 1. Only the summary of the discussion will be graded based on the clarity and usefulness of the information provided for other student-teachers.

Example 2. One point for each picture that is a correct example of an oxidation reaction. Two points for each correct description of the chemistry involved.

Step 6. Write the instructions.

In addition to the prompt, consider other instructions students will need to complete this assignment. This can be instructions about using the technology, or instructions about how to interact with one another (e.g., you must make one post by Tuesday and respond to at least two posts by Thursday). If there is grading associated with this activity, remind learners how they will be graded here.

Example 1. After each person in your small group has contributed their example and you have engaged in a group discussion to identify commonalities across the aspects that work and found ways to modify the aspects that did not, write a one paragraph summary. The audience for this text is other students in this course. The paragraph should explain aspects of student-centered discussions that work, and aspects that do not always work and how you suggest to address them. Your paragraph will be graded based on its usefulness to other students in the class in terms of their professional practice and its clarity.

Example 2. Post your image on Padlet [Insert Link]. Click the + button at the bottom right, add your name as a title, then click Add a Picture and upload your image. Finally, provide a description of the image below. Click Post. To comment on another student’s post, go to the bubble below the post. Enter your name and then your description of the oxidation reaction in the field.

Posting an image of an oxidation reaction will give you 1 point. An accurate description of the chemistry will give you 2 points.

5. Structures for the Discussion

Ideas and Inspirations

Many educators simply ask a question and let learners respond. That can work!

However, consider that there are other ways to structure the discussion, the tasks and roles that is asked of learners, and the way they interact with one another. This can serve specific learning objectives, or it can simply shake things up and make one discussion (every once in a while in our course) a little different.

What follows are some ideas and inspirations. In the next section of this chapter, you will be directed to even more resources to inspire your discussion structure - don't miss out on these resources, you will want to add them to your toolkit!

  1. Increasingly challenging questions: Some instructors like to scaffold the discussions in a way that also builds knowledge from the general to the specific or from lower to higher orders of learning.
    • How this works:
      • The instructor may start learners on a simple discussion question that only requires lower levels of thinking, such as knowledge (remembering) and comprehension (understanding) (Bloom’s Taxonomy).
      • This starts the discussion on a lower level of learning so that learners begin to build their knowledge and thoughts on the topic.
      • The instructor posts and emails a summary of that discussion.
      • Then a second discussion question, due a few days later, may demand that learners integrate and apply the knowledge from the first discussion in a more complex way.
      • The instructor posts and emails a summary of that discussion.
      • Then a third discussion question may advance this learning strategy further, or require them to summarize, integrate, and analyze what they have learned even further.

  2. Role-play: The instructor assigns roles or characters to learners and then gives them scenarios to act out in the AOD. Note that these are great alternative assessment methods and help to really learn how much learners know about a given topic. An important tactic to keep in mind is to survey learners prior to assigning roles and to purposely put each learner into a role that is new or different than the learner's own personal views or values. For example, make a learner with conservative political views play the role of a person with liberal political views, or young person play the role of an elderly resident. This way the participants are forced to learn about new views and opposite viewpoints than they already had, thus expanding their overall learning on the topic much more than if they only debated, defended, or played a role already in-line with their current worldviews.
    • Examples for Ideas:
      • Middle East Studies Course: The instructor assigns students to be different country leaders in the Middle East, learners study the politics of their assigned country, and then have an online ’United Nations Peace Conference’ in the discussion forums concerning conflicts over land and water rights.
      • Educational Psychology Course: The instructor assigns Learners  to be different famous educational psychologists from different eras and/or disciplines. Students study up on the views and research of their psychologist, and then in the forums ’acts out’ that person’s views on specific questions or debates.
      • Environmental Science Course: The instructor creates a role-play about use of pesticides in a small community. Learners are given different roles, such as the concerned house mom, the business owner that sells the chemicals, or the corporation manager that exports the chemicals. They then interact through questions and concerns about the chemicals and learn about different stakeholder interests.

  3. Crowd-Sourced Research: Some instructors use the discussion forums as a crowd-sourced research repository. Students generate resources and information, the instructor can moderate it and comment on it, and then learners can use that information to formulate essays, work, or assignments.This is particularly effective in professional programs where learners are assembling their professional toolkit and their can collaborate to find resources that will be helpful in their future career.
    • How this works:
      • The instructor creates a discussion forum on a given topic, and assigns students to list one fact and one web resource on the topic.
      • A few days later, learners participate in a second forum in which they summarize the information generated in the first one.
      • The students might then be required to complete a project, paper, or essay on the topic using at least three of the things they learned about during the data-driven discussions.
      • This scaffolds their learning and also ensures they use more reputable/approved sources of knowl- edge because the instructor had a chance to review them in advance.

  4. Picture This Example: One use of AODs that often generates interests and enthusiasm from the class asks students to go and take a picture of a concept seen in class, out there, in the real world. This asks students to understand that concept and to recognize it in practice in the real world. There is an element of creativity and every student will post something different. Learners are interested to view their peers' responses and this helps solidify these concepts through the many examples. For example, in a marketing course, the instructor may direct students to visit shopping malls and street store fronts and take a picture of an advertisement in a shop window that illustrates a particular marketing concept seen in class. The discussion can then explore whether the shop's application of that marketing concept is well done and how it could be improved for better results. In a chemistry course, students could be directed to go take a picture of oxidation occurring in the environment. In a follow up to the original posts, other students have to select an image (that is not their own) and explain how this is an example of oxidation and the chemical reactions that take place.

  5. Find the Error. An intellectually engaging discussion approach asks students to come up with a description of a concept or a problem solution that is flawed in some way. This asks them to understand that concept really well and then to "break it" in a conscious way. This constitutes the first post. Next, other learners in the class try to identify what is flawed about the post of their peers. They play detective and find the mistakes. In their posts, they identify what they think is wrong and how it could be rectified to be correct. Finally, the original student responds to the posts and provides the key; their solution to their flawed response.

  6. Analogies. One way to stimulate the creativity of your learners while making sure that they understand a concept and giving other learners an opportunity to learn from examples is to ask students to explain a concept by giving an analogy. You may task learners to come up with an analogy without any restrictions on their analogy (e.g., come up with an analogy to explain the electron transport chain in the mitochondria). Alternatively, you may ask learners to think of the analogy in a particular way (e.g., Please complete the following sentence and explain why you chose your submission: marketing is to social media as _______ is to your exercise routine.)

  7. Leadership Development.: An excellent tactic is to make students a leader in the discussions, which also attends to encouraging students to be in charge of their own learning. This tactic motivates them to learn at least one topic fully, and by teaching others they show their grasp of the subject as well as learn leadership skills.
    • How this works
      • The instructor creates a schedule of important key course topics. This could, for example, take the form of one topic per week of the course.
      • Learners sign up during the first week to lead one weekly online.
      • They are given clear, concise, and precise guidelines on how to prepare for their leadership week. These directions should include a grading rubric outlining how their work and participation will be assessed.
      • A week prior to their leadership week, the instructor connects with the learners who are about to lead the discussion to discuss their plan. The learner is in charge of designing the weekly discussion question, but the instructor should review it prior to the student posting it.
      • On the prescribed week, the student posts the initial discussion question and is then the leader for that topic, helping to guide and advance the discussion. They are expected to show that they are a leader/expert in that particular topic.
      • The instructor would moderate and interact as well, but more in the backseat, leaving the student to complete their leadership experience.
      • This is an alternative assessment measurement method that can be easily and conveniently assigned.
  1. Summarize the week. Instead of leaving it up to the educators to summarize a week's discussion, assign learners to review every post made in a given week and post a summary of that response. Doing so requires a learner every week to engage with the discussion in depth. It also practices their summarizing skills, prioritizing the key points of the discussion. Finally, the summary posts can be used by the rest of the class as study aids to remember the key take aways from each discussion.

  2. Cross-pollination: Cross-pollination is a discussion sharing tactic from The World Cafe . It is the idea that key concepts, ideas, and conclusions from small groups can integrate into others, all in the confines of more intimate discussions without the overwhelming feeling coming from larger group discussions. This concept is practiced by The World Café at in-person sessions, however a variation on this method can also be practiced in online discussions.
    • How this works:
      • In a blended course the instructor may introduce key discussion topics in the classroom, get the discussion started, and then continue it in the AOD.
      • In the learning management system (LMS) for the course, the instructor then creates smaller groups of 5-10 people and has them start on a specific question related to the classroom discussions and lectures. The instructor may even vary the question slightly from group to group so that different people obtain different conclusions.
      • Then, after a given time, the instructor changes the groups and puts students into new groups, and continues the same discussion questions, but now with slightly modified group.
      • The instructor may do this several times, and slowly the ideas of everyone will cross-pollinate across the groups, but done so through smaller learning sessions easier for the students to contribute.

More Discussion Structures

This was just a snippet of the range of possible discussion structures. Hungry for more ideas and inspirations? Consider the following resources.


21 Ways to Structure an Online Discussion. This series of five articles describe 21 different ways to structure an AOD. Each article focuses on structures that align with a particular learning outcome. The description of each structure contains ideas for variations and examples.

Prud'homme-Généreux, A. (2021). 21 Ways to Structure an Online Discussion. Faculty Focus.


Liberating Structure is a group of 33 different strategies for leading group conversations. They are designed to be equitable and to ensure that every member of the group is given an equal voice. Many of the techniques will seem familiar, like 1-2-4-All (educators know this tactic as "Think-Pair-Share"). This website provides a description of each activity, including ideas for variations and examples. These ways of organizing groups to facilitate the discussion could easily be adapted to an AOD.

McCandless, K., & Lipmanowicz, H. (n.a.). Liberating Structures.


Project Zero's Thinking Routine Toolbox is a collection of more than 80 set of questions designed to make student thinking visible. Assembled by Harvard University's Project Zero, the question sets are organized according to their outcomes, such as synthesizing & organizing ideas, or digging deeper into an idea. To view the resource, select an method and then on its webpage, click on Resource Link to read a description.

Project Zero. (n.a.). Thinking Routine Toolbox. Harvard Graduate School of Education.


Kevin Lee at the University of South Florida has been accumulating ideas for activities into this PDF document. It currently contains 289 ways to facilitate group discussions. more than a few could be used to structure an AOD.

Lee, K. (2020). Interactive Techniques. University of South Florida. 


Design Thinking is a method used by designers to ensure that the end product meets the users' needs and that all options are considered and tested. Out of this approach comes several activities for leading groups conversations that could easily be adapted to an AOD. For example, the Mash-Up activity asks participants to combine two seemingly unrelated ideas to create an innovative solution - it's a form of brainstorming. By combining an office element with a type of childhood play, a mash-up might suggest that to loosen up power dynamics in an office, there will be periodic snowball/paper ball fights where everyone writes suggestions for improving the office environment. Such a technique could be used to stimulate students to create new solutions.

Idea.org. (n.a.). The Design Kit. 

         (n.a.).Design Thinking Toolkit. Principle Based Management, Koch U. [Note: These are much more business-focused, but there might still be some ideas that can apply to education more broadly.]


Icebreaker. If you are using a discussion board as an icebreaker at the beginning of a course, there are many sources of icebreaker ideas.

Centre for Teaching Excellence (n.a.). Icebreakers for Online Classes. University of Waterloo.



Reflection

Review some of the discussion structures in this chapter. Which of the techniques appeals to your teaching philosophy and why? Are some approaches best suited to some learning processes over others, such as inquiry-based learning or project-based learning? Which suit which? Why?

Attributions

This chapter was adapted from the following CC BY NC resource:

Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. Authored by: Michelle Rogers-Estable, Cathy Cavanaugh, Michael Simonson, Triona Finucane, Andrew McIntosh. Located at: https://www.ck12.org/user:bWVzdGFibGUzN2VkdUBnbWFpbC5jb20./book/Virtual-Learning-Design-and-Delivery/. Project: Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. License: CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial

All images were created using the generative AI tool ChatGPT and serve a decorative purpose only.

6. Writing a Prompt

Now we come to the heart of the manner: Writing a prompt for an AOD.

We know that the way in which a question or prompt is written will influence the engagement and depth of the online conversation (Bradley et al., 2008; Ertmer et al., 2011).

Choosing a structure (which we explored in the previous chapter - structures such as role play) can help shape the task and assign roles to learners. But what if you don't want any of these bells and whistles, and instead want to engage in a traditional, question-and-answer type discussion. What are tips and tools for writing an effective and engaging prompt?

