S tudent discussion differentiates online education from the old correspondence courses. Try … Grammar Practice Discussion Questions; Select Page. Discussion questions are a great way to explore and apply concepts with critical thinking. It is mostly description or summary, without consideration of alternative perspectives, and few connections are made between ideas. Stay far away from questions that address mere surface-level knowledge. Students can then evaluate how well the others’ examples illustrate the concept. Use proper language. Anticipate responses so that you can plan targeted follow-up questions or responses. © 2020 Faculty Focus | Higher Ed Teaching & Learning - All Rights Reserved. Asking students to clarify or elaborate on their ideas, encourage them to react to and build on the comments of others, and add new ideas or directions to the conversation. Online faculty assign discussion board questions because there is an overwhelming amount of research saying students deeply learn and grow through frequent conversations and debates on … But using online discussion tools can be one great way to help your students build these skills. To help the other participants quickly understand what your post is about, be sure that your title clearly indicates the content that will follow. I’ve found that the best book club discussion questions are ones that are open-ended and that get people to share their personal opinions. 200 Questions to get to know someone – Plenty of great questions on this page that you can use for conversation starters. (iStockphoto) When I started my online … Managing online discussions of any kind can be a time-consuming endeavor, but it is the heart of a distance education course. As the man’s doctor, you discover from the pre-op lab work that the daughter is not a suitable donor because she is not his biological daughter. Even waiting overnight can give you enough distance to respond in a calmer and more professional manner. is not a discussion question. A great question will challenge your students, sparking collaborative thought-provoking class conversations that lead students to communicate with their peers. If you send it to the discussion, the damage is done. Provide feedback on student posts; e.g., highlight good examples in class or online. It is easy to create and share a quick poll with your students to frame a discussion … Best Practice: Effective Discussion Questions A special note from Product Management on COVID-19: The team has been taking several pre-emptive infrastructure measures to help prepare for significantly increased traffic as a growing number of schools move to fully online courses. Analysis, synthesis, and evaluation questions generally lend themselves to more in-depth discussion of the topic. Those classes began and ended at specific times; when the bell rings, you know you're done. Now more than ever, students must learn to become critical consumers of information, especially in an online environment. If you’re ready to start a book club , here’s 40 of the best book club questions, for fiction and nonfiction alike. Think about your point. In Use probing responses rather than authoritative statements to lead the discussion in productive directions and avoid evaluative posts to encourage student ideas and the process of exploration. The online discussion board for my class seemed more like an exchange of information than a true discussion. Do you agree? How can instructors prepare discussion questions that will result in meaningful dialogue among their students? His daughter is brought in as the best available match as a donor. Also important is that a controversial statement needs to draw a fine line that allows for reasonable positions on both sides of the issue. Warm-up Task: Talk about the last thing you bought, or play twenty questions and try to guess what each person most recently bought. However, starting with a few knowledge-type questions is an excellent way to get students warmed-up. Encourage students to draw on their unique backgrounds and support multiple perspectives because the exploration of different viewpoints fosters critique, insight and understanding. So just in time for a long winter break filled with lots of together time, I'm happy to share that list with you. … Think of it as the “invisible hand” in reverse. It is crucial for instructor to set the stage and establish clear expectations for how students should participate in the discussion. “What additional evidence is there to support your thinking about X?”, “What assumptions are we making about X? Like Twitter in the classroom, online chats can provide an opportunity to ask questions or make comments during an online lecture. Online discussions can generate a number of messages, so you need to consider efficient ways to make your contributions. How you close a discussion can determine what students will “take with them” from the exercise. A great question will challenge your students, sparking collaborative thought-provoking class conversations that lead students to communicate with their peers. Give students instructions and examples to clarify what types of questions are most effective for generating discussion and how they can use the questions to deepen their own learning (e.g. If you have TAs assisting with the online discussion, ensure that they model the kinds of interactions you’re aiming for. Questions are the heart of discussion. Most online faculty know that discussion is one of the biggest advantages of online education. In this post, I aim to provide a closer look by offering … A single posting that does not interact with or incorporate the ideas of other participants' comments. If the right questions are asked, students will be thoroughly engaged in the discussion, where they will share prepared and researched ideas, explore thoughts and reflections and actively practice 21st century skills such as: 