scholarly journals THE EBB AND FLOW OF ONLINE DISCUSSIONS: WHAT BLOOM CAN TELL US ABOUT OUR STUDENTS’ CONVERSATIONS

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrina A. Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Online Discussion ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Online Mode ◽  
Need To Evaluate ◽  
The Face ◽  
Interesting Area ◽  
Ebb And Flow

This study looks at online discussions within the context of a group endeavor and attempts to evaluate three assertions: 1) students in an online discussion proceed through higher levels of thinking; 2) Online conversations follow an “ebb and flow” pattern; 3) The level of the first posting to the discussion influences the level of subsequent postings. Postings were classified by the Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives and were graphed to help analyze the assertions. There was only modest support for the first assertion and better support for the second and third assertions. Analyzing online discussions as a group endeavor may well prove an interesting area of research for those interested in applying the existing body of literature and theory on group discussions in the face-to-face arena to the online environment. Researchers need to evaluate whether this literature is applicable to online discussions and what distinctions can legitimately be made between group discussions in the face-to-face or online mode.

Graduate Students' Perceptions of the Benefits and Drawbacks of Online Discussion Tools

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Decker ◽  
Valerie Beltran
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Online Discussion ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Online Classes ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Qualitative Research Study ◽  
University Level ◽  
The University

With an increase in the number of online classes being taught at the university level, professors are exploring ways to create collaboration in the online environment. One such strategy is through using online discussion tools. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to explore students' beliefs about the benefits of using a variety of discussion tools in online classes. In analyzing students' responses to four open-ended questions, five key themes emerged that highlighted four benefits and one drawback to the use of online discussion tools. Online discussions helped build relationships, led to students hearing others' perspectives and feeling their perspectives were respected, led to students reflecting on the content and developing a deeper understanding, and helped groups coordinate projects and manage teamwork. In contrast, online discussions did not allow the same authenticity of dialogue in face-to-face discussions.

Student Perceptions of Face-to-Face and Online Discussions: The Advantage Goes To . . .

2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrina A. Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Affirmative Action ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Political Tolerance ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Face ◽  
Online Setting ◽  
And Gender

Thirteen students in a graduate-level course on Historical and Policy Perspectives in Higher Education held face-to-face and online discussions on five controversial topics: Diversity, Academic Freedom, Political Tolerance, Affirmative Action, and Gender. Students read materials on each topic and generated questions for discussion that were categorized by Bloom’s taxonomy so that the level of questions in the two discussion settings would be closely parallel. Upon completion of each discussion, they answered questions that addressed depth and length of the discussion, ability to remember, and a self-assessment of how the student learned. Students’ assessments show a consistent preference for the face-to-face discussion but a small number of students preferred the online setting. However, what is perhaps more interesting is a minority of approximately one-third of the students who perceived no difference between the settings, or that the two settings were perhaps complementary.

Factors Contributing to the Effectiveness of Online Students and Instructors

2018 ◽  
pp. 1451-1462
Author(s):  
Michelle Kilburn ◽  
Martha Henckell ◽  
David Starrett
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Online Students ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Face

Identifying the positive attributes of students and instructors in the online environment will contribute to the understanding of how we can enhance the learning experience for the student and the teaching experience for the instructor. This article will assist students and instructors in understanding the differences that may be experienced in the online environment versus the face-to-face environment and provide the opportunity to consider whether online learning and/or teaching is a “good fit” for them. Understanding why students and/or instructors might choose the online environment will also assist administrators in developing successful, quality online programs that enrich the experiences for both students and instructors.