In the subchapters that follow, you can peruse some of the frameworks for writing a discussion prompt. They include:
  • Blooming questions
  • The CREST+ Models
  • Socratic Questions
  • Habits of Mind
  • Critical Incident Analysis
  • Andrews' Question Nomenclature
  • Insights from Prompt Engineering
These represent but a sample of available frameworks.

A very nice summary of questioning frameworks (not specific to online discussions) is found in Tofade et al (2013). It includes Bloom, Socratic, and Andrew's question taxonomy, but it also describes two other methods (question circles and Knowledge Dimensions). Another nice summary is provided in McComas & Rosier (n.a.).

If you are looking for additional (fantastic!) resources, take a look at the Suggested Readings at the bottom of the Facilitating Effective Discussions Tip Sheet.

References
Bradley, M. E., Thom, L. R., Hayes, J., & Hay, C. (2008). Ask and you will receive: How question type influences quantity and quality of online discussions. British Journal of Educational Technology, 39(5), 888-900. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2007.00804.x

Ertmer, P. A., Sadaf, A., & Ertmer, D. J. (2011). Student-content interactions in online courses: The role of question prompts in facilitating higher-level engagement with course content. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 23, 157-186. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-011-9047-6

Tofade, T., Elsner, J., & Haines, S. T. (2013). Best practice strategies for effective use of questions as a teaching tool. American journal of pharmaceutical education, 77(7), 155. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe777155



6.1. Blooming Questions

The first approach to writing effective and engaging discussion prompts is to use Bloom's taxonomy as a guide.

What is Bloom's Taxonomy

The Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, known as Bloom's Taxonomy (Bloom, Engelhart, Furst, & Krathwohl, 1956) is one of the most recognized learning theories in the field of education. Educators often use Bloom's Taxonomy to create learning outcomes, or write questions, that target not only subject matter but also the depth of learning they want learners to achieve (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001).

This taxonomy encompasses six levels, each representing a stage of understanding that builds upon the previous one. At the base is Knowledge, which involves the recall of facts and basic concepts. Comprehension follows, requiring learners to understand and interpret information. The third level, Application, involves using knowledge in new situations. Analysis comes next, where learners dissect information to understand its structure. The fifth level, Synthesis (revised to Creating in later versions), entails compiling information in novel ways. Finally, Evaluation, the highest level, involves making judgments based on criteria and standards. In recent years, the order of synthesis and evaluation has been flipped from the picture shown below.

Bloom's taxonomy, knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation

This hierarchical structure emphasizes that mastering higher levels requires proficiency in the preceding levels, guiding educators in designing activities that foster deeper learning and critical thinking skills.

How to Use Bloom to Write a Prompt

Bloom's verbs are action words associated with each level of Bloom's Taxonomy. By employing these verbs in a prompt, educators can design discussions that target a specific cognitive level.

To use a Bloom's Taxonomy verb in an AOD prompt, start by identifying the cognitive level that your activity should target. What's your learning objective with this discussion? For instance, if the goal is to enhance critical thinking, you might choose "analyze." 

Then, select a Bloom verb that corresponds to the desired cognitive level of understanding from the table below. Incorporate this verb into your prompt in a way that clearly directs participants to engage at the specified level of cognition. For example, if targeting "analyze," your prompt could ask participants to dissect a given argument and identify its underlying assumptions.

Bloom's Taxonomy and Verbs - Part 1
Knowledge
Comprehension 
Application
  • arrange
  • define
  • describe
  • identify
  • indicate
  • label
  • list
  • match
  • memorize
  • recall
  • recite
  • recognize
  • Who, what, when, where, how?
  • compare
  • classify
  • describe
  • discuss
  • explain
  • give examples
  • interpret
  • paraphrase
  • predict
  • present
  • report
  • rewrite
  • summarize                            
  • calculate
  • complete
  • demonstrate
  • execute
  • How is ___ an example of ___
  • How is ___ related to ___
  • illustrate
  • implement
  • modify
  • organize
  • practice
  • prepare
  • solve
  • show
  • use
  • write
  • Why is ___ significant?

Bloom's Taxonomy and Verbs - Part 2
Analysis
Synthesis
Evaluation
  • categorize
  • Classify … according to …
  • contrast
  • compare
  • (“How does … compare/contrast with …?)
  • criticize
  • debate
  • dissect
  • differentiate
  • experiment
  • inspect
  • infer
  • investigate
  • organize
  • outline
  • question
  • separate
  • test
  • What are the parts or features of …?
  • What evidence can you list for …?
  • attribute
  • argue
  • assess
  • check
  • compare
  • conclude
  • contrast
  • criticize
  • critique
  • defend
  • examine
  • How would you create/design a new …?
  • justify
  • measure
  • recommend
  • support
  • reflect
  • What ideas can you add to …?
  • What might happen if you combined …?
  • What solutions would you suggest for …?
  • What would you predict/infer from …?
  • arrange
  • calculate
  • compose
  • construct
  • design
  • develop
  • devise
  • Do you agree …?
  • formulate
  • generate
  • How would you decide about …?
  • hypothesize
  • Place the following in order of priority …
  • plan
  • prepare
  • produce
  • propose
  • revise
  • summarize
  • synthesize
  • What criteria would you use to assess …?
  • What do you think about …?
  • What is the most important …?

References

Anderson, L., & Krathwohl, D. A. (2001). Taxonomy for learning, teaching and assessing: A revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. New York: Longman. 

Bloom, B. S.; Engelhart, M. D.; Furst, E. J.; Hill, W. H.; Krathwohl, D. R. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: The classification of educational goals. Handbook I: Cognitive domain. New York: David McKay Company.

Attributions

Centre for Teaching Excellence (n.a.). Bloom's Taxonomy. University of Waterloo. https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/catalogs/tip-sheets/blooms-taxonomy

Centre for Teaching Excellence (n.a.). Asking Questions: Six Types. University of Waterloo. https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/catalogs/tip-sheets/asking-questions-six-types

Centre for Teaching Excellence (n.a.). Bloom's Taxonomy Learning Activities and Assessments. University of Waterloo. https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/catalogs/tip-sheets/blooms-taxonomy-learning-activities-and-assessments

Image of Bloom's Taxonomy
Douglas Perkins, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

6.2. CREST+ Model

The CREST+ model, developed by Lynn Akin and Diane Neal of Texas Woman's University (2007), provides a structured approach to craft effective online discussion prompts. This method aims to enhance participation, facilitate deeper understanding, and manage the instructor's time efficiently by creating questions that encourage higher-level thinking and engagement among students.

CREST+ MODEL

The CREST+ model covers the cognitive nature of the question [C], the reading basis [R], any experiential [E] possibility, style and type of question [ST] , and finally ways to structure a good question [+].

  1. Cognitive Nature (C): Begin by determining the learning objectives and theoretical framework relevant to your discussion prompt. Consider whether your question will draw on andragogy, constructivism, Bloom's Taxonomy, or another educational theory. For instance, a question that encourages students to analyze a case study using Bloom's Taxonomy might involve evaluating the effectiveness of a particular strategy, thereby engaging students in higher-order thinking.

  2. Readings Base (R): The next step is to consider the reading base for the question. All approaches can be collapsed into two types, either literature based or not. if the discussion will be literature-based, anchor your question in the course's readings, or ask learners to research and find journal articles that prove or disprove, agree or disagree, or expand upon the concept under discussion. Alternatively, you can choose to base the discussion on a concept explored in class.

  3. Experiential Element (E): Connect the discussion to learners' personal or professional experiences. This not only makes the discussion more relevant but also allows learners to apply theoretical knowledge to real-world scenarios. A prompt could ask learners to share how a concept from the course applies to an experience in their workplace, facilitating a richer understanding of the material's practical significance.

  4. Style of Question (S): Diversify the way you frame questions to cater to different interaction styles and learning preferences. This might involve collaborative tasks, debates, or reflection exercises (Hint: In this book, we called this Structures). For example, creating a prompt that requires students to work in pairs before sharing their conclusions with the class can enhance collaboration and deepen the discussion.

  5. Type of Question (T): Consider the type of question you will use. Brookfield and Preskill (2005) propose several types of questions. These include questions that ask for more evidence, questions that ask for clarification, open questions, linking or extension questions, hypothetical questions, cause and effect questions, and summary and synthesis questions. You could also ask students to generate questions.

  6. Structuring the Question (+): Finally, provide clear instructions, deadlines, and the rationale behind the question. If the prompt is complex, consider breaking it down into smaller parts or phases to guide student participation and ensure a focused and productive discussion.

Example of CREST+ Model

A biology professor aiming to create an engaging online discussion prompt that connects textbook knowledge on lipids to food choices and their impacts might use the CREST+ model in the following way to guide their crafting of the discussion prompt:

  1. Cognitive Nature (C): The professor begins by identifying the cognitive goals of the discussion. In this case, the goal is to apply theoretical knowledge of lipids to understand their role in nutrition and the effects of different types of lipids on human health. This aligns with Bloom's Taxonomy levels of application and analysis, where students are expected to apply what they've learned about lipids to analyze dietary choices.

  2. Readings Base (R): The professor selects a chapter or sections from the textbook that thoroughly explain the structure, function, and types of lipids, as well as their importance in biological membranes and energy storage. The professor might also incorporate articles that discuss recent research on the impact of various lipids on health.

  3. Experiential Element (E): To make the discussion relevant to students' lives, the professor encourages them to consider their own dietary choices. The prompt might ask students to reflect on their personal consumption of different types of lipids (saturated fats, unsaturated fats, trans fats) and how this knowledge affects their nutritional decisions.

  4. Style of Question (S): The professor decides to frame the question in a collaborative style. Students are asked to form small groups to discuss the role of lipids in nutrition and then share their findings with the class. This collaborative approach fosters a sense of community and allows students to learn from each other's insights and experiences.

  5. Type of Question (T): The question is designed to be reflective and analytical. Students are prompted to consider how their understanding of lipids influences their dietary choices and the potential long-term health implications of these choices. This encourages students to critically analyze their own nutritional habits and their understanding of the biological functions of lipids.

  6. Structuring the Question (+): The professor structures the prompt clearly, providing specific instructions on how students should form groups, the aspects of lipid nutrition they should focus on, and how to relate textbook knowledge to personal dietary choices. The professor sets clear deadlines for group discussions and final postings to the forum and explains the purpose of the discussion to enhance understanding of lipids in a real-world context.

Resulting Discussion Prompt

"Based on our textbook readings on the structure and function of lipids and supplemental articles on their nutritional impact, you will be placed in a small group and asked to discuss the following: How do different types of lipids (saturated, unsaturated, trans fats) play a role in human nutrition and health? Reflect on your personal dietary choices: Identify one way you might adjust your lipid intake for better health based on what you've learned. Share your group's insights in the forum. Be sure to connect your discussion to specific concepts from our readings. Then, read another team's insight and provide one suggestion for improving their lipid consumption choices."

References

Akin, L., & Neal, D. (2007). CREST+ model: Writing effective online discussion questions. Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 3(2), 191-202.
https://jolt.merlot.org/vol3no2/akin.htm

6.3. Socratic Questions

The Socratic questioning technique (Paul, 1993), rooted in the practice of Socratic dialogue, is a form of inquiry and debate intended to stimulate critical thinking and illuminate ideas. This method, attributed to the classical Greek philosopher Socrates, encourages deep questioning and exploration of concepts, beliefs, and outcomes. Socratic questioning can be categorized into six main types, each serving a specific purpose in the learning process and encouraging a thorough examination of the topic at hand.

1. Clarification Questions

These questions aim to clarify the topic or problem at hand and ensure that everyone understands what is being discussed.

  • What do you mean by [term/concept]?
  • Can you provide an example of that?
  • Why do you think this is the case?
  • Could you explain further?
  • What is the main point of this argument?

2. Assumption Questions

Assumption questions probe the assumptions underlying a person's thoughts, beliefs, or arguments.

  • What are we assuming here?
  • How did you choose those assumptions?
  • Can you explain why you think that assumption is valid?
  • What could we assume instead?
  • Are there any assumptions that might be challenged?

3. Reason and Evidence Questions

These questions request the reasoning behind a claim or the evidence supporting it.

  • Why do you think that is true?
  • What evidence supports your view?
  • How can we back up that claim?
  • What reasons do you have for your belief?
  • On what basis can we trust this evidence?