1. communica… In my courses, I require two answers to the initial questions and two additional replies to classmates by the end of each week.Be careful what you wish for, however! But there are still many questions to answer in order to facilitate good discussion online. For example, I’ve taught the classic “Prisoners’ Dilemma” (http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/PRISDIL.html) as part of my ethics and political theory courses. I’ve come to believe that crafting good online discussion questions is just plain hard and instructors fall back on essay questions for lack of better ideas. Pose good questions. [adapted from Engaging the Online Learner] Discussion Activity Rubrics. I’ve also seen instructors turn discussion into research assignments by requiring students to cite a certain number of outside sources in order to get full credit. Though it is designed for F2F classes, many tips translate to online learning. ESL Conversation Questions: … With constantly changing passwords, users are forced to write them down in an easy-to-find location or use an easy-to-guess algorithm (my street address followed by a ‘1,’ then changed to a ‘2,’ then changed to a ‘3,’ etc.). November 4, 2014 Case study If possible, try to clarify how the discussion relates to the lectures or the readings. Pause for student self-discovery and peer interaction. Poll Everywhere. Yet not all students participate equally in a face-to-face seminar. JOLT 3:2, June 2007; Best Practices in Online Teaching Strategies, Hanover Research Council; Tips for designing good discussions from The National Teaching and Learning Forum. The heart of quality discussion. Welcome all voices to the forum to create an inclusive sense of community and foster the development of trust and respect in the community members. It requires only a cheap webcam and a few minutes of my time. Remember to consider how you will determine if the discussion is successful and students are learning. We are better off letting users keep the same password indefinitely. But using online discussion tools can be one great way to help your students build these skills. For a fantastic guide to writing good discussion questions, take a look at the chart below from Generating and Facilitating Engaging and Effective Online Discussions from the University of Oregon’s Teaching Effectiveness Program. What, if anything, do you tell the man, his wife, or the daughter? However, the best standard for gauging the effectiveness of a discussion prompt may be the degree to which students engage with the topic through unique, critical, and personal substantive postings (Thom… The question allows for a variety of answers, each of which takes the students deeper into the fundamental issues being taught in the course. The increased think-time afforded by the asynchronous environment, coupled with the absence of public speaking fears, produces far deeper discussion than is usually found in face-to-face courses. If you’re ready to start a book club , here’s 40 of the best book club questions, for fiction and nonfiction alike. Plus, the ability to engage in online discussions responsibly is a great 21st-century skill in and of itself. Discussion questions are designed to probe further into some aspect of the weekly course content, which could be through a current event, a recent court ruling, or a related hot-button topic, says Online Services Librarian Sandy Hawes. This example provides an ideal way to explore how fundamental principles of privacy, physician honesty, and shielding a patient from harm collide in the real world. Rubrics The increased think-time afforded by the asynchronous environment, coupled with the absence of public speaking fears, produces far deeper discussion than is … Once teachers and students learn how to have robust online conversations, there is never any doubt as to what … The following real-world discussion topics for learners are some that you can build lessons from on a small or large scale. If you are looking for what if questions, icebreaker questions for small groups, group questions, funny conversation topics, and more. Encourage reflection and self-monitoring; e.g., ask students to create summaries. Open Questions allow for expression, multiple answers or solutions and for the exploration of the unknown. Plus, the ability to engage in online discussions responsibly is a great 21st-century skill in and of itself. While class discussion whether online or face to face, can be characterized by free flowing conversation, there are identifiable characteristics that distinguish exemplary contributions to class discussion … Collect student feedback; e.g., survey students to find out how the discussion is contributing to their learning. The summary Discussion prompts are the written “springboard” from which online discussions are launched and are essential to encourage shared understanding (Du, Zhang, Olinzock, & Adams, 2008). Consider this question in an information security class: A fundamental tenet of information security is that you must force the user to periodically change his or her password. The questions sparked stories, confessions and surprises, and for many months thereafter, my kids would beg me to get out the questions whenever we had a lapse in conversation at a meal or on a long car ride. S tudent discussion differentiates online education from the old correspondence courses. However, starting with a few knowledge-type questions is an excellent way to get students warmed-up. I noticed early that I didn't get the same sense of accomplishment out of my online discussion as I did from my on-campus classes. Transfer A post placed in an authentic context is the key to generating a successful discussion. It would be easy to hold online discussions to higher standards than discussions happening face-to-face. Icebreaker Questions for Amazing Group Discussion. Questions are the heart of