Online courses depend on the creation of three types of presence: cognitive, social, and teaching. While we tend to create all three in the classroom without giving it much thought, it’s a lot more difficult to create and maintain them in an online course however, student persistence is tied to them. Also, one of the biggest worries for faculty transitioning from face-2-face courses to online courses is how to replicate the classroom discussions. The answer is online discussions. While they do not take the same format as face-2-face discussions, online, asynchronous discussions can establish all three types of presence and provide students with a level of engagement that is similar to the one in the classroom.

However, transitioning discussions from on the ground to online is not as simple as moving them in text format. Online discussions need a lot of forethought and preparation. The first thing needed is to decide what the purpose of the discussion is and how it relates to the goals and objectives of the course. To engage students and give them a voice, a good online discussion relates to the goals and objectives of the course and makes a meaningful connection to the “real world.” Questions also have to be open ended to allow students to express their thoughts and structure needs to be provided. Therefore, here are some suggestions when creating online discussions that allow students to use their voice:

• Establishing your expectations for students will allow them to make meaningful contributions.
• Splitting a large class into smaller discussion groups allows students to answer the question without fearing that someone else has already said what they want to say.
• Being involved in the first few discussions allows the instructor to model the expected behavior however, as the semester progresses, less instructor presence in the discussions is advisable. If the instructor over participates, students end up expecting that the instructor will answer all questions. It may also create anxiety that their answers do not fit what the instructor wants and will be reluctant to respond prior to the instructor.
• Having students facilitate the discussion can help them find their voice. Having one student start the discussion, another ask questions, maybe one providing counter arguments, allows students to develop their own approaches to the discussion without faculty interference.
• Providing students with meaningful, personalized feedback is important. While it is impossible to provide feedback to every single post, just as we don’t provide feedback to every single conversation in the classroom, providing meaningful, growth oriented feedback, especially during the first discussions not only establishes the ground rules but allows students to develop their online discussion style and contribute meaningfully.
• Using a rubric is something that a lot of instructors rely on to provide structure and help students determine the expectations. I’m not a big fan of rubrics because I feel they tend to box students in and they end up only trying to make sure their answers fit the rubric however, establishing good ground rules and expectations for the discussions is important, regardless of the use of rubrics.

When done right, online discussions have a lot potential. They allow students who may be too shy or need more processing time to be able to answer questions they may not be able to in a live class. They can help establish all three types of presence, and engage students in the course, helping them persist and be successful. They can make meaningful connections to the real life subject matter of the course and prepare students for their future lives.

What other hints do you have for successful online discussions? How can we stimulate student participation and engagement and make the discussions meaningful?