4. Viewpoint and Perspective Questions

These questions encourage considering other viewpoints and perspectives.

  • What might someone who disagrees say?
  • How could we look at this differently?
  • What are the strengths and weaknesses of this viewpoint?
  • Can you see this from another person's perspective?
  • How would this situation appear from another viewpoint?

5. Implication and Consequence Questions

Questions in this category explore the implications or consequences of a belief or action.

  • What are the implications of your argument?
  • If we follow that logic, what could be the consequences?
  • How does this affect [another concept or situation]?
  • What are the long-term effects of this decision?
  • If this is true, what else must be true?

6. Questioning the Question

This type turns the inquiry back on the question itself, challenging its foundation or relevance.

  • Why do you think this question is important?
  • What is the point of asking that?
  • How does your question help us understand the issue?
  • What assumptions does your question rely on?
  • Could there be a different way to phrase that question?

Reference

Paul, R.W. (1993). Critical Thinking: What every person needs to survive in a rapidly changing world. J. Willson. Santa Rosa, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

6.4. Habits of Mind

In 2011, Edutopia published the guidebook Habits of Mind: The Questions Intelligent Thinkers Ask that Help Them Solve Problems and Make Decisions.

The short document describes five types of questions that critical thinkers ask themselves when presented with new information.

For copyright reasons, we cannot copy this document here, but you can view it on the Edutopia website. 

Consider using this framework for designing your discussion prompt.

Edutopia (2011). Habits of Mind: The Questions Intelligent Thinkers Ask that Help Them Solve Problems and Make Decisions. School of the Future High School. https://www.edutopia.org/pdfs/stw/edutopia-stw-assessment-high-sch-humanities-habits-of-mind.pdf

6.5. Experiential Learning

Some discussions help learners process an experience, analyze what happened, and share what they learned from this experience. This is especially common for learners who engaged in a COOP program, work-integrated learning, practicum, experiential learning, community-based learning, or who are professional (adult) learners.

While reflection is usually a personal activity, in the context of professional learning, many students are encountering similar situations, so they could learn from each other's reflections on experience.

If this applies to your discussion, then crafting your prompt may be as simple as adapting a critical incident analysis framework to your context.

Critical Incident Analysis Framework

The Critical Incident Analysis Framework is a structured approach to reflective practice, enabling educators and learners to examine significant events or situations that have occurred within their professional or learning environments. By focusing on specific incidents that stood out due to their impact or challenge, this framework guides individuals through a process of detailed description, personal reflection, analytical understanding, and learning identification. It serves as a powerful tool for uncovering insights into professional behaviours, decision-making processes, and the dynamics of educational settings, fostering a deeper level of self-awareness and continuous improvement in teaching practices.

Here is how the framework could be introduced in a prompt to guide learners to engage in a critical incident analysis as part of an online conversation.

Select a situation from your work experience that was particularly challenging, enlightening, or transformative, [here the educator can customize the characteristics of suitable events so that learners will select ones that align with the learning goals] and respond to the following prompts, which are based on the stages of critical incident analysis, tool for reflection often used in fields such as health professions:

  1. Description of the Incident: Begin by describing the incident in detail. Focus on the who, what, when, and where, without interpreting or judging the events.

    • What happened?
    • Who was involved?
    • When and where did it occur?

  2. Reflection: Reflect on your immediate thoughts and feelings during the incident.

    • How did you feel at the moment?
    • What were your initial thoughts?

  3. Analysis: Analyze the incident to uncover why it unfolded the way it did and your role within it.

    • Why do you think the incident happened?
    • How did your actions or reactions contribute to the outcome?
    • What theory might have helped develop your understanding about some aspect of this incident?
    • [Here educators can add questions that help learners relate what happened to concepts learned in the course.]

  4. Learning: Identify what you learned from the incident, both about yourself and your professional practice.

    • What insights have you gained?
    • What research did you consult that helped you to understand some aspect of this incident?
    • How has this incident influenced your understanding of your field or your approach to your work?

  5. Action Plan: Based on your reflections and analysis, outline an action plan for future situations.

    • What would you do differently if faced with a similar situation in the future?
    • Are there new strategies or approaches you would employ?

In the context of a discussion, learners might be asked to review the critical incident analysis of some of their peers, giving them a chance to empathize with some of the professional scenarios that were encountered (often seeing that they are not alone to encounter such scenarios), to relate what happened to what they know, and to productively work together to find solutions to these circumstances.

6.6. Andrews' Question Nomenclature

Andrews (1980) explored different types of discussion questions and their impacts on learner engagement in (in-person) discussions. 

His study identified the following question types:

  • Playground questions, here educators give students wide latitude to talk about anything within a given topic.
    e.g., Instructor reads a passage from a text and says... There is a lot there. What's there?
  • General invitation questions, which are like playground questions but with even vaguer boundaries.
  • Brainstorming questions, where learners suggest as many options or possible solutions to question as possible.
    e.g., What possibilities are there for refuge in A Farewell to Arms?
  • Focal questions, which calls for a decision.
    e.g., Where is this character better off? In the forest or in the city?
  • Analytic convergent questions, where there is a single correct answer.
    e.g., What was the most important reason for the revolution's failure?
  • Quiz show questions, which is similar to the above, but with a short one or two word response.
    e.g., He talks about envying one character. Who was it?
  • Multiple consistent questions, which are a series of questions on the same topic that look at it from different perspectives and that require the same level of effort.
    e.g., Does Kafka like religion? ... Is our impression that Kafka's favourable to the development of Christianity? Are we meant to clap our hands and praise Christianity after reading this story?
  • Shot gun questions, which are really several questions that differ in topic and intellectual difficulty. The educator asks them all and learners can choose to tackle each one in turn, or pick only one, or any approach that they prefer.
    e.g., How do you interpret what the narrator tells you about the hero? What do you make of his return from Law school? Why did he decide he didn't really expect too much?
  • Funnel questions, which are similar to shot gun questions, except that the questions "funnel" students from a general playground into the narrow chute of a convergent question.
  • Lower level divergent questions, seem like a divergent question inviting a brainstorm, but are really limited on what learners can respond.
    e.g., Were farmners richer or poorer than city dwellers in this period?

Andrews found that that to enhance the quality of classroom discussions, instructors should focus on crafting structured divergent questions (e.g., brainstorming and focal questions) that avoid ambiguity and explicitly indicate that multiple viewpoints are welcome, fostering an environment conducive to in-depth exploration and multiple responses. Consistency in the type and style of questions, particularly structured divergent ones, is crucial for maintaining student interest and participation. He advises that it is important for instructors to be comfortable with the level of openness their questions invite, ensuring they are prepared for a range of responses.  Questions such as Shotgun and Funnel Questions are also open-ended but produce confusion through cognitive overload.

Multiple consistent questions can work in that they are relatively focused and provide several things to chew on before providing the response to the first question. Andrews recommends the use of Bloom's taxonomy to ensure questions encourage higher-level thinking such as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.

In sum, he found that questions that are high level, divergent, structured, and single can generate student engagement:

  • High-level questions require analysis, synthesis, or evaluation and often begin with "why" or "how." Low-level questions, or questions that require rote memory or restating course content, can help you assess whether or not students understand the material, but high-level questions are more engaging.
  • Divergent questions have multiple plausible responses, which make them "safer" to answer. They also encourage high-level thinking (e.g., "What are some...?). Convergent questions only have one correct answer and are "riskier" (e.g., "What is the...?).
  • Structured questions point students toward a context or frame within which they can formulate an answer (e.g., "What are some of the chemical structures at work in this solution according to our model?)" Unstructured questions (e.g., "What's at work in this solution?") are wide open and as a result can feel riskier to answer or can elicit responses outside of the relevant area. 
  • Single questions clearly let students know what you are asking them (e.g., "How can this principle clarify the problem for practitioners?"). Ask just one question at a time and refrain from adding others to qualify or clarify what you're trying to express. Asking multiple questions in a row (e.g., How can the application of this principle clarify the problem? What about the principle is useful to practitioners? Why would practitioners in the field turn to this principle?) can leave students uncertain of which direction to move in.

Asking "how" and "why" questions, avoiding questions with one correct answer (including yes/no questions), making sure your question is sufficiently specific, and asking only one question at a time will help foster high-level thinking and engagement in your classes.

References

Andrews, J. D. W. (1980). The Verbal Structure of Teacher Questions: Its Impact on Class Discussion. POD Quarterly: The Journal of the Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education.

Attributions

Some sections of this page were adapted from:
Centre for Teaching Excellence (n.a.). Question Strategies. University of Waterloo. https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/catalogs/tip-sheets/question-strategies

6.7. Prompt Engineering

The final approach comes from prompt engineering. 

Prompt engineering is the skill of writing an effective question for a generative AI tool, such as ChatGPT. Not all prompts are the same. Some ways of phrasing the request are more likely to yield a good response.

Many of these tricks of prompt engineering would probably apply to writing an effective prompt for a learner audience, since the GenAI learned from our own language use.

Here are some of the tricks of prompt engineering.

  • Objective: State your goal with the question. Whether you're seeking an explanation, a solution, creative input, or factual information, knowing the objective helps the responding person or AI tailor its response to your request.

  • Context: Provide enough background information to frame the question properly. Context helps people and AI to understand the scope and specifics of the question, especially for complex or niche topics.

  • Constraints: Include any constraints or limitations you want the people or AI to adhere to, such as word count, avoiding certain topics, or specific formats (list, paragraph, etc.). Constraints help narrow down the response to fit your responses you seek.

  • Role Assignment: Assigning a role to the person or AI (e.g., as a child, a working professional in the field of finance, a concerned citazen) can influence how the person or AI approaches your question, making the response more aligned with the perspective or expertise you're seeking.

  • Examples: Providing examples or specifying what you're not looking for can guide the person and AI in generating a response that is more aligned with your expectations.

7. Formats and Platforms

When people think of AOD, they usually envision a threaded text-based conversations hosted on their institution’s LMS. That’s certainly one way to go. But there are other options to consider that vary in the media used. Some may be better at achieving certain outcomes.

The following four subchapters explore different ways to engaged in an AOD, their pros and cons, and platforms that can be used to host them:

7.1. Text-Based

Text-based, threaded online discussions probably do not need much introduction since most LMS come with this capability. Depending on the discussion structure, learners may be required to post only once, or to return to their posts and comment on the responses they receive. Text-based discussions, because of their linear structure, can become overwhelming when there are more than about 20 participants. Educators may want to group learners into smaller discussion groups to make the discussion more manageable.

When to use:

  • Text-based descriptions are ideal when learners are expected to develop in-depth thoughts and to cite sources.
  • Some discussion structures are best experienced in a linear fashion (i.e., by reading each post sequentially, rather than seeing them all at once as you might on a whiteboard like a Padlet). Consider, for example, a structure where each student must read a narrative constructed by previous learners and add one more sentence to the narrative.

Some issues to be aware of:

  • Text-based AOD can be less engaging than the ones that use audio-visual media.
  • Text-based medium can convey less information about the author’s intention and/or emotional state, so there are more opportunities for misunderstanding and miscommunication.

Some platforms:

  • LMS’s Discussion Board
    Most institutions have access to a LMS, and most LMS come with the capability for threaded discussion. The advantage of using such tool is that it is free, requires little technological learning to use, meets FOIPPA requirements, and integrated into the online course so several aspects can be automated such as reminders of deadlines and grading.

  • Piazza
    This platform requires a paid subscription, though some institutions may already have purchased an institutional license allowing instructors to have access to it (check your institution’s licenses). This platform sits somewhere between a wiki and a discussion board. It’s like a Q & A board where learners can post and respond to questions. In addition, users can prioritize questions and identify the best responses.
    The University of Waterloo’s Centre for Teaching Excellence has developed the following Tip Sheet to introduce the tool.

  • Zoom – Chat Waterfall
    Although this book focuses on asynchronous online discussions, it’s worth mentioning that there are synchronous online discussion tools. For example, while using Zoom for a synchronous class, educators can use the chat to encourage every learner to consider a prompt and provide their response. A Chat Waterfall asks students to type their response in the chat but wait until the instructor gives the sign to go ahead and post the message. Everyone in the class sends their response at the same time (so it appears as though the messages are flowing through the chat, like a waterfall). This ensures everyone to participate in the discussion and timing the simultaneous submissions ensures that no one feels the pressure of being singled out or that they are influenced by someone else’s posts. Then the educator can ask learners to read through the posts and respond by either reacting (for example, “liking” posts that add something new to their understanding) or commenting (responding with a comments) to one post that caught their interest.

