how to arrange class reading discussion in online course

Ask a different online learner to co-host the online discussion with you each week. Invite them to create a post or question that sparks a conversation. This gives them the opportunity to share experiences and knowledge with their peers. They can also learn about different perspectives or get eLearning feedback that helps them improve.

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How do you guide a discussion in a class?

Jul 17, 2019 · The biggest key to doing well on a discussion board is simply reading the teacher's instructions, says Noam Ebner, who teaches in the online graduate program in negotiation and conflict resolution ...

Should you use online discussion boards in your classroom?

First, identify a group of peers whose opinions you value (by judging the quality of their posts and responses to other classmates) and make sure to respond to at least one of the members of that group each week. Try to respond to every one of your classmates throughout the course.

How many different classroom discussion strategies are there?

Jun 25, 2021 · NowComment is a free platform for document, discussion, and annotation. It allows learners to mark, discuss the texts, and it is often used in grades K-12. Users only need to upload data in any form of formats to make an area for online discussion and leave the rest to NowComment. Text paragraphs will be numbered and logically arranged, as the ...

How to create the perfect discussion post for your online college courses?

Aug 07, 2016 · Here are the 8 top ways to spark meaningful online discussions and keep the flame burning bright in your eLearning course. 1. Have A Conflict Resolution Plan In Place. Anytime you have a group of people gathered in one place, even if it's online, disagreements are bound to happen. It's a fact of life.

How do you organize an online discussion?

How do you start an online class discussion?

How can I improve my discussion in online class?

How do you plan a class discussion?

What makes a good online discussion?

What are the four key points of an online discussion board?

How can I make my discussion more interesting?

How do you engage students in online discussions?

How can I make my discussion board more interesting?

What are the four types of discussion?

How do you start a discussion?

What are discussion techniques?

What is a discussion forum?

Discussion forums are an exciting part of online college degrees. This area is the foundation for two-way communication with your instructors and classmates. The discussion forum is the heart of the online course as it serves as a platform for learning and engaging.

How to maximize responses?

First, identify a group of peers whose opinions you value (by judging the quality of their posts and responses to other classmates) and make sure to respond to at least one of the members of that group each week.

How does Christina the Daring English Teacher get students engaged in meaningful classroom conversations?

One way that Christina, The Daring English Teacher, loves to get students engaged in meaningful classroom conversations is through fishbowl discussions. She holds fishbowl discussions every semester to provide students with an opportunity to discuss what they’ve learned during the semester.

What is a socratic seminar?

Socratic Seminar might be one of the most important instructional discussion strategies that an ELA teacher can learn and implement in her classroom. The driving force of a socratic seminar? INQUIRY.

What is Padlet for teachers?

Padlet is another tech platform teachers can use to hold silent discussions. Students can synchronously or asynchronously post original ideas in response to discussion questions in grid, timeline, map, wall, column, and other arrangements.

What is backchannel chat?

Plus, they can build on their peer’s posts to create an ongoing conversation. Finally, Backchannel chat is a convenient, free chat-style tool. While students are having a discussion either in person or online, non-verbal participants can be talking via the backchannel chat.

What is Ashley Bible of Building Book Love?

Whether teaching ELA remotely or in person, Ashley Bible of Building Book Love makes it a point to provide ample opportunity for shy students to thrive. One of her go-to silent discussion strategies is a Color-Coded Conversation using a shared document.

How does Google Forms work?

How it works: Primarily, she uses Google Forms to organize students into groups; students answer one or two questions based on classroom studies. After you pose a question in the Form, decide how you’d like students to answer . You can choose a multiple choice, short answer, or longer essay option.

What is canvas discussion?

The Canvas Discussions tool is employed to host, organize and moderate an online threaded, written discussion with both posts and replies from each student. Class discussions can be limited to small groups or can be “open for anyone” for the whole course.

What is a padlet in a classroom?

And Padlet is Gravity Wall activity’s digital equivalent. Padlet is a virtual space where students can post their questions, thoughts, and ideas for discussion.

How to use WebEx?

Via WebEx, the lecture slides can be shown on student devices and. In turn, students can communicate in real time with each other, their instructor and presenter by chatting. Here are WebEx’s capabilities: 1 Connect with the user’s chosen device or call in via their tool-installed phone 2 Record discussion audio and video (for later use, the download option is available) 3 Facilitate an on-screen chat among e-students during a session 4 Start instantly or schedule presentations in advance 5 Share the user’s screen, webcam in real-time

What is WebEx for?

WebEx. WebEx is a free tool for video, multi-featured phones, and web conferencing. It’s suitable for students, faculties, and staffs due to its integrated chat function. Much similar to Google Hangouts, Adobe Connect, or Skype, users of WebEx can host and join in audio and video meetings, presentations, and conferences.

Is Turnitin free?

Though Turnitin is not a free app and comes with limited grades (3-12), its uses are well worth the paid rate. In addition to the common function as an efficient online plagiarism detector, Turnitin has other lesser-known tools, especially a built-in discussion platform.

What is scratch tool?

Scratch. A creative, authoring tool like Scratch helps users develop content – those that pass the barriers of conventional page-turners. Moreover, users of Scratch can create their own interactive animation, art, stories, music, etc. then share their works on the website. Maybe you are interested in:

What is a padlet?

