Graded Discussions
Discussions in Canvas can be made available in three ways:
- As graded assignments for everyone or selected groups
- As open discussion for student groups
- As a course-wide open discussion
We strongly encourage the third kind in all courses, and it is part of the template as we will discuss later.
But the first, the Graded Discussion, is most relevant here, when considering Assignments in your course.
Setting Up a Graded Discussion
The Canvas Guide: "How do I assign a graded discussion to everyone in a course? Links to an external site." covers the mechanics of creating such a discussion. Of greater import is how to make that discussion as productive and engaging as possible.
Toward Good Discussions
One common complaint about discussion forums is that they aren't good substitutes for in-class discussion. That is sometimes true, but it's possible to have online discussions that are as good as, or even better, than face-to-face discussions. In the online environment, you can ask better questions that promote critical thinking and the format gives students time to think through their ideas and responses to each other. A good discussion can bring students together, document the collaborative experience, and make visible what everyone is thinking. The result of forums can show how students’ experiences and thoughts intersect, coming together to form new knowledge.
The Important of Good Prompts
The most important element to consider when designing discussion forums that promote good student interaction is your question/prompt. The following prompt is of a kind often found in online courses, but inevitably results in poor discussion and interaction between students, not to mention repetitive, mundane information for you:
Summarize this week's reading and post it to the discussion board.
Why does such a prompt fail? Because all students will be posting virtually the same information. There's nothing to actually have a conversation about! This kind of "discussion" prompt might as well be an individual assignment submitted directly to you.
So, how do you build a good discussion prompt?
Discussion Prompt Levels and Objectives
Discussion prompts must be constructed with the following considerations:
Objective: What is the purpose of the discussion? What are students contributing individually? What do they need to share with others in the class?
Difficulty level: At what level should the discussion be? Do they simply read something and recall the information? Are they thinking deeper with analysis and creating new ideas from what they know?
Prior knowledge: What do they know coming into the discussion? Are they ready for the difficulty level you intend?
Interaction sequence: How long should the discussion flow? Should it be a simple post-reply interaction? Should the interaction be deeper into uncovering new or common thinking among the class? Will it take them a few minutes or a few days?
As you create the discussion prompts, keep in mind Bloom's taxonomy, which we discussed in more detail in the Quality Learning Objectives section of the course. This simplified version might be helpful:
Structure of a Discussion Forum
For a discussion to be successful, your students must know what is expected of them. To that end, provide detailed instructions within each forum, explaining how students should post and interact with peers. Those instructions should include:
- What to post
- How to post
- Deadline (Date and Time)
- Length (e.g. 350 words, 1-2 paragraphs)
The structure of your discussion, and thus your instructions, will often involve two parts: the initial post and followups/comments.
For example:
Initial Post
Create your post, per the prompt/questions above. Discuss your ideas in a thoughtful but brief and focused paragraph. Try to create as an original post as possible, which means read your classmates' posts before you post. Post your response by Tuesday, 11:59PM
Paired with instructions on how students should collaborate with their classmates, including:
- Number of Responses
- Deadline (Date and Time)
- Length (e.g. 70 words, 1-2 paragraphs)
- Extensions to other discussion forum
Here are two examples.
Reply Post/Add Something to Your Classmate's Idea
Reply to two of your classmates' posts by Thursday, 11:59 PM. Each reply should be a brief but thoughtful paragraph. You cannot just say "I agree." "Interesting post." "Good idea." Support your statements with examples, experiences, or references. Make sure you address the subject of your classmates' thread.
Consolidate common ideas
As a class / group, consolidate the common ideas that were generated. Reflect on how similar or different your response was to the rest of the class. Post these ideas in the second discussion forum by Thursday, 11:59 PM.
Prompting Student Responses
For some students, this may be their first online course. They may not know how to articulate their ideas and respond to others. In addition, some students may need help with their social skills when interacting online. The following link provides sentence starters which will help everyone to promote an engaging discussion: Prompting Student Responses Download Prompting Student Responses
Grading Discussions
Grading rubrics or checklists should be provided with each forum. These detailed scoring guides provide students with additional direction as they discuss topics. Consider adding the following components to your rubric or checklist.
Critical Analysis:
- Discussion posts should display an excellent understanding of the assigned readings/content with clear integration of new information with old beliefs or understandings of topics.
- Posts should clearly address provided questions.
- Posts should provide appropriately cited evidence from the readings to support important points.
Interaction:
- Reply posts should be posted throughout the length of the discussion and not all at the beginning or end.
- Reply posts should further discussion by asking thought-provoking questions, and/or presenting affirmative or oppositional statements with evidence or real-world experience to support the claim.
- Questions from the instructor or peers are answered throughout the length of the discussion.
Quality of Writing:
- Posts should be free of grammatical errors and carefully proofread.
- All posts should begin with a greeting and close with poster’s name.