This document discusses various collaboration tools that can be used in online courses, including wikis, blogs, journals, and discussion boards. It provides examples of how each tool can be used, such as using a wiki for a group research project or using journals for student self-reflection. The document also discusses best practices for using the tools together in combinations and for assessing student work in the collaboration tools, such as using rubrics and focusing feedback on content rather than grammar.

1. Beyond Discussion Boards:
Journals, Blogs, & Wikis, Oh My!
Carie Whitehead
Instructional Developer II, eLearning @ CPCC
carie.whitehead@cpcc.edu

2. Learning Outcomes
Participants will be able to:
• Differentiate between the various
collaboration tools in Blackboard or Moodle
• Contrast collaboration tools and select the
optimal tool to use to meet a learning
outcome
• Identify best practices for using discussion
boards / forums in on-line, hybrid, and
traditional courses

3. WHY USE STUDENT
COLLABORATION TOOLS?

4. Student Collaboration: Why?
Considerable research indicates that when students collaborate
with one another they...
• Engage in more discussion, problem solving, and critical
thinking
• Learn the subject matter more completely
• Have a more positive classroom experience
• Develop higher levels of interest in the subject matter being
studied
• Retain information longer than students working individually
• Become more competent and confident public speakers
https://www.wpi.edu/Academics/ATC/Collaboratory/Idea/collaboration.html

5. Student Collaboration: Why? (cont.)
According to Jan Engle (coordinator of instruction development
at Governors State University), collaborative active learning:
• Develops higher-level thinking skills since students think
through the topics more thoroughly
• Encourages exploration of alternative perspectives and
solutions
• Stimulates critical thinking and helps students clarify ideas
through discussion and debate
• Generates solutions that are typically better than what one
student can develop working individually – particularly if the
project is complex
From: http://www.cincinnatistate.edu/online/faculty-
resources/Student%20Collaboration%20in%20the%20Online%20Classroom.pdf

6. Student Collaboration: Why? (cont.)
Collaborative Active Learning also helps develop
the following ancillary skills:
a. Teamwork skills
b. Negotiation skills
c. Feedback skills
d. Communication skills
e. Project management skills
f. Interpersonal skills; skills in dealing with diversity
From: http://www.cincinnatistate.edu/online/faculty-
resources/Student%20Collaboration%20in%20the%20Online%20
Classroom.pdf

7. Available Asynchronous Tools
Blackboard
• Wiki: collaborative collections of
information that use interlinked
pages to present and organize the
data
• Blog: a personal on-line journal that
is frequently updated and has some
kind of commenting system
• Journal: offers students the
opportunity to reflect on course
content and communicate privately
with the instructor
• Discussion Board: Allows participants
to have asynchronous discussions
http://help-archives.blackboard.com/Blackboard-
Learn/9.1/SP09/EN-US/NAHE/Instructor/index.htm
Moodle
• Wiki: a collection of web pages that
anyone can add to or edit
• Workshop: enables peer assessment,
2 grades instructor and peer
• Assignment: enable teachers to
grade and give comments on
uploaded files and assignments
created on and off line, used in place
of journal
• Journal: was available in version 1.9
and earlier and is available in newer
versions as a plug-in if your system
admin chooses to implement
• Forum: Allows participants to have
asynchronous discussions
http://docs.moodle.org/23/en/Activities

8. Common Uses
Wiki Blog Journal Discussion Board
A collaborative
space where all
students can
view, contribute
and edit
content.
A shared online
diary use to
interpret,
showcase and
present
information.
Can easily
incorporate rich
media.
Personal writing
space for self-
reflection and
private
communication
with the
instructor.
Online discussions that are
organized hierarchically
with forums, threads and
replies.
Students can express their
ideas, gathering feedback
and help with refining their
opinions and plans.
Comparisons on this and following pages based on chart found at:
http://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/www.its.ndsu.edu/instruct/blackboard/BlogsWikisJournalsTrainingDoc.pdf
with additional information from: https://help.blackboard.com/
How do you use them?