Padlet is a virtual space where students can post their questions, thoughts, and ideas for discussion. Just think of Padlet like a large sheet of paper and the students will fill in this virtual paper with images, connections, words, questions, quotes as per the teacher’s requirement. Then, learners will develop further discussion in pairs, groups, ...

Why is online discussion important?

Online discussions keep the feedback flowing. Online learners have the opportunity to interact with their peers and share eLearning experiences, even if they live on different continents. Meaningful online collaborations can also improve knowledge retention and social learning skills.

What are the advantages of online discussions?

In fact, one of the advantages of online discussions, social media groups, and other collaboration tools is their versatility. The possibilities are endless when it comes to their eLearning applications.

How to get online learners involved?

Sometimes the best way to get online learners involved is by giving them a choice. Certain individuals may not want to discuss their opinions or share ideas with the group. And that's okay. Forcing them to interact with their peers will only make them feel uncomfortable and alienated. As such, it's wise to make participation completely voluntary. Invite online learners to join the meaningful online discussion and highlight the benefits. Share the guidelines so that they know what to expect. If online learners are perpetually absent, send them a private message to check in and figure out what's holding them back. They may just need a gentle push to jump into the online discussion.

Why should every blog post focus on a specific topic?

Firstly, it prevents cognitive overwhelm. Secondly, it makes it easy for online learners to respond or leave their eLearning feedback. Going off on tangents or trying to cover too much subject matter will only lead to confusion. Aside from this, you should also moderate ongoing online discussions to ensure that they are on-topic. Get them back on track by asking relevant questions or pointing out the key takeaways. For example, drawing their attention to a surprising stat or fact they may have overlooked.

How to create a posting schedule?

Include all materials, links, and prompts or questions that accompany each talking point. You should also emphasize how each online discussion topic relates to the learning objectives and goals. Share the schedule with your online learners in advance so that they can research the topic on their own. Alternatively, you can keep the schedule to yourself to encourage more spontaneous responses.

How to minimize disagreements?

Anytime you have a group of people gathered in one place, even if it's online, disagreements are bound to happen. It's a fact of life. Fortunately, you can minimize the impact of these disagreements by developing a conflict resolution strategy.

How can online discussions help you?

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.

What is the purpose of discussion?

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.

How to help others clarify their thinking?

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, but do not feel bad about offering a different interpretation.

What are the benefits of online 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.

How to be the first to post?

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.

What is debate in a classroom?

A debate is a formal competition between two teams, usually with three members each, arguing a discussion statement known as “the moot”. Shaw (2012) believes that debates stimulate critical thinking and can be a highly effective way to actively engage students in research in the online classroom. Student-generated debate presentations can become ...

What are leadership roles?

Leadership Roles – Useful when students have had limited exposure to varying forms and need exposure to different ideas. This moot allows students to explore what works in particular situations. Interpretation of Literature – Is an excellent way to tease out multiple interpretations of texts.

Preparing for a discussion

Plan how you will conduct the discussion. Although the ideal discussion is spontaneous and unpredictable, you will want to do some careful planning.

Starting a discussion

Refer to questions you distributed. Start the discussion by asking one of the study questions you assigned or by asking group members which of the questions they found most challenging.

Encouraging student participation

Create an inclusive discussion environment. Group members will be more likely to contribute to a discussion if they feel they are in a safe, comfortable environment. Here are some general strategies for achieving this:

Guiding the discussion

Keep the discussion focused. Have a clear agenda for the discussion and list questions/issues on the board to inform and remind everyone of where the discussion is heading. Brief interim summaries are also helpful as long as they don't interfere with the flow of the discussion.

Evaluating the discussion

Ask students to write a one-minute paper. You can ask students to write about how their thinking changed as a result of the discussion or how the discussion fits into the context of issues previously discussed. Have students hand in their papers and review samples to assess what they have learned.

Suggested reading

Brookfield, S.D. (1999). Discussion as a Way of Teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Inc.

What is an ELA classroom?

The ELA classroom is all about the exchange of ideas and the use of speaking and listening skills to process and further student learning. Yet, depending on the class, it can be like pulling teeth to get a discussion rolling.

What is the premise of a snowball discussion?

This is great student led discussion strategy to use if you have a series of questions that build on each other or if you want students to hear a variety of different opinions while incorporating a bit of movement.

What do students do in a circle?

Students stand in a circle or sit on their desks. Everyone must “say something” new about a text or topic. Each student must briefly summarizing the conversation/comment that came prior to his or her comment before building the conversation, playing devil’s advocate, or continuing with a new idea.

What is P-P-S in writing?

The Gist: P-P-S is a written student led discussion strategy. Students respond to a question or write about a topic for a set amount of time before “passing” the paper to a partner. This partner then writes for another set amount of time. After two rounds of response and writing, the paper is passed a third time. This time, each student has to read the two previous responses and “synthesize” them together.

What to do if you want multiple choice questions without a ton of depth?

If you want easy multiple choice questions without a ton of depth, use a quiz module. If you want true engagement with your material, however, you need to open up your questioning.

Why is online learning so stressful?

A major reason online programs can be stressful for students is a lack of understanding of how an LMS works. Getting used to any new software comes with a learning curve, and when paired with the stress of trying to learn new information and perform well, it can be one step too many for some students.

Why is it important to have a syllabus?

A syllabus can help lay out expectations for your students. It will inform them when they need to pay more attention, what lessons will cover, and how they can best prepare for each session or module. Engagement improves if students know what’s required of them ahead of time.