http://www.teacherplaces.com/willd/weblog/97.html

Over at the TeacherPlacesBookClubs I recently posted a summary of a research article that folks might be interested in here.  How asynchronous discussions impact learning is a very interesting topic, so I am reposting it here for comment. 

 "Asynchronous Discussions and Assessments in Online Learning"
Journal of Research on Technology in Education 39/3, Spring 2007

I recently read an article in the Journal of Research on Technology in Education entitled "Asynchronous Discussions and Assessments in Online Learning" (JRTE, 39/3, Spring 2007). The authors studied the use of online discussions in five graduate level courses at two midwestern universities. The article makes a number of points that are worth touching on here:

• first, the authors note that prior studies demonstrate that online discussions allow "every learner to respond to questions, participate equally, and offer a potential to support the co-construction of knowledge through meaningful discourse" (p. 311)

• one of the findings indicates "that the structure of an online discussion is essential for successful learning" (p. 315)

• one of the study's participants noted that "discussion questions need to be designed and monitored to grow and adapt to the responses from students so that they don't get repetitive and boring" (p. 315)

• other participants noted "that providing optiosn for students to choose among options of interest can diminish redundancy of the responses in the discussions" (p. 315)

• assigning participants roles within the discussion is another technique seen as effective by participants in the study (p. 316)

• others noted that "it is necessary for a sense of community to be built first" for "learners to feel comfortable sharing their opinions with a group they may not know" (p. 317)

• the authors also emphasize the importance of writing for students in the asynchronous environment to "facilitate reflection, metacognitive processes, and articulation of students' own learning" (p. 323)

These findings were particularly interesting to me, as the authors cite Vonderwell's 2004 study to say that online learning "requires the reconstruction of student and instructor roles, relations, and practices" (p. 309). We are truly reconstructing many things when we participate in a virtual discussion, especially one that is asynchronous.

What I appreciate in the authors' findings is the idea that structure is key to making an online discussion successful. My learning on this topic comes from years as a classroom teacher and, more recently, as product developer on a project designed to help struggling older reader learn to comprehend and discuss what they are reading. Radical redefinitions are in order when we remove the participants from the constraints of time and place that have traditionally defined the teaching and learning situation.

So...in the leader's guide to the site we have recommended 1) a start and stop time for the study of the book in question, 2) a model of "reading and doing" rather than "reading and attending" as would be the common approach to a class or book club, and 3) an active, organizing role for the leader, so that the tasks associated with the group do not become "redundant and boring."

I hope that further contributions to this research collection will help us all discover ways to make networked discussions like these rich and satisfying for the participants.