7.2. Whiteboard

A cloud-based, digital whiteboard is in many ways a text-based discussion (although some platforms also support posting images and videos), but instead of a linear experience, participants can access all of the posts at once, selecting which one to review in more depth. and the posts can be organized using frameworks, such as KWL (Know | Want to Know | Learned), or a SWOT analysis (a table where learners identify the Strengths | Weaknesses | Opportunities | Threats to a project), or something more specific to your discipline such as classifying example of cells as belonging to Prokaryotes or Eukaryotes).

In January 2024, John Churchley hosted a BCcampus FLO EdTech Sandbox session entitled Sticky Notes. This 90-minute session provided an overview of how to use the platform Miro to solicit and collect student posts. This allows educators to lead activities similar to in person activities where each member of a group adds their thoughts on a sticky note to a larger poster. Churchley provided many (many!) ideas for structuring posts (i.e., different frameworks for structuring the discussion prompts) that can inspire educators.

When to use:

  • There is an organizing framework at play when making a post
    (e.g., participants are asked to come up with an example of a plant species and then placing the species in the column representing the correct plant type).
  • Participant should post a response to more than one question
    (e.g., in the KWL example, participants post in response to the prompt about Know, about Want to Know, and about Learned).
  • There is a benefit to seeing the whole rather than consuming each post individually.

Some issues to be aware of:

  • Most LMS do not have the ability to create such AOD, so you will need to set-up a whiteboard on an outside platform.
  • Different platforms have different strengths and capabilities. Some allow users to post images, others mimic the use of sticky notes that users can move around a canvas, others are specialized for specific uses like adding ideas and voting.
  • There is a learning curve, for both the educator and learners, in using such platforms. Therefore, educators may wish to pick one and stick with it for their course.
  • Nearly all platforms require the educator to create an account. This requires the educator to provide personal information such as email.
  • Most platforms have a free account option that gives educators the ability to create a limited number of free canvases.
  • The free version of most platforms does not give educators the ability to send a link to learners and have them add a post without login in. Students must provide their personal information to create an account and this can violate the FOIPPA Act. Thus, educators in BC will want to look for tools that either do not have such a requirement, or where they have purchased a subscription that allows users to post without entering their private information.

Some platforms:

  • Padlet
    Padlet is probably your whiteboard platform of choice. It is easy to use for both educator and students, the free educator account gives you access to three boards that any user with the link can add to (i.e., students do not need to log in to use the platform), the canvas is very customizable (there are many more possibilities than what we did in our example), and posts can include text, images, videos, links, AI-generated images, comments and votes on others’ posts.
    The University of Waterloo’s Centre for Teaching Excellence has the following Tip Sheet for Using Padlet.

  • Canva
    Canva is an online visual design tool that allows users to create infographics, brochures, slides, and…. shareable whiteboards. Educators can sign up for a free account that allows them to create a whiteboard and share the link with students, who can then add to the whiteboard without having to log in. Templates are available (some are free, some require payment), but the educator can create organizing frameworks on their whiteboard that is only limited by their imagination. Users can post text, sticky notes, images, and icons. The learning curve for both educators and students may be a little steeper than other tools created exclusively for the purpose of serving as collaborative whiteboards, but it is still accessible to most people, with a few instructions.

  • Dotstorming
    Dotstorming saw its origins in the support of dotmocracy activities, and while developers have expanded its abilities beyond that use, it is probably still the best use of the platform. Educators who sign up for a free account have one free board, and students do not need to sign up to use the platform.

  • Miro, Lucidchart, Stormboard, Mural, FigJam, and many others…
    These are truly versatile tools that mirror the in-person experience of collecting everyone’s ideas on sticky notes and organizing them and re-organizing them (i.e., moving them easily on the canvas) endlessly. Miro is probably the best known of the tool. While their educational potential is enormous, all the free educator accounts do NOT provide a link to the whiteboards where students can post without registering (i.e., without providing their email address). Thus, if your institution has done an FOIPPA assessment and determined that it is okay for a tool, then go ahead and ask students to enter their email address to post to the whiteboard. Otherwise, you will need to purchase a subscription, which allows you to get a link to the whiteboards you create so that students can post without having to enter their private information.

  • Google Jamboard
    Ah, Google Jamboard! It was favourite of educators around the world. It was simple and limited (e.g., it crashed whenever more than 25 users tried to access it at once), but it did the job and it was free. Sadly, Google retired the app, so that it is no longer available. R.I.P. sweet Jamboard…

7.3. Annotation

Annotation tools allow learners to add comments directly on an existing resource (e.g., a reading or webpage), see each other’s comments, and respond to it. This permits the discussion to take place on the resource, rather than abstracted from it. In a text-based discussion, learners who are discussing a reading might copy a quote, indicate its page number (its location in the text), and then add their commentary, whereas with an annotation tool, these commented are embedded in the text in situ. This permits learners to see the context in which the comments are made.

You can read about annotation tools (and also document collaboration tools) in this Tip Sheet from the University of Waterloo’s Centre for Teaching Excellence.

When to use:

  • These tools permit a discussion about a document to take place in the document rather than outside of it. Thus, it works best for discussions that are about a document (a webpage, reading, image, etc).

Some issues to be aware of:

  • Check whether your chosen platform can display information and allow users to post using their mobile devices. Many students work on assignments during transit and need to access platforms that work on a phone or tablet.

Some platforms:

  • MS Office and Google Docs
    Sometimes, we overlook the capabilities and uses of the tools everyone uses everyday. The Microsoft Office 365 suite (with familiar tools such as MS Word and MS Power Point) and the Google Office Suite (Google Docs and Slides) allow multiple users to review documents and post comments at specific locations in the document. Users can also respond to one another. While Google usually does not meet FIOPPA requirements, it is possible to share a link to the document so that anyone with the link can add comments without having to register or provide any personal information. You can then upload a reading, class notes, even slides, and ask students to comment on them, find flaws and suggest improvements, add ideas, etc.

  • Hypothesis
    Hypothesis allows users to annotate web pages. To do this, they must download and install the Chrome browser extension or add a Bookmarklet in their Firefox browser. Other web browsers are also supported. In other words, its a modification of the internet browser that allows users to add a layer over an existing webpage where they can add and store their notes. They can highlight certain passages and add comments. While Hypothesis can be used as a personal tool, it can also be used collaborative. Educators can set up a group, send the link to their students. Next time students open the Hypothesis applet in their browser, they are given the option to post their comments for their own use, or to make it available to the group. Note that a webpage doesn’t limit itself to text-based websites. Here is a
    to show how students can annotate the transcript from a YouTube video.The tool is free to use as long as it is not integrated as part of the institution’s LMS.

  • Perusall
    Perusall is described as a collaborative eReader. Think of it as a way to allow students to collaborate in understanding a reading before class. They can highlight the passages they do not understand and ask their peers for support. Perusall can provide a grade recommendation for each student based on the quality of their comments in helping others learn. You can view this
    from E. Mueller Teaching that shows what the tool looks like and its capabilities. You can also view this
    where Paul Blashchko who teaches philosophy at the University of Notre Dame describes his use of this tool. As you might have guessed from the fact that the tool tracks student contributions, users must register. Although accounts are free, you may need to ask your ITC department to conduct a FIOPPA check before you can use it. Perusall and Hypothesis are similar. You can read a comparison in this blog post.

  • Voicethread
    This platformis also an annotation tool, thoughthe annotations are not limited to text; rather, they can include audio and video recordings. Another difference is that students can upload documents that others can comment on; unlike the other tools where educators assigned specific documents. It functions more like an interactive, multimedia community. Students can upload a written assignment, a slide deck, or a video and ask peers to engage in peer review and provide feedback in situ. Comments appear as thumbnails at the appropriate place in the document, including in a video at the appropriate time in the playback. You can view a
    created by the company. This is a paid service and since it requires login would need to go through a FOIPPA check.

7.4. Multimedia

Image / Audio / Video

Text is not the only way to engaged in an online asynchronous discussion. The discussion can also be done via audio and video recordings. This can make the discussion more engaging and feel closer to a live conversation.

When to use:

  • When learners are meeting one another or getting to know one another. There are so many cues about a person that come across in a video that are lost in a text-based post.
  • When dealing with sensitive issues. It can be challenging to convey the nuances of intention in a text-based post, compared to a video. Think of the post “well, that’s just great!.” Was the author wanting to convey that they thought something was great, or were they being sarcastic? Text-based discussions are more prone to misunderstandings than a video where a person’s intonation and body language provides rich information that conveys this aspect of the communication.

 Some issues to be aware of:

  • The strength of this post format are also its shortfall. “Showing our face” in a video means that we share our identity, and that brings with it the potential that classmates’ biases (gender biases, racial biases, etc.) could interfere with how they value or respond to a classmate’s post.
  • There are also technical considerations to be aware of, such as whether every student has access to technology that will allow them to record and upload a video, and then the bandwidth to view their classmates’ posts.
  • Finally, it can be harder to “scan” classmates’ posts when they are made in an audio or video format compared to text-based posts. This usually encourages viewers to be more selective and view only 1 or 2 other posts, rather than browsing several posts quickly and responding to the ones that most engaged them.

 Some platforms:

  • LMS
    Most LMS, such as Moodle and Canvas, allow users to upload a picture, audio recording, or video as part of their post. However, these media are displayed in the traditional threaded discussion format, so each post has to be opened to access its content.

  • Padlet
    Some whiteboard tools, notably Padlet, also allows users to upload images, audio, and video media, and in this tool the posts are displayed all at once on a canvas, allowed viewers to preview and get a sense of the available posts before selecting a few to view.

  • SPLOT
    The OpenETC website allows BC post-secondary educators to create and host free websites. One type of website is called a SPLOT (a smallest possible learning online tool), which is a WordPress site where users (such as your students) can easily post to your website and assemble collections of images, videos, URL, or short “blog-like” posts without having to register. The learning curve for educators to set up such a tool is a little steeper than all of the others presented on this page. But if you already have some familiarity with website hosting, this can be an interesting way for the whole class to contribute to build a public website that they can access to view long after the course is over (e.g., think of its use in students assembling a professional toolkit through crowdsourcing and then using it for the rest of their career).

  • Flip
    Some educators may know this tool by its former name, Flipgrid. The tool was one of the first to make video posts easy and fun. Students clicked on a link, were brought to a whiteboard showing a thumbnail of existing video posts by their classmates, and then added their post by clicking the Add (+) button to start recording their video. It couldn’t have been a simpler tool. Microsoft purchased Flipgrid and began to add functionality to the tool, transforming it into a more powerful online classroom environment, something like the next generation of LMS. However, some of the ease of use of the Flipgrid posts got lost in the process, notably the ability to add posts without having to sign in. There are ways around it, as shown in the examples of Day 1, but they require educators to put in a few more steps.

8. AOD in the Age of GenAI

What is GenAI?

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) is a subset of AI that uses machine learning models to CREATE NEW, ORIGINAL CONTENT, such as text, images, music, or videos based on patterns and structures learned from existing data.The most famous one is ChatGPT, a large language model that was trained on data on the internet.

In recent years, it has gained a lot of attention in education, as it may be tempting for students to cheat using Chat GPT (ChatGPT essays have been found to be better than typical undergrads, and their reflection is similarly excellent (Li et al., 2023)).

Three Strategies for Dealing with GenAI in an AOD

This chapter provides three ideas for deadling with GenAI in an AOD.

GenAI Tools

There are many text-based GenAI tools (i.e. chatbots) that can be used. Below are some options.

Requires Registration but Free
(Note: Due to FIOPPA requirements, you cannot require that learners use these tools - they would have to disclose personal information)

Does NOT Require Registration
(i.e., no need to enter personal information, like your email, so their use could be required in a student assignment...)

