This document provides guidance on structuring online discussion boards to maximize participation and ensure learning objectives are met. It recommends identifying clear learning objectives and giving students specific tasks like posting unique initial responses and replying to classmates' posts in particular ways. For example, having students find real-world examples of a topic and analyze what category it fits in. It also suggests using multiple prompts, smaller groups, and calibrated deadlines to guide meaningful dialogue. The goal is engaging students in applying concepts, not just replying sequentially, through structured discussions aligned to intended learning outcomes.

1. Discussion Boards: Creating Meaningful Dialog
Dr. Maria Andersen, CEO, Coursetune
Adjunct Faculty, Westminster College
@busynessgirl, maria@coursetune.com

3. What happens
when a family
or a group of
friends has a
discussion over
dinner?

4. What happens in
the typical
classroom when
an instructor
“holds a
discussion”
with 30
students?

5. Warning: These maps will haunt you.

10. What happens
in a discussion taking place
in a virtual community?

11. 1-9-90 Rule
1% creators
9% commenters/sharers
90% lurkers
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1%25_rule_(Internet_culture)

12. Okay, but what
does that
mean to your
online
discussion
boards?
Think about these ratios in
a class of 30 students and
one teacher... without
interference.

13. In a class of 30
students and one
teacher... without
interference.
• The instructor is the 1
creator
• 3 students will naturally
comment
• 27 students are lurkers

14. Structured
Discussions
You need to provide a guide or
structure for who does what in the
discussion for ..
a) All students to participate
b) To make sure the learning
objectives are met

15. This does not mean
• Busywork assignments
• Conga line replies
• Boring discussions

16. Let’s get to work
• Identify Learning Objectives
• Initial Posts
• Subject Lines
• Structured Replies
• Grading
• Multiple Prompt Discussions
• Small Group Discussions

17. Where do you want the
students to land?
• The purpose of a discussion is not to
take attendance or force
collaboration.
• The purpose of a discussion is to
engage with words and the ideas of
peers to demonstrate learning.
(the learning objectives)

18. Learning Objectives
Identify the different
types of CSR
(Corporate Social
Responsibility)
initiatives.
Illustrate CSR
initiatives with
examples from the
real world.

19. Initial Posts
Whenever possible,
choose discussion
topics that will force
every initial post to be
unique.

20. For example
Find an example of a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)
initiative from one of the following categories:
• Corporate Philanthropy
• Cause-Related Marketing
• Sponsorship
• Sustainability
• Greenwashing
• Social Entrepreneurship
• Social Marketing
Hint: Most companies participate in some kind of CSR, so just
pick a company near and dear to you, and then look for an
example.
In your post, describe the general gist of the initiative without
telling us what category the initiative is from. Include links to
videos, articles, and websites about the initiative (at least
three different sources). NO REPEATS!

21. What’s wrong with this initial post?

22. Make writing meaningful subject lines part of the assignment.
Your subject line should include the name of the company and a short description of the CSR.
Example: Mercy Hospital and Run for Kids

23. Replies
To avoid “conga line
replies” and prescribed
response lengths, assign
specific tasks for each
reply.

24. Structured Replies
After reading the initial posts, make at least
these two replies:
Reply 1:
Identify the category of CSR initiative you think
the example represents, and why.
OR
Disagree with someone else's response, state
what you think the initiative is and why.
Reply 2:
Pick a different initial post and explain how to
tweak the initiative to turn it into a different
kind of CSR initiative. Make sure to identify the
new CSR initiative type.

25. Where did the students
demonstrate the learning
objectives?
Initial Post:
• Illustrate CSR initiatives with examples from
the real world.
Reply 1:
• Identify the different types of CSR
(Corporate Social Responsibility) initiatives.
Reply 2:
• Illustrate CSR initiatives with examples from
the real world.
• Identify the different types of CSR
(Corporate Social Responsibility) initiatives.

26. Grading
75% on demonstrating the
Learning Objectives
25% on writing, timeliness,
following directions

27. Example
Grading
Rubric
CSR Scavenger Hunt

28. Learning Objectives
Find new
employment case
law that could
affect a business.
Analyze how
employment laws
affect the employee
and the employer.