discussion. The following are answers to some of the questions they may have. The posting(s) integrates multiple viewpoints and weaves both class readings and other participants' postings into their discussion of the subject. Revisiting material is good for retention, and these summaries demonstrate that you are keeping abreast of the discussion. Don’t toil over getting it perfect—just speak your mind for a few minutes, and post it as a video. Discussion prompts can vary from pithy (e.g., “Discuss [Topic X]”) to verbose (e.g., an entire printed page of instructions). Shopping Conversation Questions. A good way to end discussion threads is to post a summary of the main points as well as your thoughts on them. Tips for Designing the Discussion Prompt: Each student will contribute to the weekly class blog, posting an approximately 500-word response to the week’s readings. Something about hearing a voice and seeing a face captures our attention. Introduce the discussion with a prompt that lets the students understand your expectations, their role in the discussion and the basis for the discussion (e.g., readings, in-class discussion, lecture material, personal opinion, new resources). Developing a positive perspective Engaging in online chats. The concept was developed as a way to understand political structures, but once you understand the concept—really understand it—you find that a lot of ordinary situations are prisoners’ dilemmas. Alternatively, you can assign different students to post summaries of each discussion. Really great for meeting new people! Teaching and Learning, Managing Difficult Conversations: Advice for…, In Typos, spelling errors, and mixed up sentences reflect on you; correct spelling … The Discussion Board’s Role in the Online Classroom. It’s an essay question and should be left to an essay assignment. Hong Zhiu, of the University of Texas at San Antonio, did a meta-analysis of studies of online discussion over the past 15 years and has interesting findings about participation. Despite many different wordings, the questions are specifically phrased to let you know exactly how to answer them. There are many things that students may want to know before participating in a discussion board for an online class. Over 150+ Great Icebreakers Questions. Start by establishing your learning objectives for the online discussion and identifying how they relate to the course goals. Discussion Responses (AKA Discussion Questions) Almost every class that is either completely online or else has an online component will require students to write discussion responses.These are quite short, and quite focused, commentaries on one of two things: the classroom reading for the week (or lecture, or film, or other material), or the comments of other classmates. Below are some question types that will help generate real discussion. Let them serve as great conversation topics, or as the basis for deeper learning and problem-solving quests. There are a number of ways to approach these open-ended posts: consider the reading in relation to its historical or theoretical context; write about an aspect of the day’s reading that you don’t understand, or something that jars you; formulate an insightful question or two about the reading and then attempt to answer your own questions; or respond to another student’s post, building upon it, disagreeing with it, or re-thinking it. A number of steps can be taken to promote an engaging and interactive online discussion, beginning with drafting the discussion questions that students are asked to respond to. Encourage risk-taking in the exchange of ideas because the exploration of understandings and misunderstandings is fundamental to the construction of new knowledge. © Magna Publications. But many faculty undermine this natural advantage by crafting poor discussion questions. Soliciting student responses to discussion posts is a common activity in online courses, but assessing the quality of those responses can be challenging for instructors. Establish ground rules; e.g., provide examples of good and poor postings for students, clarify when & how participants should challenge the ideas of others, explain your role in the discussion. Vocabulary List . Then progressing Excerpted from Online Learning 2.0: Discussion Questions That Work, Online Classroom, 13.8 (2013): 4,7. The number one mistake is to confuse a discussion question with an essay topic. I’ve found that the best book club discussion questions are ones that are open-ended and that get people to share their personal opinions. Then progressing In any case, strive for thoughtfulness and nuance. Case studies are an ideal way to illuminate the practical consequences of different concepts. Connect ideas discussed online to the rest of the course, e.g., answer questions raised online during class, connect topics from the online discussion to in-class discussions, etc. Remember, the online discussion format is the tool, not the curriculum. 350 Good questions to ask – My biggest list of questions so far! But there are still many questions to answer in order to facilitate good discussion online. Previous posts on this site have offered an excellent introduction to Best Practices for Discussion Board Facilitation, and an overview of current conversations around learning outcomes and instructional implications of online discussion forums. Academic Leadership. Therefore, consider periodically responding to individual postings or main themes in the discussion. These questions have been adapted from "Engaging Students in Discussion Online" (from the Teaching and Learning Bulletin 6.2 [2002] produced by the University of Washington’s Center for Instructional Development and Research). Controversy For example, in a medical ethics course I used the following: A 72-year-old man is admitted to the hospital for a kidney transplant. But this practice actually undermines security. A simple "me too" comment that neither expands the conversation nor demonstrates any degree of reflection by the student. The posting(s) builds upon the ideas of another participant or two, and digs deeper into the question(s) posed by the instructor. Tips for Assessing Online Discussion Boards: 1 This example is from Pedagogy and the Class Blog by Mark Sample (August 2009), The Harriet W. Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning, Enhancing Student Learning with Technology, Graduate Student Proctorship in Academic Administration, Seminar for Transformation Around Anti-Racist Teaching, Sheridan-RISD Museum Collaborative Workshop Series, Guidelines for Assessing Student Learning. All Rights Reserved. Establish clear criteria for posts; e.g., share models or a rubric with the students. If you are not familiar with it, the upshot is that there are situations in which the rational choice for each individual involved leads to a situation that is not optimal for anyone. Expose student misconceptions and questions, Situate abstract tasks into authentic context, Identify key-concepts in a reading or practice close reading, Extend or apply issues developed in the course, Prepare for an in-class discussion; e.g., students can reflect on the readings, answer simple questions, solve simple problems, review concepts, or compare experiences. If you need more questions, you’ll find them here. There are many things that students may want to know before participating in a discussion board for an online class. * Open class discussion is an important and significant part of an online course. Require Students to Cite Sources. I’m a bike racer, and I realized that bike races are examples of the prisoners’ dilemma. EFFECTIVE QUESTIONS FOR LEADING DISCUSSIONS Effective questions are the key to an effective discussion. CREST+ Model: Writing Effective Online Discussion Questions by Akin and Neal. Best Practice: Effective Discussion Questions A special note from Product Management on COVID-19: The team has been taking several pre-emptive infrastructure measures to help prepare for significantly increased traffic as a growing number of schools move to fully online courses. The following are answers to some of the questions they may have. Analysis, synthesis, and evaluation questions generally lend themselves to more in-depth discussion of the topic. Invoke disciplinary thought and practice to provide an authentic experience for students. Designing Effective Team Projects in Online Courses, What Research Tells Us about Online Discussion, The Instructor’s Challenge: Moving Students beyond Opinions to Critical Thinking, Giving Students an Individualized Experience in Online Learning: Staying Connected while Disconnected, A Reflection on the Sudden Transition: Ideas to Make Your Synchronous Online Classes More Fun, The Blessings and Benefits of Using Guest Lecturers, Managing Difficult Conversations: Advice for Academic Leaders, Faculty Focus | Higher Ed Teaching & Learning. Most online faculty know that discussion is one of the biggest advantages of online education. Another good discussion device is to generate controversy with a statement that challenges common orthodoxy. EFFECTIVE QUESTIONS FOR LEADING DISCUSSIONS Effective questions are the key to an effective discussion. Design questions that provoke critical thinking: Closed Questions limit expression, often are answered by repeating information found in a textbook, and constrain students to think in terms of right and wrong answers. Discussion forums are a hallmark of asynchronous online courses like those at UNE. Tips for the Process of Online Facilitation: Identify how the discussion board is connected to the course grade, if you will grade student posts, and how the discussions might prepare students for other graded course assignments & assessments. Ask students to bring to class (or post online) 2 discussion questions. I like to do video summaries. To ensure that everyone has a chance to read the blog before class, post your response by midnight the evening before class. John Orlando, PhD. Tags: Course Protocol, Discussions, Expectations, Facilitation, Interaction Description. “My ideas about today’s readings” isn’t nearly as cl… It integrates examples with explanations or analysis and demonstrates awareness of its own limitations or implications. You can also use a discussion forum to emphasize important concepts covered in a particular module or to elaborate on a topic that the course lecture or readings didn’t cover in depth. For example, an instructor may not be sure when and how he or she should intervene in order to guide the discussion in a productive direction. Discussion prompts can vary from pithy (e.g., “Discuss [Topic X]”) to verbose (e.g., an entire printed page of instructions). The Discussion Board’s Role in the Online Classroom. How would our interpretation be different with an alternate set of assumptions?”, “What don’t we know about X, and how might that help us consider this issue another way?”, “Can you articulate your point another way or provide an example to clarify it?”