Concerns about GenAI Use

Anyone considering the use of GenAI, either as en educator or as a learner, should be aware of some of the issues that come with its use:

Security

  • Privacy & personal information (with murky policies that keep changing)
    Once data is entered into a GenAI prompt, it becomes the property of the GenAI. The tool will use the data going forward. There are therefore issues of privacy in the use of GenAI tool and experts recommend not entering any personally identifiable or sensitive data (CBC, 2023). If you would like a quick "at a glance" comparison of the terms of use of different GenAI tool, consider glancing at this summary table. Note that since GenAI companies update their terms of service frequently, it won't be long until this table is out of date.
  • Data ownership | Data security | Data breaches
    There are tons of issues surrounding intellectual property, ownership of information, and authorship when using GenAI. Firstly, GenAI tools like ChatGPT used documents, articles, and books found on the internet, yet the authors of those works are neither recognized nor compensated for that data. Next, once someone uses GenAI information, their data becomes the property of the GenAI app developers. For this reason, many organizations currently forbid their employees from entering sensitive data into a GenAI. Once a user has the output to a prompt, how do they recognize and cite it, especially since the output will change even when prompted in the same way at a later time? These are just some of the issues arising from the use of GenAI.

Ethical Issues

  • Copyright violations
  • Equity and access (costs and bias towards ESL users)
    Many of the GenAI tools require a subscription to access them. This means that they are not available to everyone, especially those with fewer resources such as internet access to financial resources to purchase the subscription. In addition, there is some indication that some of the plagiarism detection tools has a bias and that they inaccurately flag nonnative English speakers’ written work as generated by GenAI, when this is not the case (Myers, 2023).

Accuracy & Biases

  • Hallucinations and inaccurate information (that the GenAI insists is accurate!)
    GenAI tools don’t understand what they are putting out. They are predictive models. As such, they are prone to making mistakes. In some cases, they invent information, a process known as hallucinations (e.g., ask ChatGPT to come up with the top 10 list of citations on a topic. The citations will all seem plausible, but if you look them up, you will find that none exist…). For this reason, humans, with their experiential learning of the concepts that the GenAI puts out, can and must remain critical and assess the veracity and accuracy of the output.
  • Biases in the data set used to train
    GenAI is trained on large data sets. These data sets – for example documents or images found on the internet – contain within them biases. For example, asking a GenAI to draw a picture of leaders will tend to draw men. There are concerns that as we use more GenAI tools, these biases will be reproduced and amplified. (EG Asian student whosubmitted her photo to GenAI tooland asked it to make the photo look more professional. She got a photo of herselfas a white person, bc manyimages of white people tagged with professional that the GenAI hadbeen trained on.) Or ask DALL-E to draw a “professor” for you and you will get a white male.).

Student Learning

  • Plagiarism
    There is the concern that students will use the GenAI tools to plagiarize on assignments. GenAI tools such as ChatGPT made headlines when it was found that they tend to outperform most students on entrance exams (AI models like ChatGPT and GPT-4 are acing everything from the bar exam to AP Biology. Here's a list of difficult exams both AI versions have passed, 2023). The tool can make it tempting for students to cut corners when faced with uncertainty over their performance and tight deadlines. Some have called ChatGPT the new paper mill. Some plagiarism detecting software was put in place to detect the use of GenAI in assignment, but they were deemed to be highly inaccurate (Murphy Kelly, 2023). One of the best ways to guard against plagiarism is to create assignments that are localized to the specific context of the course. Another way is to invite, rather than forbid, the use of GenAI, and to work alongside the tool, rather than against it.
  • Cognitive offloading  (writing = learning to think  and shaping the mind)
    Some people argue that skills traditionally taught in schools, such as writing, are helpful in shaping the mind to think critically, logically, and to learn to articulate one’s thoughts clearly. If GenAI tools such as ChatGPT take over writing and essays are no longer assigned in schools, some worry that students will miss out on an important aspect of intellectual development.

Other Impacts

  • Environmental
    Most GenAItools require more computing power than a simple web browser search. This takes energy, on a planet that is already taxed with our use of resources… Is the use of such an energy consuming tool, at this period of history, ethical?
  • Labor practices and Global South
    ChatGPT’sOpenAI paid African workers peanuts to “clean the data sets” to make them more palatable, but they paid them peanuts and some of the data these people were exposed to was traumatic.
  • Criminal activity
    There are concerns that GenAI could assist criminals in conducting their activities, such as by designing computer code to help them spread a virus, malware, or hack into a secure system. There are also concerns that the AI could be re-purposed to help criminals create poisons or bombs. Fortunately, GenAI have guardrails that prevent them from engaging in such activities, but they can be tricked…

8.1. Safeguarding Academic Integrity

Strategies for AOD Prompts

To protect academic integrity, educators can design prompts and discussion activities that minimize opportunities for dishonesty while promoting deep learning. Here are several strategies:

  1. Localize Assignments: Tailor assignments to include specific local contexts or current events that are less likely to have AI-generated content available. This approach encourages original responses and research.

    Example Prompt    : "Analyze the impact of the recent local government policy on renewable energy adoption in your community. Support your arguments with specific examples and data from local sources."

  2. Personal Experience and Debrief: Encourage learners to draw on their personal experiences, reflections, and interpretations. This not only deters reliance on AI-generated content but also enriches discussions with diverse perspectives.

    Example Prompt: "Reflect on a personal experience where you had to make an ethical decision related to technology use. Describe the situation, your decision-making process, and the outcome."

  3. Use of Multimedia: Incorporate assignments that require the submission of original videos, podcasts, or multimedia presentations. These formats are more challenging to replicate using AI and can demonstrate students' understanding and creativity.

    Example Prompt: "Create a short video documentary exploring a local environmental issue, including interviews with stakeholders and your analysis."

  4. Peer Review and Collaborative Work: Implementing peer reviews and group discussions can help verify the authenticity of learners' work and encourage collaboration and critical evaluation.

    Example Prompt: "In groups, research and present a case study on an innovative AI application in healthcare. Critique each other's findings and suggest improvements."

Sample Prompts

1.     "Investigate how preserving the local character of Commercial Street (which consists mainly of locally owned mom-and-pop shops rather than chains or franchises) reflects broader societal values in Vancouver. Present your findings in a blog post including photographs and interviews you conducted."

2.     "Design a community-based project to address adherence to water restrictions in the summer when Vancouver water basins experience drought. Focus on ways to address challenges to adherence that are specific to the Vancouver context. Document the project proposal, implementation plan, and potential impact, using a mix of text, images, and videos. "

Strategies to Discourage GenAI Use

GenAI Detectors

If you are concerned about learners using GenAI to complete an AOD post, you may be tempted to use a GenAI detector, like TurnItIn, to do the job. The first thing you should note is that these tools are notoriously bad at detecting GenAI. English Language learners are more prone to be flagged as false positives. In fact, their performance is so poor that some of the tools themselves took them offline and many schools, such as UBC, do not endorse them. Using them is really just a cat and mouse game; as the detectors became better, students will find a way to overcome it. So it doesn't take care of the root causes.

Scaffolding Assignments

So what are the root causes of cheating with GenAI? They tend to stem from a couple of main reasons. First, students feel stress when the assignment is high stakes or when the time to complete an assignment is too short amidst competing deadlines. So consider your assignment and assessment schedule and make sure that students do not feel stressed to deliver at the last minute. You may consider scaffolding assignments, where you ask students to submit low stakes assignments that progressively build towards a larger one. For example, first ask students to pick a topic, then submit a research question, then submit a bibliography, then summarize two papers, and finally post their review of the topic in the discussion board. This reduces the stress students feel, and the scaffold helps students stay on task rather than panic and do the assignment the night before it is due.

Engaging Students in a Conversation

Students are also prone to cheat if they do not see the value of an assignment to their learning. It is therefore important to explain WHY an assignment was assigned, to highlight what engaging in the assignment will do to shape their thinking, and how short cutting it will only punish them.

Finally, as an educator, you want to make your policy on the use of GenAI in an assignment clear, so that there is no mis-communication on this point. Many instructors differ on this policy, so be sure your learners know your expectations.

The University of Waterloo's Centre for Teaching Excellence has created a Tip Sheet to help educators talk to their students about GenAI.

8.2. Embracing GenAI Use in Discussions

Goals of Using GenAI in a Student AOD Assignment

Inviting learners to use GenAI as part of their response to an AOD prompt can serve different purposes:

  • It can help to stem the temptation to write the whole thing with ChatGPT
  • It can teach learners how to use GenAI as an assistant, responsibly, ethically, and with their eyes open about the shortfalls of the tool.
  • It can help enrich their learning by helping them brainstorm, review their work with suggestions, and develop critical thinking skills.
Depending on your goal in incorporating the use of GenAI in a discussion prompt, the nature of the use of the GenAI tool and how it is integrated into the assignment will vary.

Suggestions

Some Ideas

While there are many ways to incorporate the use of GenAI in the work of a learner's AOD submission, here are some ideas.


  • AI-assisted Research: Encourage learners to use generative AI as a research assistant to gather information, summarize findings, and generate a bibliography on a specific discussion topic. Learners should critically evaluate the information provided by the AI, discuss its relevance and accuracy, and reflect on the experience of using AI in the research process. This can improve research skills, critical thinking, and awareness of AI's potential and limitations in academic work.

  • Interview Simulation: Have learners use GenAI to simulate an interview with a historical figure, a character from literature, or a professional in a specific field. Learners can craft questions and use AI to generate responses based on known facts, writings, or professional knowledge. (or, in the case of a writer, you can ask the GenAI to generate a short text in the style of a known writer, and learners can analyze and dissect which aspects of the writing are indicative of the given writer). This activity can enhance understanding of historical contexts, literary styles, or professional ethics, encouraging students to think critically about the information presented.

  • Writing for Difference Audiences and Analysis: Ask learners to use generative AI to create a series of short pieces, aimed at different audiences, on a topic initially in a professional paper. For example, starting from a scientific, peer reviewed paper, the GenAI creates a short article for children, for a popular science magazine, for a publis service announcement. Then, ask learners to analyze the AI-generated content in terms of how well it would reach its audience and why, its creativity, and accuracy.

  • Innovative Solutions to Real-world Problems: Ask learners to use GenAI to propose innovative solutions to real-world problems related to your course content (e.g., climate change, public health, social justice). They should describe how they used AI to generate ideas, evaluate their feasibility, and discuss potential impacts and challenges.

  • Exploring Non-human Perspectives: Ask learners to use GenAI to write a narrative or create a visual representation from a non-human perspective (e.g., an animal, a plant, a machine). The aim is to explore issues such as environmental ethics, technology's impact, or cognitive science in a creative and engaging way. Learners should reflect on the process, the challenges of accurately representing non-human perspectives, and the insights gained into the chosen topic.

  • "Peer" Review. Ask students to write an assignment. Then, they should submit it to a GenAI tool and ask the GenAI to identify ways to improve the work. Learners must then correct the essay based on this feedback. In their discussion post, they can share one lesson they learned about how to make their writing better.


Let ChatGPT Suggest How to Include GenAI in Student AOD Work

Here is a list of 10 suggestions about how to integrate ChatGPT into a discussion board assignment for my specific course, written by Chat GPT 4.0. They are not bad! Consider modifying the prompt I used with your own course outcomes.

Ask Learners to Reflect on their Experience with GenAI

You may ask learners to use ChatGPT for a task in an assignment (e.g., help with brainstorming or researching information or explaining some concepts or writing a document for different audiences using the same professional document as a starting document), and then critique the information obtained from the GenAI tool. For example, were there any hallucinations they could identify (inaccurate information)? Were there detectable biases, and if so, why do they think that these biases exist in the GenAI's dataset. This can serve as a spring board to explore the benefits and drawbacks of GenAI in your discipline and teach students to use it responsibly.

Below is an intriguing example of learners using ChatGPT and then reflecting on the output they experienced in a discussion board.

Benjamin Breen shared the following idea on his blogRes Obscura. Breen is a history educator and he developed a prompt that students enter into ChatGPT. The GenAI then creates a new role playing scenario for each student, based on a historical setting that Breen calls up in the prompt, and it gives students choices to make. Depending on the student’s choices, the scenario unfolds in different ways. It’s like our childhood books where we were the hero of the adventure and could make decisions to influence the course of the narrative. Breen shares several different versions of the prompt (creating different types of role play) on his blog site.

After going through the interactive role playing case study, students post a link to their interaction with the GenAI as well as a critical reflection about the experience, including aspects that seemed accurate and others where the GenAI fibbed.

The prompt will work in any GenAI, but produces best output in GPT 4.0 (the paid version) and will work well on Chat GPT 3.5 (the free version). Here is a transcript of one such interaction. Give it a try!

