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5. Provide Feedback

It is critical, especially early on, that instructors provided quality feedback to

students. During the first two to three weeks of class, instructors should provide

feedback to every student on every initial post. The feedback should offer good praise

that details what the student did right and constructive criticism, with suggestions on

how to improve. Good feedback also prompts participation. If the instructor does not

appear to be present in the discussion, students may feel that participation is not

mandatory.

Discussion Board Rubric

Requirement A(90 100)Superior20 points max

B (80 89)Good18 points max

C (70 79)Average16 points max

D (0 69)Poor14 points max

Punctuality 100%Participation

Completed allrequired postings

Posted todiscussion early

Posted severaltimes throughoutthe discussion

100%Participation

Completed allrequiredpostings

Some postingsposted todiscussion atthe end of theallotted timeperiod

100%Participation

Completed allrequiredpostings

Most of allpostings postedto discussiontoo late forresponse

Less than 100%Participation

Not all requiredpostings werecompleted

Duration Initial post ofapproximately300 words

Follow-up postsanswer directquestionscompletely withat least 5completesentences

Initial post ofapproximately250 words

Follow-up postsanswer directquestionscompletely withat least 5completesentences

Initial post ofapproximately200 words

Follow-up postsanswer directquestions

Incomplete ormissing initialpost

Follow-up postsare missing orfail to answerdirectquestions.

Grammar/Mechanics

1 to 2 grammaror sentencemechanics errors

Errors do notinterfere withthe meaning ofthe post.

Few grammar orsentencemechanicserrors

Errors do notinterfere withthe meaning ofthe post.

Severalgrammar orsentencemechanicserrors

Errors slightlyinterfere withthe meaning ofthe post.

Obviousgrammaticalerrors

Errors renderthe postuncomprehend-able

Connection Post is relevant Clearly

connected todiscussion topic

Includesconnections toreal-lifesituations andexamples

Post is relevant Clearly

connected todiscussion topic

Post issomewhatconnected todiscussion topic

Includes trivialand genericinformation

Post isirrelevant

Not connectedto discussion

topic

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CriticalThinking

Very detailed Includes deep

thought andanalysis

Detailed Evidence that

thought andanalysis haveoccurred

Lacks detail Content is

trivial andgeneric

Posts lackthought andanalysis

Content isshallow

Management Issues

1. Grading

An instructor may find it difficult and time-consuming to grade every post from every

student, especially coming up with a method to grade very different students with

very different responses fairly.

Solution: The best solution is the development of a rubric. A detailed rubric that

adequately outlines discussion expectations will help ensure fairness in grading.

Instructors can choose to grade students by bigger chunks such as by topic, unit, or

entire semester rather on every post to cut down on time spent on grading.

2. Lack of Reflection

Many instructors complain of students posting trivial responses in discussion boards

that include little or no reflection.

Solution: Include a reflection category in the discussion board rubric to clearlycommunicate this expectation to the course participants.

3. Untruthful Critiques

Oftentimes, instructors will include peer assessment and evaluation in discussion

board topics. Students are asked to critique each other. Unfortunately, when this

occurs, students typically arent honest and only post about the good things their peer

has done or produced.

Solution: Provide course participants with an example and nonexample of what is

desired of critique posts. Instructors can also draft another, separate rubric for this

specific type of post.

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4. Maintaining Safe Competitive Balance

Instructors and students alike frequently complain of students racing to be the first to

post. The race typically results in poor, superficial posting which stunts learning.

Solution: Just as instructors set limits for late posting, limits can also be set for

early, speedy posting. The grading rubric should explicitly state the expectation for

initial posting. Requiring additional research and references to course and outside

reading can slow down the speed posters.

5. Managing Posts from Diverse countries and time zones

It can be hard for instructors to schedule a good time to read and respond to

discussion posts when there are students from diverse countries and time zones in the

course. Instructors should not allow a significant amount of time go by before replyingto a student. However, being in two different time zones can pose a dilemma.

Solution: Check discussion board post daily and several times each day. It is also a

good idea to have discussion posts be directly delivered to through some type of

digital media, such as email or text messaging. This will allow instructors to respond

to the student quickly without necessarily logging into their chosen learning

management system.

6. Unequal Participation

Similar to face-to-face instruction, online learning environments must face the threat

of unequal participation as well. No two students are alike. This creates discrepancies

in the amount of participation shown by the students.

Solution: Establish discussion groups periodically throughout the course. These

groups should be relatively small. The instructor should assign roles to the

participants of the group and set-up grading in such a way that each student carries

their weight.

7. Procrastination

The age-old dilemma of the student that puts assignments off to the last minute.

However, this type of behavior in a discussion board can halt conversation and thus

adversely affect learning.

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Solution: Set deadlines for initial posts and replies before the specific discussion

topic expires. The varying due dates keep the conversation moving forward and

prevent last minute posting.

8. Cyberbullying

There are times when emotions flare during discussion and inappropriate content is

posted.

Solution: Be proactive as possible. Use the beginning of course to teach and explain

netiquette. What does netiquette look like, smell like, taste like, sound like, feel

like? Explain to students what is intolerable and unacceptable. Provide them with the

consequences as well. Over suggestions before necessary of what do when you

become angry, rather than posting your feeling in the discussion forum.