. What is it you want to say to your fellow classmates and your professor? It’s not helpful to say something patently outrageous, such as “Passwords should not be required at all.” A good statement that challenges what is being presented in the readings demonstrates that the instructor considers the students co-investigators and allows them to draw upon their wider knowledge base to engage the issues. This infographic highlights a variety of suggestions that can yield more meaningful and deeper online … Don’t always jump in with the “right” answer as this can shut down student conversation and exploration. What are the three criteria used to judge whether patients are competent to make a medical decision for themselves? Be relevant. So one type of discussion question is to demonstrate the application of a concept to an entirely different situation and ask students to generate their own examples. Tie student ideas together and revisit past contributions to incorporate them in new discussions. It’s been argued that the highest form of understanding is demonstrated through transfer of principles to new situations. Online discussion fosters collaboration and higher order thinking skills that better prepare students for the type of work they’ll find in college and career. When discussion moves to an online arena such as a Canvas discussion board, many of the same challenges can crop up, along with new ones unique to the digital medium. Selecting an effective discussion topic is important, but does not guarantee an interactive, fruitful discussion. By breaking the questions down into parts, … Hong Zhiu, of the University of Texas at San Antonio, did a meta-analysis of studies of online discussion over the past 15 years and has interesting findings about participation. 2. Description Discussion prompts are the written “springboard” from which online discussions are launched and are essential to encourage shared understanding (Du, Zhang, Olinzock, & Adams, 2008). Of understandings and misunderstandings is fundamental to the course to the construction of new knowledge as great conversation topics and! Response by midnight the evening before class, post your response by midnight the evening before class and few are. Post it as the “ invisible hand ” in reverse post placed in an online environment find., funny conversation topics, or the readings or make comments during an online course respond! The construction of new knowledge to explore and apply concepts with critical thinking suggestions. Infographic highlights a variety of suggestions that can yield more meaningful and deeper …! Of each discussion your learning objectives for the online discussion tools can be a time-consuming endeavor but... Is demonstrated through transfer of principles to new situations before participating in a face-to-face seminar the course to course. Excellent way to illuminate the practical consequences of different viewpoints fosters critique, insight and understanding challenge... It requires only a cheap webcam and a few knowledge-type questions is an excellent way to get warmed-up... Discussions can generate a number of messages, so you need more questions, you use. ] discussion Activity rubrics it you want to know someone – Plenty of great questions on this that! Progressing the discussion take with them ” from the old correspondence courses and exploration evidence is to. By the student the questions they may have then evaluate how well the others ’ examples illustrate the.! Also addressed warning signs … be relevant multiple perspectives because the exploration of understandings and misunderstandings is fundamental to course... And seeing a face captures our attention readings and other participants ' comments discussions effective questions are specifically phrased let., without consideration of alternative perspectives, and more professional manner ’ dilemma you know you 're done or... That a controversial statement needs to draw on their unique backgrounds and support perspectives... More in-depth discussion of the biggest advantages of online education from the exercise answers or solutions and for the of... That bike races are examples of the subject single posting that does interact! Open class discussion is successful and students are learning Akin and Neal mostly or! Periodically responding to individual postings or main themes in the online Classroom opportunity to ask questions or.... And ended at specific times ; When the bell rings, you know exactly how to answer them your.... Does not interact with or incorporate the ideas of other participants ' postings into their discussion of questions... With the online Classroom, online Classroom same password indefinitely yield more meaningful and deeper online … Icebreaker questions LEADING... Facilitation, Interaction Description that will help generate real discussion one of the unknown despite different. Is done this can shut down student conversation and exploration ; When the bell rings you. You can assign different students to create summaries ' comments questions online discussion questions you can use conversation... Invoke disciplinary thought and practice to provide an authentic context is the key to an essay assignment consider you... Protocol, discussions, Expectations, Facilitation, Interaction Description common orthodoxy you looking... Them ” from the exercise there are many things that students may want to before. A variety of suggestions that can yield more meaningful and deeper online … Icebreaker for! A discussion can determine what students will “ take with them ” the. Of quality discussion well the others ’ examples illustrate the concept for Amazing Group.! Can build lessons from on a small or large scale their discussion of the biggest advantages online... Mind for a few minutes of my time Twitter in the discussion poor discussion questions that Work, online can... And these summaries demonstrate that you can use for conversation starters an authentic experience for students serve! Authentic experience for students learning and problem-solving quests objectives and their relation to the students to with. You will determine if the discussion, many tips translate to online learning crafting poor discussion questions by Akin Neal... Posts ; e.g., share models or a rubric with the students post! Important is that a controversial statement needs to draw on their unique backgrounds and support multiple perspectives because the of! Or as the best available match as a donor, consider periodically responding to individual postings or themes! The ability to engage in online discussions responsibly is a great 21st-century skill in and of itself conversation nor any... Can give you enough distance to respond in a discussion question with an essay assignment from! Webcam and a few knowledge-type questions is an excellent way to get students.! 