Please roleplay as MPS🏰, an educational history simulation game for university classes. As a quack apothecary and aspiring alchemist in 1348 Paris, I, the PC, must navigate a city in chaos due to the plague. Authentic, accurate, gritty, real feeling. Medieval remedies only (e.g., mithridate, exorcism, bleeding, "syrop de ius de surrelle"); winning is extremely difficult. Almost all choices lead to more problems and shocking reversals. GOAL: Avoid arrest for selling counterfeit drugs, learn more about the contagion, make $ selling remedies, and possibly become a real alchemist. Navigate the challenges from major Parisian forces during the plague. GAMEPLAY:  Game ends on 10th turn; warn about end 2 turns before. Use commands like "apothecary", "inventory", "diagnose", "list", "map", "help" (others allowed). MINIGAME: "Apothecary" command begins a medieval drug compounding minigame which is introduced and explained. A table of ten medieval "simples" (raw materia medica) is provided with their effects relative to plague symptoms, humoral properties, cost, and emoji. PC must mix 2-5 simples to create a compound medicine; MPS gives it a new name, effects, humoral, and emoji. Success depends on astrological charts MPS creates. Following this message, please generate for me a historically accurate French 1348 character, displaying my attributes in a md table 📊: randomized full name, age, birthplace, inventaire des drogues, favorite medieval book, wealth in livres, gender, social class, 1st memory, personality. Keep track of turns - each time I enter a command, it counts as 1 turn. The game ends dramatically at Turn 10. End all future responses with a status bar that updates dynamically to show turn: [🗡️PLAGUE SIMULATOR🎭: PARIS EDITION. October, 1348] | [PC’s name] | [x turns until game over]. x=10 at first turn, then decreases by one with each turn until 0=GAME OVER. On each turn requires me as PC to make choices from a numbered list of 5 you give me which present plans for action along with representative emoji; these options change each turn, I.e one turn might include option: “Try to mix a remedy of salvia, rue, and dandelion that will purify the patient’s blood of the corruption engendered by the pestilence. (⚗️)”; next might would be 5 different ones. I will respond w/ my choice (action or #). In turn 2, PC starts developing plague symptoms and becomes ill by turn 3. Begin now by rolling my randomized historically accurate character (PC), evocatively describing my apothecary shop (odd, detailed name) along with the dire state of Paris, then introducing a dramatic event with vivid historical detail. Note: the drugs NEVER actually cure the plague.

You could modify this activity by asking ChatGPT to modify the above prompt so that it can be used in a different context related to your course and its content. For example, you may give ChatGPT this prompt and ask it to modify the prompt so that it will take students through an interactive role play in a biotech company, set in 2024, and where the role play involves ethical dilemmas. Once you have obtained a prompt that works in creating an interactive role play in your field, give it to your students, ask them to experience the role play. In the discussion, they should post the interaction and critique the GenAI provided journey (i.e., how realistic was it?)

8.3. Using GenAI to Create & Facilitate AODs

This subchapter provides ideas for using ChatGPT as an educator, to make your work of creating and evaluating AODs easier.

Become Familiar with Ethan Mollick's Work

Ethan Mollick has developed an array of resources to guide educators in incorporating GenAI into their work. These resources come highly (highly!) recommended.

Craft a Case Study

You can use ChatGPT to create a case study, based on a real-world dilemma, that aligns with your learning outcome. You can then use the case study as a basis for the AOD discussion, where students have to propose ways to solve the dilemma.

Here are some of the prompts I used to generate a case idea. I did this using several iteration with ChatGPT, to progressively hone in one what I needed. You can replace the text in brackets [ ] with information from your own context.

First, I brainstormed possible scenarios, using ChatGPT as an assistant, with the following prompt.

I am an instructor teaching [biology] in [first year of university]. I want to use a real-world controversy related to the topic of [mitochondria] to help my students learn more about [cell biology and the interplay of science and society]. I would like you to suggest 5 possible real-world controversies that I could use to achieve these goals. Cite your sources and do not create them.

You can view a sample output.

Once I had identified a scenario, I asked ChatGPT to write an introduction to the case study.

I am an instructor who teaches a [second year nutrition] course to [university] students. I would like to use the controversy over [the benefits and risks of a ketogenic diet on health] to help students [evaluate contradictory information on a health outcome]. I am looking for a short introductory to this controversy that I could give students to introduce this as a case study. Write this introduction. It should be no more than 300 words. The description should explain the premise of the controversy and end with a clear call for students to evaluate the information and make a decision about their position on this controversy.

However, the introduction I obtained was a little generic, so I asked ChatGPT to spice it up with the following prompt.

This is excellent. However, I would like you to use a real-world example as a trigger for the case study. Can you re-write this and this time include allusion to the real-world situation as a reason for exploring [the benefits and drawbacks of a ketogenic diet on health]?

This is when ChatGPT came up with the idea of using a Chris Hemsworth (the Australian actor who plays Thor in Marvel movies) as a pivotal player in the case study. The case is based on several recent news articles where the actor claims to adopt a ketogenic diet to grow muscles for his movie roles. The case is now engaging, as it puts the concept that students are learning in a real-world context.

You can see a sample output from Chat GPT 4.0

Summarize the Week's Discussion

It can be tedious to read through every learners' posts to create a weekly summary of the discussion. ChatGPT can help! Enter the discussion content into ChatGPT and ask the tool to generate a one paragraph summary of the discussion.

Advisory Note: You should remove the full names of students from the discussion or any other identifying information. It may be beneficial to leave first names, as they aren't sufficient to identify a person and ChatGPT could give kudos to certain learners for taking the discussions in different directions.

Analyzing Discussion Trends

By reviewing the content of learner posts, ChatGPT can help instructors identify common themes, misconceptions, or particularly engaging topics. This analysis can inform future teaching strategies and content focus.

Advisory Note: You should remove the full names of students from the discussion or any other identifying information.

Generating Quizzes and Knowledge Checks

Based on the discussion, ChatGPT can be used to create quizzes or short knowledge checks to be added to your final exam (thereby ensuring that learners view the discussion as course material).

Create a Rubric to Assess the AOD

Use ChatGPT to help you create a rubric to assess the quality of learner contributions in an AOD. You could ask ChatGPT to create the whole rubric, though it is perhaps more beneficial to build your rubric step by step, ensuring that it meets your needs every step of the way.

1. Criteria Identification and Definition

  • Initial Setup: Educators can begin by asking ChatGPT to list potential criteria that are important for assessing online discussions. This could include aspects like critical thinking, engagement, relevance, and use of evidence.
  • Criteria Definition: Further, educators can refine these criteria by asking ChatGPT to define each criterion in the context of online discussions, ensuring clarity and understanding for both the assessor and the students.

2. Development of Performance Levels

  • Performance Descriptors: ChatGPT can assist in creating detailed descriptions for various levels of performance (e.g., exemplary, satisfactory, needs improvement) for each criterion. This helps in providing clear expectations and standards.
  • Customization: Tailoring these levels to fit the specific course context or discussion topic can also be facilitated by ChatGPT, ensuring relevance and applicability.

3. Incorporation of Examples

  • Providing Examples: Educators might use ChatGPT to generate examples of discussion contributions that would meet different levels of the rubric. This can serve as a guide for students to understand what is expected at each performance level.
  • Contextualization: Asking ChatGPT to create examples that are closely related to the course content or specific discussion topics can enhance the rubric's effectiveness and relatability.

4. Rubric Testing and Refinement

  • Drafting Test Prompts: ChatGPT can help draft discussion prompts that the rubric will assess, allowing educators to test the rubric's applicability and comprehensiveness.
  • Feedback Incorporation: Educators can refine the rubric based on preliminary feedback from colleagues or trial runs in class discussions, using ChatGPT to adjust criteria or performance levels as needed.

5. Guidance on Ethical and Inclusive Assessment

  • Ethical Considerations: ChatGPT can provide insights on ensuring the rubric promotes fairness, inclusivity, and ethical assessment practices, important for fostering a supportive learning environment.
  • Diversity and Inclusion: Educators can also consult ChatGPT on best practices for incorporating diverse perspectives and ensuring the rubric does not unintentionally bias against any group of students.

6. Rubric Explanation and Communication

  • Explanation for Learners: ChatGPT can assist in crafting clear explanations of the rubric for students, including how it will be used to assess their contributions and how they can meet or exceed the criteria.
  • Q&A Preparation: Educators might prepare for potential questions or concerns from learners about the rubric by using ChatGPT to anticipate and formulate responses.

9. 12 Tips for Engaging AODs

Here are 12 tips for engaging learners in online discussions, summarized from an article by Goshtasbpour et al., 2022.

  1. Be aware of the diversity of your learners: Acknowledge the varied backgrounds and experiences of learners to tailor discussions that are inclusive and considerate of different perspectives.

  2. Set boundaries and conditions for discussions: Establish clear rules and expectations to ensure respectful and constructive interactions among participants.

  3. Ensure discussions serve an additional learning goal: Align discussion activities with specific learning outcomes to enhance their educational value.

  4. Design tasks that encourage participation: Use open-ended questions and real-world scenarios to stimulate deeper engagement and reflection.

  5. Have criteria for responding to comments: Select comments based on their quality or relevance to your expertise to manage large volumes of interactions effectively.

  6. Ensure continuity when you contribute: Frame your inputs in a way that encourages further discussion rather than closing down conversation.

  7. Provide a balanced ‘instructor presence’: Balance your role between facilitating learning (teaching presence) and creating a supportive, social environment (social presence).

  8. Support and challenge learners' thinking: Encourage learners to reflect deeply on topics, pushing them towards higher levels of understanding.

  9. Provide explicit academic leadership: Guide discussions by clarifying misconceptions, focusing debates on key concepts, and summarizing key points to ensure learners remain on track.

  10. Direct social contributions towards shared goals: Use social interactions to reinforce the group's academic focus and foster a sense of belonging and purpose.

  11. Acknowledge lurking and minimize barriers to participation: Recognize the value of lurkers and reduce barriers to encourage more active engagement from all learners.

  12. Choose your teaching team and educator roles strategically: Select and assign roles within your teaching team based on the ability to engage learners and contribute effectively to discussions.

You can read the entire article here:

Goshtasbpour, F., Swinnerton, B. J., & Pickering, J. D. (2022). Twelve tips for engaging learners in online discussions. Medical teacher, 44(3), 244-248. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159X.2021.1898571

10. Quality in AOD

We begin with chapter with an optional video [7 min] where diverse educators who use AOD discuss some of the strategies that they used that stimulated effective and engaging conversations.


Setting up an AOD for Best Results

Here we provide a list of strategies and methods that help improve the quality of online learning discussions.

Make the Discussion Post Directions Clear and Concise. For example, specify the minimum words or referencing required, and clearly state the due date. Create a high quality discussion question that requires learners use critical thinking to integrate course concepts in place of just listing out answers they can copy online.

Make the Value Clear. Explain at the start of the course the reason and value of the discussions, and outline the discussion methods you will use. If learners perceive the value they will make them a priority.

Make it Worth Something. If it is not graded,  learners are not likely to give it enough attention. Discussion can be an important and integral part of learning and writing practice. Make both the initial posts and participation through replies an adequate percent of the total grade. Experts in the field recommend that discussion participation should equal anywhere from 10-30% of the entire grade if students are to take them seriously.

Clearly State Participation Requirements. Many instructors will specify the minimum number of replies each student should make, how many days a week posts and replies should be made on (to show attendance), and the level of quality the reply content should have (meaning replies of just ’I agree’ and nothing more are not counted as participation). It is very useful to give learners examples of what a high quality reply should look like. Giving students a grading rubric that outlines what is expected and how they will be graded allows them to meet the instructor’s expectations.

Promote Interactive Feedback: The instructor should outline that substantive feedback is required for participation points (e.g., replies such as ’I Agree’ and nothing more will not constitute a part of graded participation). Note that not all replies will be substantive, and sometimes all we need to say is “Great job, I agree.” Don’t discourage this kind of positive support, just inform students that they must also have a minimum number of substantive replies as well. Giving students examples of what substantive feedback looks like can help them interact at the discussions in an advanced way. Substantive feedback usually includes one or more of the following elements:

  • Asking questions about the original post
  • Pointing out (respectfully) possible errors in the original post, and offering up a source of information on the topic for further discussion
  • Sharing of links, videos, and other online resources on the topic to expand further discussion
  • Sharing of personal experiences relevant to the topic
  • Respectfully disagreeing, and then sharing an alternative viewpoint
  • Using reliable support, facts, and information to support arguments and points

Create a Permanent Discussion Schedule. An instructor can schedule regular and consistent start and end dates of discussions to keep learners on track (e.g., first post due every Tuesday at noon, and 2 responses to peers due by Thursday at noon). Setting early due dates on the posts allows learners enough time to reply before the end of the discussions. Making the discussion schedule a permanent part of the syllabus allows students to plan their time effectively.