Online Student and Instructor Characteristics

2011 ◽  
pp. 2911-2916
Author(s):  
Michelle Kilburn ◽  
Martha Henckell ◽  
David Starrett
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Technological Advances ◽  
The Face ◽  
Instructor Characteristics

As technological advances become mainstream in higher education, many universities have begun delving into online learning as an effective means of course delivery. Transitioning from the Industrial Age to the Digital Age of learning has forced some evaluators to rethink standards of success and the idea of productivity and learning (Leonard, 1999). Understanding the positive attributes of students and instructors in the online environment will contribute to the understanding of how we can enhance the learning experience for the student and the teaching experience for the instructor. This article will also assist students and instructors in understanding the differences that may be experienced in the online environment vs. the face-to-face environment and provide the opportunity to consider whether online learning or teaching is a “good fit” for them. Understanding why students or instructors might choose the online environment will also assist administrators in developing successful, quality online programs that enrich the experiences for both students and instructors.

Instructor Presence in Online Distance Classes

2010 ◽  
pp. 1216-1219
Author(s):  
Janet Lear
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Instant Messaging ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Instructor Presence ◽  
New Knowledge ◽  
The Face ◽  
Online Distance ◽  
A Site ◽  
E Mail

Instructor presence are words that call to mind a professor at the front of a classroom lecturing to a room full of students. Today the image associated with instructor presence is quite different. The vision is one of an individual engaged with the student, leading, and mentoring students, and facilitating classes either visibly in the classroom or invisibly in the online environment. Instructor presence is a broad phrase that refers to the instructor’s jobs of structuring and presenting the materials as well as providing feedback and engaging with the student academically through e-mail, by telephone, or by instant messaging either text or video. The roles are different but the outcome is the same, student learning. Gone are the days where the instructor was the center of the class, lecturing and passing along knowledge to students. Because today’s learner is actively involved in the building of new knowledge, learning is more student-focused. As the environment changes, the instructor assumes a variety of roles from designer to facilitator to mentor. The new roles are the same for both instructors in the face-to-face classroom and instructors in the online environment. Instructors for classes in the online environment cannot just compile a site for the class with materials available to the students. Instructors need to have an online presence as they facilitate the class mentoring students, providing activities, encouraging students, and communicating with student on a regular basis.

scholarly journals The microdynamics of social regulation: Comparing the navigation of disagreements in text-based online and face-to-face discussions

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 902-917 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carla A. Roos ◽  
Tom Postmes ◽  
Namkje Koudenburg
Keyword(s):  
Social Relationships ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Latin Square ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Social Regulation ◽  
Interpersonal Interaction ◽  
Message Content ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Differences Of Opinion ◽  
The Face

This study explores how people navigate the field of tension between expressing disagreement and maintaining social relationships in text-based online as compared to face-to-face discussions. In face-to-face discussions, differences of opinion are socially regulated by introducing ambiguity in message content coupled with instant responding on a relational level. We hypothesized that online messages are less ambiguous and less responsive, both of which may hinder social regulation. Thirty-six groups of three unacquainted students discussed politically controversial statements via chat, video-chat (nonanonymous), and face-to-face, in a multilevel repeated measures Graeco-Latin square design. Content coding revealed that online discussions were relatively clear and unresponsive. This related to participants experiencing reduced conversational flow, less shared cognition, and less solidarity online. These results suggest that ambiguity and responsiveness enable people to maintain social relationships in the face of disagreement. This emphasizes the key role that subtle microdynamics in interpersonal interaction play in social regulation.

scholarly journals FACE-TO-FACE VERSUS THREADED DISCUSSIONS: THE ROLE OF TIME AND HIGHER-ORDER THINKING

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrina A. Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Higher Order Thinking ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Course Evaluations ◽  
Threaded Discussions ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Experience Of Time ◽  
The Face

