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| Teaching in Action Structuring Online Discussions
An online discussion is an instructional strategy for accomplishing course objectives. Cantu offers advice on how to structure it before, during, and after so as to ensure that overall time and effort are well invested. In the first excerpt Cantu focuses on the pre-discussion assignment, suggesting that faculty members see it as a key preparatory stage. The second excerpt encourages "thinking like a practitioner" in online conferences rather than merely expressing opinions. The third excerpt outlines several strategies for evaluating whether the desired learning has taken place. Cantu's presentation also emphasizes that the online conference assignment should always be viewed as being in three parts (pre-, during, and post-), rather than as just one of those components.
Tom Cantu is an Instructional Designer in the Center for Instructional Advancement and Technology at Towson University in Baltimore, Maryland. He serves as a consultant to faculty in the design and development of courses using the World Wide Web. A graduate of the Master of Arts program in Instructional Systems Development at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Tom has nine years experience designing and developing instruction in adult and higher education. His experience includes classroom, interactive video, and Web-based course design. His home page is at http://www.towson.edu/~tcantu/. This project is a joint initiative of the Center for the Virtual University and the Center for Teaching and Learning at UMUC. © 1996-2005 University of Maryland University College |
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