Lead by Example. If you expect students to make posts and replies at least three days of the week, so should the professor as the model. The instructor’s posts should be high quality, referenced, and academic, thus becoming a guide of what is expected.

Example: Always make the initial discussion post due on Tuesdays by midnight and the replies due on three days of the week, the final ones in by Sunday night. These permanent due dates week after week help to keep the students organized and able to meet the deadlines.

Alleviate Isolation and Distance. In blended or online learning, learners may feel less socially connected to the instructor and course. Be sure to maintain instructor presence and facilitate interaction between learners in the discussion to mitigate this feeling.

Encourage Dialogues. Avoid dominating the conversation or telling students ’how it is’ and instead guide learning in appropriate directions (see the facilitation chapter). Manage dominate students so that timid ones feel they have the space to share.

Appropriate Group Size. Research shows that groups of less than eight people will probably stagnate from lack of interaction, but so too will groups over 15 people as participants feel overwhelmed by the number of posts in the forum. If the course numbers allow it, then create smaller discussion groups of 10-15 people. A good tactic is to then employ the ’Cross-pollination’ method discussed in the next chapter.

Mid and End of discussion Summaries. Halfway through a discussion post a review of general conclusions being made by students, as well as to clarify any misconceptions and to keep students on track. Post an end-of-discussion summary to wrap up all of the main points and to make important conclusions the students may not have yet realized. Alternatively, if you have frequent discussion forums in your course, consider assigning the task of reading and summarizing the week's discussion to a student as an assignment. This will allow them to read the discussion in depth and practice extracting the main take aways.

Align Discussions with Learning Outcomes. Design the discussion questions such that they relate directly back to the course learning outcomes. This way the students are spending their limited time on focused and useful discussions relevant to course learning goals.

AOD with English Language Learners

In cases where a large majority or most of the students in the course are English Language Learners, the instructor may need to spend a bit more time supporting students in the discussions, or offering summaries of new words and expressions learned via email after the discussions.

The instructor can do pre-discussion work with learners to prepare them for the discussion language needs in advance, such as with a vocabulary exercise, activity, or tutorial on the required vocabulary and expressions that will be required in the upcoming discussions. These tutorials, help sheets, and vocabulary lists can also be posted online in the discussions or learning management system (LMS) where the discussions will take place, allowing for a quick review by students when necessary. Finally, create a glossary of terms in the course, which will be essential so that students can refer often to it when unsure of the language used in the forums.

Reflection

Review the strategies in this section. Which would best support student learning? How? Which are best suited to your discipline or teaching style?

Attributions

This chapter was adapted from the following CC BY NC resource:

Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. Authored by: Michelle Rogers-Estable, Cathy Cavanaugh, Michael Simonson, Triona Finucane, Andrew McIntosh. Located at: https://www.ck12.org/user:bWVzdGFibGUzN2VkdUBnbWFpbC5jb20./book/Virtual-Learning-Design-and-Delivery/. Project: Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. License: CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial

All images were created using the generative AI tool ChatGPT and serve a decorative purpose only.

11. Preparing Learners

Two of the determinants of whether your AOD will successfully engage learners is whether you have provided clear instructions and whether you have prepared students for participating effectively.

The following information, Online Discussion: Tips for Students comes for the University of Waterloo's Centre for Teaching Excellence. You may consider sharing the link with your learners at the beginning of the course to set them up for success.

Online Discussions: Tips for Students

Online discussions can help you prepare for class, learn discussion skills, practice your writing skills, and learn from others. To be successful, you need to translate your face-to-face discussion skills to the online environment. Remember that online discussions are first and foremost dialogues, not writing assignments. The following tips highlight key features of effective online discussion strategies, whether for discussion groups. These are general strategies. Be sure to read and follow your course-specific discussion assignment instructions. 

Writing a post

Review the discussion instructions. 

Your discussion may be more open-ended or there may be specific discussion prompts. In the case when there are specific discussion prompts, read them carefully and respond to all aspects of the prompt. Also, note whether your instructor wants you to include references and, if so, how many.

For more open-ended discussions, complete any of the assigned readings prior to drafting your post. You may be asked to think of a thesis and how to support it. Then read the other postings and see how they support or contradict your idea and write about this. Another strategy is to look for postings that lack evidence and probe for some. You can also turn your thoughts into questions or share alternate viewpoints. Remember, though, that opinions aren’t arguments. Be sure to support what you say with references to course materials or outside sources, such as readings.

Use keywords in your title. 

Online discussions can generate many messages, so you need to consider efficient ways to make your contributions. To help the other participants quickly understand what your post is about, be sure that your title clearly indicates the content that will follow. “My ideas about today’s readings” isn’t nearly as clear as “My opinion on Freud’s theory of mourning and melancholia.” Your title could even summarize the opinion, argument, or question that you raise, like in the following: “Freud’s theory of mourning and melancholia: A false divide.”

Encourage discussion.

If you’re the first to post, strive to encourage discussion. Get others thinking (and writing) by making bold statements or including open-ended questions in your message. Those who post first are most often responded to and cited by others. Remember to check back and see if and how others have responded to your ideas.

Make posts short, clear, and purposeful. 

Review the discussion guidelines for how long your posts should be. If length is not specified, write one to two meaningful paragraphs because long messages are difficult to read online. Another consideration is to make only one main point in each post, supported by evidence and/or an example. Be concise (Vonderwell, 2003). 

Your stance need not be forever. 

It can be intimidating to take a stand on an issue at times, especially when you put it in writing, which we associate with permanence. Remember that you are allowed to change your mind! Simply indicate that with the new information raised in the discussion, you have changed your stance. Learning is about change.

Other practical considerations for discussion board postings 

It can be frustrating to read through a busy discussion forum with lots of posts and replies. Make sure to create new threads if new topics evolve in the discussion. Subscribing to receive email alerts of new postings can help participants keep up with a conversation without checking back into the discussion forum repeatedly. You can configure the tool to receive alerts whenever a new post appears, or receive a daily summary of the posts. 

Responding to other posts

Make the context clear. 

An informative title will help, but also consider including in your reply a quotation from the original message that you’re responding to. If the original message is lengthy, cut out what is not relevant to your response. If the original has many paragraphs, you could place your comments in bold between the paragraphs to give readers the context for your ideas (Vonderwell, 2003).

Add value to the conversation.

Saying “I agree” does not move the discussion forward. Ask yourself why you agree and explain your rationale so that others have something else to respond to (Vonderwell, 2003).

Ask probing questions. 

Consider using the following questions when trying to extend a discussion:

  • What reasons do you have for saying that?
  • Why do you agree (or disagree) on that point?
  • How are you defining the term that you just used?
  • What do you mean by that expression?
  • Could you clarify that remark?
  • What follows from what you just said?
  • What alternatives are there to such a formulation? (Roper, 2007)
Feel free to disagree with your classmates. 

To air different perspectives or help others clarify their thinking, you may need to contradict a classmate. Remember to disagree respectfully (no name-calling or obscenities) and support your point with evidence. Do not feel bad about offering a different interpretation. Your contribution should help to make the discussion more productive for all involved.

Work to create group cohesion. 

Discussions are about group learning. When you function well as a group, you will be more open to all the benefits that this type of learning can offer. Give positive feedback to one another, use light humour, avoid comments that could be taken as insulting, use first names, respond promptly to each other, and offer assistance. Also remember the lack of nonverbal and vocal cues in the online environment. You’ll need to label emotions (e.g., “I’m confused about this” or “I feel strongly”) because no one will pick up on how you feel otherwise.

Be aware when postings prompt strong emotional responses.

If you feel very emotional about a message, wait before responding. It’s very easy to write something in the heat of the moment and then wish you could retract it. If you send it to the discussion, the damage is done. Even waiting overnight can give you enough distance to respond in a calmer and more professional manner.

Developing a positive perspective

Engage in online chats.

Online chats can provide an opportunity to ask questions or make comments during an online lecture. Try to make your comments concise and clear. Remember to be respectful and professional: don't write anything that you wouldn't speak in class. Also, avoid clogging up the chat with links to extraneous resources. Stay focused and aim to add value to the class experience. 

Be open to new ideas 

Discussion is about hearing what others have to say and working to shape and re-shape your own thoughts and perspectives. Different perspectives can further everyone’s understanding of the issue or concept being discussed—they represent opportunities for learning.

The online environment comes with many benefits, including learning from your peers in addition to your instructor. Use the time productively to hone lifelong skills and refine your ideas about the course content.

References

Attributions

This chapter was adapted from the following CC BY NC resource:

Centre for Teaching Excellence (n.a.). Online Discussions: Tips for Students [Webpage]. University of Waterloo. https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/catalogs/tip-sheets/online-discussions-tips-students

All images were created by ChatGPT 4.0.


12. Facilitating an AOD

Instructors and AOD

To begin this chapter, consider viewing the following video [9 min] in which Dr. Curt Bonk from Indiana University describes characteristics and practices of educators who create effective online environments.


A commonly held myth is that technology could replace the instructor, or that online learning does not need an instructor. In reality, the instructor is as much of a requirement in online learning as in face-to-face (f2f) learning, just in different ways. The role of the instructor changes from a learning guide to a learning facilitator, and the presence of the instructor to support learning in the online delivery mode is essential to student satisfaction.

Instructor Presence

Instructor presence refers to the various ways an instructor makes themselves perceptibly available and engaged with their learners. This encompasses a range of activities from initiating discussions, responding to student queries, providing timely and constructive feedback, to sharing relevant resources and insights that enrich the learning experience. It's about creating a supportive, interactive environment where students feel seen, heard, and guided through their learning journey. Instructor presence is crucial for fostering a sense of community and belonging among students, enhancing their motivation, and promoting deeper learning by making the online educational experience feel more personal and connected, despite the physical distance.

How Often to Use AOD

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to when an instructor should use online discussions, how often, and how much they should interact within the discussions. The instructor should evaluate their students’ needs on a case-by-case basis. For example, how often the instructor ought to reply in the online discussion forums can vary based on a great many factors, such as:

  • Level of the students: New students and beginners may require more interaction than higher level or graduate students, who may prefer to lead the discussion themselves and to learn from each other as much as from the instructor.
  • Topic: Some topics might require more management and guidance by the instructor than others.
  • Discussion type: You will learn of different kinds of discussions that can be utilized, and different ones would require different levels of interaction by the instructor.

What the Research Says 

Research supports two interesting results that could conflict with each other in practice: 1) That instructor presence is key to student satisfaction, and 2) That too much interaction and posting by the instructor in discussions can lead to reduced posting by the students (Wang and Liang, 2011).

Students claim higher satisfaction in courses that have higher instructor presence and availability (Picciano, 2002; Richardson & Swan, 2003;  Shea, Li, & Pickett, 2006;  Blau, 2009).  On the other hand, because the instructor is considered an authoritarian figure (Rourke & Anderson, 2002), studies have found that the sooner, and more often, an instructor posted in the discussion forums, then the less frequent and shorter were the posts by the students (Dennen, 2005, Massolini & Maddison, 2003). Learners require some time to start and to feel confident in expressing their views with each other before the instructor begins to interact with them, otherwise they will just reply to the instructor, and not to each other (Wang and Liang, 2011).

Directed Tactics

Wang and Liang (2011) outlined several methods specifically focused on dealing with this dilemma:

  1. Regulating: The course designer can help regulate student interactions by creating and implementing clear rules and policies related to the discussion board posts and replies. This includes quantitative rules about how often to post, by when, and to whom. It also includes qualitative rules about the content and quality of the posts and replies.
  2. Inviting: The instructor makes it clear to the student how to contact them for help, guidance, questions, and support on the discussion topics. This can be a separate online forum for building discussions between the instructor and students, which is away from the course topic discussions in which the instructor hopes the students will teach each other. This is often called the ’Virtual Office.’
  3. Summarizing: The instructor is integral in summarizing the student discussions and going over main points and important conclusions. Putting in direct examples from the discussion is very useful and gives credit to high quality interactions. This helps the students in summarizing their own learning, as well as lets them know clearly that they were being monitored throughout the process.
  4. Assessing: Formative assessments and feedback help students to improve their performance during the course. Offering feedback on the quality of the posts with examples of expectations helps students to meet the instructor’s expectations and to improve on the quality of their interactions with their peers.
  5. Counseling: The instructor should let learners know they are there to support them, and be in frequent contact with the student through means other than just the discussion forums.  They can send out updates  by email and give students many ways to contact them, through a special instructor-student Virtual Office discussion forum (as outlined in #2) in the course, by email, phone, chat, in person-to-person office hours, and any other means of communication the instructor is able to offer students.

