Module Three: Video Presentation Storyboard

What are discussion forums?
The use of discussion forums in an online classroom
The use of discussion forums in traditional classrooms vs The use of discussion forums in online classrooms	Screen shots of student postings to online discussion forums (would not copy to blog)
What is the relevance of discussion forums in distance education?
Best practices in a discussion forum: ·      Expectations ·      Grading	Research Finding Implications for Practice Learning Effectiveness: Interaction with Content Online discussion/learning may be more supportive of experimentation, divergent thinking, exploration of multiple perspectives, complex understanding & reflection than F2F discussion. (Parker and Gemino, 2001; Picciano, 2002) Encourage experimentation, divergent thinking, multiple perspectives, complex understanding & reflection in online discussion through provocative, open-ended questions, modeling & support & encouragement for diverse points of view. Develop grading rubrics for discussion participation that reward desired cognitive behaviors. Develop initial course activities to encourage the development of swift trust. Online discussion/learning may be less supportive of convergent thinking, instructor directed inquiry & scientific thinking than F2F discussion. (Parker and Gemino, 2001; Picciano, 2002) Use other course activities to support these such as written assignments, one-on-one tutorials, small group collaboration & self-testing. Develop grading rubrics for discussion participation that reward desired cognitive behaviors. Reference Swan, K. (2004). Relationships between interactions and learning in online environments. The Sloan Consortium.
Students working online in discussion forums	Classroom video clips
Teachers working online in discussion forums	Classroom video clips
Sources for discussion forums

Module Three: Assessing Collaborative Efforts

Participation in a collaborative learning community should be assessed by the frequency of postings that are reflective to the learning goals of the course. The varying levels of skill and knowledge that students bring to courses should not affect the instructor’s “fair and equitable assessment” of learning. The instructor should use a fair grading system that has equivalent expectations from each learner (Palloff & Pratt, 2005). Each learner should be expected to contribute a minimum number of postings that reflect assignments and/or discussions.

If a student does not want to network or collaborate in a learning community for an online course, the other members of the learning community should try to encourage participation as much as they can and should also make the instructor aware of their lack of cooperation. The instructor could use a scenario that reflects real-world application to collaborative learning (Jordan, 2012). The instructor should make a decision to either allow the member to work on the assignment individually or penalize the member for failing to collaborate in the learning community. The instructor should also remind the student that is their responsibility to meet the course expectations that are outlined in the course syllabus. The impact could be negative on his or her assessment plan because the member refused to collaborate with others and will not have the same learning experience as the others in the course. This also negatively impacts the assessment plan because the student could not be assessed by his or her peers (Laureate Education, Inc., 2008).

Reference

Jordan,T. (2012). Module Three Post. Retrieved from http://tmjordan.blogspot.com/2012_10_01_archive.html.

Laureate Education, Inc. (2008). Principles of Distance Education. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2005). Collaborating online: Learning together in community. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.