29. Choose your own Employment Legal Case
Legislation passed by state and local governments cannot keep up with
nuances of the real world. We don't actually know how to interpret a law
until someone tries, in the court system, to apply a law in a novel way. In
employment law, this "rules" are constantly shifting. For this discussion,
you will find a recent case (something since 2014) of interest involving
employment law.
Summarize the case and result in an initial post paragraphs that covers:
• Name of legal case
• What realm(s) of employment law does this case fall under? (ADA,
discrimination, FMLA, etc)
• Why was this case interesting to you?
• Who was involved?
• What was the situation?
• What did the court decide?
Include links to read or watch about the case after the summary (at least
two different sources).
Initial Post

30. Reply 1: Respond to one student-provided case
with a paragraph explaining:
• What are the implications of this case for
employers?
• What are the implications of this case for
employees?
Reply 2: Respond to a different student-provided
case with a paragraph explaining what kinds of
policies would you want to update or training
would you want to provide at a company as a
result of this case.
Replies

31. Example
Grading
Rubric
Choose Your Own
Employment Law Case

32. Takeaways
If students find their
own examples for the
initial posts, the
structured discussions
will have a lot of
variation.

33. The open Q&A board
with 30 students
• The instructor is the 1
creator
• 3 students will naturally
ask questions (if they
happen to be the ones
with questions)
• 27 students are lurkers

34. The open Q&A board
with 1000 students
• The instructor and TAs are
the creators
• 90 students will naturally
ask questions (if they
happen to be the ones
with questions)
• 900 students are lurkers

35. Modified Q&A
Initial Post: Students must post a question about a concept
they are struggling with (not a specific problem) … I don’t
understand why ...
Subject Line: It helps tremendously if students are
prompted to write a catchy subject line (so that other
students can be drawn in to posts to respond).

36. Modified Q&A
Replies (2 due): Attempt to answer two other questions OR
clarify what a question is about with an example or scenario
that illustrates the question.

37. Learning Objectives
Describe how
some bones are
stabilized by
muscle.
Identify the
different kinds of
fractures.
Describe how
bone tissue
changes with
advanced age.

38. Multiple
prompts give
a little more
control to
guide the
discussion
topics

39. Each student
can select
topics of
personal
interest.

40. Learning Objectives
Solve
stoichiometric
problems.
Write
chemical
formulas.
Write and
balance
equations.

41. Smaller Groups
The more “sameness” to the initial posts or responses, the smaller the group size needs to be.

42. Group Problem Set: Initial Post
Post the same problem set for
each group (equal to number
of students) and randomly
assign each student to a
problem on the problem set.
Initial post: Every student is
responsible for writing up the
solution to their problem (with
all steps) and posting it (with
appropriate subject line).

43. Group Problem Set: Replies
Replies: Every student is
responsible for verifying two
problems and showing how to
check the the problem or solve
it another way.
There cannot be any repeated
check methods on problems.
This forces students to think
about the various ways they
can solve problems and check
them.

44. Tips to make discussions
go smoother
• Make an example student
post yourself
• Be sure to clarify whether
repeats are allowed.
• Give students agency
(structured)

45. Deadlines (ETAs)
• Initial posts must be on time for
full credit
• Calendar event for each deadline
• Announcement on the day of
each deadline
• Follow ups for any students
missing initial posts

46. Grading Logistics
• Context is important so grade
thread by thread
• Use a spreadsheet to track points
• Student names in rows
• Rubric in columns
• Add comments and feedback to
posts as you read them
• Final grade in gradebook

47. Back to the Beginning:
The Learning Objectives
• The purpose of a discussion is to
engage with words and the ideas of
peers to demonstrate learning.
• If you don’t know what learning
objectives you want to have students
engage with in the discussion, you’re
not ready to craft a discussion yet.

48. Questions?
Dr. Maria Andersen, CEO, Coursetune
Adjunct Faculty, Westminster College
@busynessgirl, maria@coursetune.com