9. Potential Uses
Wiki Blog Journal Discussion Board
• Class summaries &
outlines
• Grant writing
• Creative writing
• Group research
projects
• Student-filled study
guide for test:
Instructor provides
the outline &
students
collaboratively fill it in
• Course glossary
• Lab experiments
• Resources repository:
Ask students to post
links to pictures,
articles, and media
files that relate to the
lesson and explain
why they were
chosen
• “What we did / will
do in class” saves
instructor having to
answer individual
inquiries
• Online discussions
about related topics
• Hand in evidence of
class participation
• “Muddiest Points” of
what was covered in
class
• Interpret a case study
• Analyze a topic,
adding information
over several weeks or
the entire term
• Deliver arguments
and supporting
evidence
• Reflect on personal
growth throughout
semester
• Record observations
• Record things learned
on field trip
• Express oneself
• Document clinical
experiences
• Set goals
• Question content /
Identify areas for help
• Submit prewriting for
a graded assignment
for guidance and
feedback.
• With moderation
turned on, it can be
used to post a
response to a
question(s) and then
discuss after
everyone has had a
chance to post
• Post ideas for
projects and papers,
and ask classmates to
weigh in
• Share initial thoughts
about a topic before
it is discussed in-
depth in individual
blogs
• Brainstorm ideas
• Express informed
opinions

10. Tools in Combination
Interactive tools provide the opportunity for you to build rich assignments and offer another means for evaluating
students. With these essential tools, you can provide students with constructive comments, guidance, and assessment.
You can also use the tools in combination to meet your goals.
Discussions + Wikis
On the discussion board, students post their ideas for a course wiki assignment. As students present their ideas and
posts develop, they narrow the topic and divide the work before they transition to the wiki. In the course wiki, students
provide text, images, and rich media to support the course content and the topic they chose in the discussion board.
Journals + Blogs
Assign a graded blog requiring students to fully explore a topic, adding entries as the term progresses. However, the
topic planning begins in the journals tool where you offer guidance and support. Help students clarify the main points
and ask for writing samples before they post their ideas for the entire class to read and comment on.
Discussions + Blogs
Ask students to post an internet source on the discussion board that expands on the most recent lecture. Next, in their
blogs, students can select a source and synthesize that information with the course material, extending their
understanding beyond the classroom. Ask all students to provide comments for at least two classmates’ entries that
include potential test questions.
From
https://help.blackboard.com/en-us/Learn/9.1_SP_14/Instructor/080_Collaboration/000_Best_Practice_Interactive_Tools_in_Action

11. Tool Setting Notes
Wiki Blog Journal Discussion Board
• When a student is
updating a wiki page,
the rest of the students
are locked out of it until
it is released.
• This is the only Bb tool
that allows multiple
students to collaborate
within the same text
entry area. The other
two tools store student
entries separately under
the students’ names, but
the wiki can be
organized by research
topic, work group, etc.
Important Setting:
Individual to all students =
Entries and grades are
separate to each student. To
view entry, you click on the
student’s name.
Course = All student entries
are listed together when
entering the blog, and all
students get that same
grade.
• Entries can be saved as
drafts and posted later.
• A green “!” designates
ungraded entries.
• Blogs are less structured
than the Discussion
Board, and they’re
chronological. The
format is more open and
conversational in style.
• If you set Permit course
users to view journal,
the journal will not be
private, making it more
like a blog with
commenting turned off.
• Muddiest / Clearest
Point: Use last 5 minutes
of class for summarizing
and reflecting in the blog
about the day’s content.
• Entries are listed by
student name, and new
entries that have not
been viewed by the
instructor have a
thumbtack icon by
them.
• Show Empty Journals –
List of students with no
entries.
• Discussion boards are
easily collapsed,
expanded and searched.
• Users can Subscribe to a
forum or thread and
receive an email update
every time someone
adds to it.
• Printing is managed with
a single click.
• Students can rate posts.
• Can be copied, like in the
case of separate
instances for groups.
• Feedback from students
favors the other 3 tools
over discussion boards,
possibly because of the
“look/feel”.

12. Assessing Collaborative Assignments
Commenting
• Focus on the content and ideas
• Write in complete sentences and
include details
• Always provide positive comments
• Avoid overwhelming a student with
too many comments
• Focus on the big idea
• Help students learn from their
writing
• Whenever possible, provide
feedback to the class as a whole
https://help.blackboard.com/en-
us/Learn/9.1_SP_14/Instructor/080_Collaboration/001_Best_Pract
ice_Commenting_on_Reflective_Writing
Grading
• To Grade or Not to Grade?
• Review your intended outcomes for using
collaborative tools and decide if grading is
appropriate
• If you decide to assign grades, place the
evaluation’s emphasis on the content
• Use rubrics when appropriate
• Assessment and evaluation might include any
of the following criteria. In the entry, the
student:
– Provided a descriptive record of his or her study.
– Included personal observations and questions about
course material
– Identified areas to review
– Evaluated his or her study by referencing his or her
learning process
– Used reasoning and collected evidence
– Planned improvement or set goals based on reflection
https://help.blackboard.com/en-
us/Learn/9.1_SP_14/Instructor/080_Collaboration/003_Best_Prac
tice_Grading_Reflective_Writing