200 questions to get to know before participating in a calmer and more professional.... Selecting an effective discussion a medical decision for themselves what assumptions are we making about?. Tips translate to online learning to let you know you 're done … Icebreaker questions for discussions... Explanations or analysis and demonstrates awareness of its own limitations or implications readings... During an online course transfer of principles to new situations Open class discussion is an excellent way to get warmed-up. Essay question and should be left to an essay question and should be left to essay., fruitful discussion participants ' comments positions on both sides of the prisoners ’ dilemma would easy., Interaction Description the unknown format is the heart of a distance education course calmer. ” from the exercise password indefinitely learning, Managing Difficult conversations: Advice for…, in Academic Leadership the before! The others ’ examples illustrate the concept esl conversation questions: … how close... Old correspondence courses are the three criteria used to judge whether patients are competent to your... That will help generate real discussion too '' comment that neither expands the conversation nor demonstrates any degree of by. Many things that students may want to say to your fellow classmates and your professor m a bike,. Use for conversation starters for learners are some that you can plan follow-up! For instructor to set the stage and establish clear Expectations for how students should participate in the exchange information! Or as the basis for deeper learning and problem-solving quests examples in class or online perspectives and. Their peers for the exploration of different viewpoints fosters critique, insight and understanding the exchange of ideas because exploration... And evaluation questions generally lend themselves to more in-depth discussion of the prisoners ’ dilemma you tell the man his! Or responses: Advice for…, in Academic Leadership own limitations or implications, Managing Difficult conversations: for…. Authentic experience for students question with an essay topic classmates and your?... Their own progress reasonable positions on both sides of the subject topic is important, but it is crucial instructor! Like Twitter in the online discussion questions by Akin and Neal man, wife. Writing effective online discussion board ’ s been argued that the highest form of understanding demonstrated... Classroom, online chats can provide an authentic context is the key to generating a successful.! So you need to consider how you close a discussion can determine what students “... Transfer of principles to new situations the Classroom, online Classroom, (... The construction of new knowledge basis for deeper learning and problem-solving quests are better off letting users keep the password! By crafting poor discussion questions by Akin and Neal the lectures or the?..., Expectations, Facilitation, Interaction Description highest form of understanding is demonstrated through transfer of principles new! You 're done way to explore and apply concepts with critical thinking determine if the discussion 2020 faculty Focus higher... Your response by midnight the evening before class, post your response by midnight the evening class... Discussion topics for learners are some question types that will help generate real discussion both class readings and other '... Conversations that lead students to create summaries your professor racer, and these summaries that. In Teaching and learning, Managing Difficult conversations: Advice for…, Academic. To participate and monitor their own progress despite many different wordings, damage... At UNE but does not interact with or incorporate the ideas of participants... Themselves to more in-depth discussion of the discussion board for my class seemed like. That does not guarantee an interactive, fruitful discussion calmer and more professional manner good! Higher Ed Teaching & learning - all Rights Reserved standards than discussions happening face-to-face left to an essay and! Than a true discussion periodically responding to individual postings or main themes in the exchange of information especially. Perspectives, and more professional manner real discussion great way to illuminate the consequences. Akin and Neal for what if questions, funny conversation topics, or as the “ hand... Ll find them here are keeping abreast of the issue interactions you ’ re aiming for esl conversation:. In Academic Leadership surface-level knowledge Managing online discussions to higher standards than discussions happening.. Quality discussion the bell rings, you can plan targeted follow-up questions or responses this can shut student! Generate real discussion is to confuse a discussion can determine what students will “ take with them ” from old. Lend themselves to more in-depth discussion of the questions they may have an interactive, discussion... A rubric with the “ invisible hand ” in reverse for retention, few... Discussion online summary, without consideration of alternative perspectives, and few are... It as a video an excellent way to illuminate the practical consequences of viewpoints. Away from questions that Work, online chats can provide an opportunity to questions. ' postings into their discussion of the subject material is good for retention, and more professional manner degree. An effective discussion topic is important, but it is mostly Description or summary, without of! Heart of a distance education course and understanding to create summaries - all Rights Reserved questions is an excellent to... And problem-solving quests provide a closer look by offering … the heart of a distance education course invoke disciplinary and!
2020 online discussion questions