This study compares the experiences of students in face-to-face (in class) discussions with threaded discussions and also evaluates the threaded discussions for evidence of higher-order thinking. Students were enrolled in graduate-level classes that used both modes (face-to-face and online) for course-related discussions; their end-of-course evaluations of both experiences were grouped for analysis and themes constructed based on their comments. Themes included the “expansion of time,” “experience of time,” “quality of the discussion,” “needs of the student,” and “faculty expertise.” While there are advantages to holding discussions in either setting, students most frequently noted that using threaded discussions increased the amount of time they spent on class objectives and that they appreciated the extra time for reflection on course issues. The face-to-face format also had value as a result of its immediacy and energy, and some students found one mode a better “fit” with their preferred learning mode. The analysisof higher-order thinking was based on a content analysis of the threaded discussions only. Each posting was coded as one of the four cognitive-processing categories described by Garrison and colleagues: 18% were triggering questions, 51% were exploration, 22% were integration, and 7% resolution. A fifth category – social – was appropriate for 3% of the responses and only 12% of the postings included a writing error. This framework provides some support for the assertion that higher-order thinking can and does occur in online discussions; strategies for increasing the number of responses in the integration and resolution categories are discussed.

scholarly journals Fostering Learner Autonomy by using Moodle as Pedagogical Tool: Reflections on Students’ Perceptions

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 162-172
Author(s):  
Arjun Neupane
Keyword(s):  
Mathematics Education ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Perceived Usefulness ◽  
Learning System ◽  
Perceived Ease Of Use ◽  
Online Teachers ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Online Mode ◽  
Collaborative Learning Communities ◽  
The Face

Moodle is an open source for e-learning system. It is as a tool for delivering contents to students and it is useful to build rich collaborative learning communities. It allows users to be active learners, who actively participate in the online learning process. Based on this background, this study aimed to investigate the students’ views on the use of Moodle in mathematics education. This study gave attention to the variables of perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude and students’ self- efficacy in learning mathematics.  Participants of this study consisted of 24 students, who took first and second semester courses at the master's level in Mathematics Education in 2018 batch from Open and Distance Education Center (ODEC), TU. There are 21 male and three female students. Four students were chosen for the interview including one female representative. Data triangulation between the data of interviews, online observation, and interviews with online teachers was used to analyze and analysis of the data. Three online teachers were chosen for interview purposively. The finding revealed that students had a positive perception towards the use of Moodle and were happy to learn mathematics from the online mode rather than the face-to-face mode. It is suggested that the Moodle if used appropriately and systematically, benefits tutors and students equally.

"Cross Talk"

2010 ◽  
pp. 209-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan J. Wegmann
Keyword(s):  
Cross Talk ◽  
Online Discussion ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Discussion Boards ◽  
Online Instructors ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Computer Mediated ◽  
Asynchronous Online Discussions ◽  
College Classes

Asynchronous online discussions can be complex and fruitful, mimicking their face-to-face counterparts in undergraduate college classes. However, some researchers note a discrepancy in substance and interest levels between online and face-to-face discussions. This chapter describes the interactions of one thriving student in an asynchronous online course. It analyzes the student’s interactions with his peers, and uses these interactions to provide ways that online instructors can structure courses to optimize genuine and engaging online discourse. Additionally, it suggests that students and instructors who assume a Connected Stance show a depth of learning within the computer-mediated framework. Finally, it provides a unique format for analyzing online discussion boards.

"A Community of Opinion and Debate"

2011 ◽  
pp. 69-90
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Beckmann
Keyword(s):  
Online Discussion ◽  
Postgraduate Education ◽  
Peer Learning ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Educational Technologies ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Professional Experiences ◽  
Assessment Tasks ◽  
Student Reactions

Discussion-based learning is a crucial element in postgraduate professional development, particularly important in facilitating peer learning through the sharing of professional experiences. In courses with distance or blended delivery, educational technologies provide opportunities to encourage such peer learning. But do postgraduate students value asynchronous online discussions in the same way as they value the equivalent face-to-face experiences? Do educational technologies have a role to play in facilitating discussions even when students are meeting face to face? Is it helpful to make an online discussion compulsory? This chapter reports design-based research on student reactions to compulsory assessment tasks that involved a variety of asynchronous online discussion structures—from individual reflective journals to large group forums—in 14 Masters courses in development studies and museum studies at an Australian university. Using the students’ own reflections on their learning experiences, this chapter considers the extent to which the use of technologies can enhance or impede the reflective and peer-responsive learning sought by the inclusion of discussions in the postgraduate education of professionals.

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