Facilitator Posts and Strategies

Following are some indirect ways of pushing and advancing student learning in the discussions without always appearing to be directing them.

Questioning Strategies: There are a variety of questioning strategies, such as Socratic questioning, that allow the instructor to help push student learning. The idea is that through asking the learner specific questions about what they say, they will eventually lead themselves to the right answer. The Center for Teaching Excellence at the University of Connecticut has put together a quick guide, with sample questions, to help guide a discussion using Socartic methods.

Lead the Horse to Water: You will quickly note that some students have missed the point, missed a needed conclusion, have a misconception, or just do not know their facts. This could be due to prior learning that is a barrier to them learning new information, due to them just reading an erroneous source online, or because they did not prepare for for the discussion. It is important to catch these discussion errors and moderate them early so that other learners in the same course are not also erroneously led along the same logical fallacies. The problem, though, always rests in that people do not like to be told they are wrong. If you reply “that is wrong” the learner is likely to feel publicly attacked in front of their peers and will either become defensive, or close up and not post anything more. Therefore, there are more subtle and indirect ways of leading the student to the right information without directly telling them.

Example: John writes “Climate change is just a hoax propagated by crazy environmentalists that want to prohibit the smooth running of our economy.”

Problems with the post: Hearsay. Unfounded. Jargon. Not academic. Claims without support. False information contrary to what experts in the field and the textbook say. The issue, though, is that climate change is a sensitive and heated subject. The instructor would need to find an innovative indirect way of getting the learner to consult from the right material on their own because telling them is probably going to make them angry or defensive.

Ways the instructor might reply:

  • Hello John. Thank you for your post. You made some claims but did not offer support or facts to back them up. Can you reply to me here with some specific facts and resources to support your points? What does our book say on the topic?
  • Hello John. Thank you for your post. I would like to direct you to pg XX in our textbook. Read that page. What does the author say on this topic? What do you think?
  • Hello John. Thank you for your post. I think that NASA has some very interesting data concerning climate change. Take a look at this link and tell me what you think? http://climate.nasa.gov/

Create Connections: Reply to learner posts with useful resources, information, and relevant topics that help them connect their learning.

  • You wrote about X, and at this link/online-resource they say X, what do you think?
  • This reminds me of. . .
  • Did you see that X wrote on this, what did you think of his/her conclusions?
  • Go view this X thread, as it relates to what you say here on X. . .
  • I see you talked about X, how does that relate to X on pg X of our book?
  • See this X thread/link/news as it is relevant to what you say about X. . .

Avoiding Burnout 

In the f2f classroom, the instructor manages 20+ students in a discussion at the same time, in one hour, and then is done. In the online discussions the conversations can go on longer, expand and break up into multiple conversation lines, and the instructor may begin to feel overwhelmed by the number of replies they need to manage. Here are some tips and tricks to managing online discussions that avoid work overload:

  • Save save save! If you write up a thoughtful, well supported and referenced reply on a given topic, chances are you will use it again the next time you teach that same topic and course. Save it in a file to be reused. Save anything you might reuse, and save yourself time in the future.
  • Reply to multiple students at the same time. Do not reply to each learner with the same information. Instead, try to get them onto the same thread and reply to them all there. If you wait a day or two and reply to a thread between 2-4 students, then you make one reply to four students at the same time.
    • Example 1: Hello John, Jane, Mary and Susan. You have some interesting points about XX, and also about XX. Have you considered XX? What do you think?
    • Example 2: Hello John. I see you are discussing the same topic as I replied to Mary with some interesting facts and sources. Check that out, and reply to let us know what you think.
  • Set Work Hours. Online discussions are always there. It can invade the rest of your life until you find you are logging into the course far too often. Set specific hours when you will login into your online course and check the discussions, and stick to that schedule. Try to not login outside those set hours to avoid burnout.
  • Quality vs. Quantity: Replying to all students in the course with fluff and low quality replies is far less advantageous to their learning than making a few directed, specific, and high quality replies. Make it clear to students that a reply to one student is always open to discussion by the entire class.
  • Pick Your Battles. Don’t spend hours writing up a thoughtful, in-depth tutorial, post, or help guide unless you can reuse it with other students in the future; try to find the same thing online already written and give them that link instead. Finally, don’t spend hours on thoughtful feedback for a student’s post where the student very clearly did not spend even five minutes writing it.

Reflection

Review the directed tactics in this section. Which do you think would be hardest to implement and why? Which do you feel would be most essential?

References

Blau, P. G. (2009). Online teaching effectiveness: A tale of two instructors. International review of research in open and distance learning, 10(3), 1-27.

Dennen, V. P. (2005). From message posting to learning dialogues: Factors affecting learner participation in asynchronous discussion. Distance Education, 26(1), 127-148.

Massolini, M., & Maddison, S. (2007). When to jump in: The role of the instructor in online discussion forums. Computers Education, 49(2), 193-213.

Picciano, A., G. (2002). Beyond student perceptions: Issues of interaction, presence, and performance in an online course. Asynchronous Learning Networks, 6(1), 21-40.

Richardson, J., C., and Swan, K., P. (2003). Examining social presence in online courses in relation to students’ perceived learning and satisfaction. Asynchronous Learning Networks, 7(1), 68-88.

Rourke, L., & Anderson, T. (2002). Exploring social interaction in computer conferencing. Interactive Learning Research, 13(3), 257-273.

Shea, P. J., Li, C. S., & Pickett, A. (2006). A study of teaching presence and student sense of learning community in fully online and web-enhanced college courses. Internet and Higher Education, 9(3), 175-190.

Wang, Y. M., & Chen, D. V. (2011). Overcoming the dilemma of instructor presence in student-centered online discussions. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia (2011), 20(4), 425-438.

Additional Resources

Hungry for more? Consider the following resources.

EDUCAUSE (an organization devoted to technology in higher education) published an online article where they review the 10 top tips for designing and facilitating AODs.

Simon,. E. (2018). 10 Tips for Effective Online Discussions. EDUCAUSE. https://er.educause.edu/blogs/2018/11/10-tips-for-effective-online-discussions

One of the most authoritative researcher and guide on AOD design and facilitation is Alfred Rovai. His review describes some of the practices in AOD design and facilitation that help learners co-construct knowledge.

Rovai, A. P. (2007). Facilitating online discussions effectively. The Internet and Higher Education, 10(1), 77-88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2006.10.001

The following article introduces a model for AOD facilitation that categorizes the role of an educator into a managerial, pedagogical, social, and technical aspects. It then describes facilitation strategies that assist with each one.

Martin, F., Wang, C., & Sadaf, A. (2020). Facilitation matters: Instructor perception of helpfulness of facilitation strategies in online courses. Online Learning, 24(1), 28-49. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1249262.pdf

This article breaks down the role of an AOD facilitator into 4 aspects: content expertise, social communication expertise (e.g., creating a safe environment for conversations), managing the discussion process, and serving as a role model.

Merrill, H. S. (2003). Best Practices for Online Facilitation. Adult Learning, 14(2), 13-16. https://doi.org/10.1177/104515950401400204

Attributions

This chapter was adapted from the following CC BY NC resource:

Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. Authored by: Michelle Rogers-Estable, Cathy Cavanaugh, Michael Simonson, Triona Finucane, Andrew McIntosh. Located at: https://www.ck12.org/user:bWVzdGFibGUzN2VkdUBnbWFpbC5jb20./book/Virtual-Learning-Design-and-Delivery/. Project: Virtual Learning Design & Delivery. License: CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial

All images were created using the generative AI tool ChatGPT and serve a decorative purpose only.

13. Evaluating AODs

Assigning grades to online discussions is the biggest predictor of their success. If no grade is assigned, students are less likely to participate. It’s recommended that participation in online discussions counts for 10% to 20% of the course grade; research shows that no additional benefits result when the grade is increased above 20% (deNoyelles, Zydney, & Chen, 2014). 

How can educators provide feedback to learners about the quality and quantity of their contributions to an AOD? There seems to be three ways to do it.

Holistic Participation

Some courses consider discussion as a component of class participation. As such, each contribution is not evaluated and noted, but rather, a student's whole contributions over the course of the semester become part of their participation grade.

Point System

Points can be used for different things (quality or quantity) and awarded by different stakeholders.

Automated

Perhaps the easiest way to do it is to automate the process in the LMS and allow the system to grant 2 points for every original post and 1 point for each reply, up to a maximum of 10 points (or whatever works in your grading scheme). While this doesn't provide much feedback to learners about the quality of a good post, it can allow instructors to include some AOD in large classes in a way that is automated.

Distributed

The points can also serve as a way to distribute participation. In one class, learners could earn up to 10 points for AOD. They had to participate in at least 3 of the 5 course AODs. They had to make at least 2 original posts, each worth 2 points. And they had to make at least 2 replies, each worth 1 point. How a student choose to allocate their 10 points was up to them, and the system gave students flexibility in where and when they devoted effort to the discussion.

Selective

Another way to go, which can provide more in-depth feedback to learners, is to generally let discussions go as holistic participation grades (see above), but each learner could flag one of their post for grading (for points). This would ensure that each student would really do their best in posting one post or reply, and the educator could then provide feedback on the quality of that response. This system makes the "grading/feedback" work for the educator manageable, while still providing feedback on the quality of the work.

Kudo Points Awarded by Other Learners

Another way to do it is to allow learners to award "kudo points" to their peers. Each student is given 10 kudo point to award. You may want to impose rules, like the fact that students cannot award kudo points to themselves, that they cannot award more than 1 kudo point to any given prompt, etc. The educator uses the kudo points to give "bonus marks" to the learner who was awarded kudos, or to select a grade for that student. This system works best when learners are less likely to use the kudo points to help a friend, so it is better used with more mature learners.

Rubrics

Rubrics are perhaps the best option for evaluating AOD contributions. They make explicit the educator's expectations for a quality contribution and the frequency of contributions. They allow learners to rate themselves and develop meta-cognitive skills. And they make grading more transparent.

To help learners understand your expectations, consider sharing a few examples of contributions to an AOD. Then, ask students to use the rubric to rate the quality of each contribution. You can discuss the students' ratings, how they came to these ratings, and disclose your own. You can also start with examples, and work as a class to identify criteria that make for a good contribution and build your rubric together. This will give students buy-in.

Here are a few examples of rubrics to evaluate students' contributions to an AOD:

In designing your own rubric, consider that Pelz (2004, cited in Cranney et al., 2011) recommends that students ask these questions to themselves as they post:

  1. Is the information accurate? 
  2. Is your post relevant to the topic under discussion?
  3. Does your post answer the questions required? 
  4. Does your post teach something new or apply a concept in a new way?
  5. Have you added to the academic atmosphere of this course? 

Another source of inspiration is a paper by Bernstein & Isaac (2018) that examined criteria that could be used to evaluate critical thinking in an AOD.

References

Bernstein, A. G., & Isaac, C. (2018). Critical thinking criteria for evaluating online discussion. International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 12(2), 11. 

Cranney, M., Alexander, J. L., Wallace, W., & Alfano, L. (2011). Instructor’s discussion forum effort: Is it worth it? MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 7(3), 337-348. http://jolt.merlot.org/vol7no3/cranney_0911.pdf

DeNoyelles, A., Zydney, J. M., & Chen, B. (2014). Strategies for creating a community of inquiry through online asynchronous discussions. Journal of online learning and teaching, 10(1), 153-165.

Attributions

Some sections of this page were adapted from:

Center for Distributed Learning (2022). Create Discussion Rubrics. University of Central Florida. https://topr.online.ucf.edu/discussion-rubrics/

Centre for Teaching Excellence (n.a.). Online Discussions: Tips for Instructors. University of Waterloo. https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/catalogs/tip-sheets/online-discussions-tips-instructors-0