As more teaching moves into the online space, students will need to not only communicate with each other but learn collaboratively. Discussion forums are the most widely used tool for building a conversation around curriculum topics. In order to develop an ability to analyse and reflect, students need practice. This workshop is designed to help you structure and facilitate online discussions which promote critical thinking, and understand the students’ experience of learning in this context.

1. USING DISCUSSION FORUMS TO
ENGAGE STUDENTS IN CRITICAL
THINKING
Jonathan Brown
(Teacher FNDS013, Sydney Institute of Business & Technology)

2. Agenda
Overview of online learning environment
Socratic questioning
Write a question for your course

3. Learning Outcomes
Will be able to
 Understand a little of the pedagogy behind discussion forums
 Identify the types interactions that occur
 Understand the 4-question technique
 Write a question for your course

4. Why this picture, slogan?

5. Teacher Expectations

6. Student Expectations
Over to you.
List two expectations that you feel students in your
course may have about the use of discussion forums.
Write them in the chat space.

7. Benefits of Asynchronous Learning
Critical difference is removal of time constraints
Positive pedagogical effects:
 no natural limit to the length and frequency of each individual’s
contributions.
 Students can take their time to reflect on what has been said,
so can adapt their contribution.
 Students inhibited in a live tutorial are released from their inhibitions and
become stronger contributors.
 The time it takes to read a message is far less than the time it takes to
listen to someone saying it .

8. Student-Student Interaction
Student  Student, moderated by teacher
Collaborative reasoning method (Laurillard p150)
 Teacher asks open-ended questions, prompts new student
input using Socratic questioning
 Students
 Dialogue with each other
 Share their position on a ‘big’ question
 Evaluate each others’ reasoning

10. Socrates and his questions

11. Socratic thinking is..
‘..a disciplined enquiry method that requires
deep thinking, thought exploration and
questioning our assumptions.
Instead of just absorbing ideas that are being
offered, learners must examine the logic and
reason behind those ideas.’
(Pappas, C)

12. Effective Questions
Answer the question ‘What do I want the learners to know/be
able to do?’
Typical forum responses are maximum of
200 words, or more than a minute’s worth of speech.
(Forum questions should anticipate this level of response.)
(Harasim, 1987, cited in Laurillard p147)
 Often questions have multiple parts. If there are a number of Qs,
they should move from the general to the specific.
 Students can take over some of the roles of questioner, summarizer,
clarifier.

13. Socratic Questioning
Questions of Clarification
• What is your main point?
• Can you give me an example?
• What is the source of that idea or information?
• Can you summarise what we discussed?
Questions that Probe Assumptions
• What are you assuming?
• How would you support your assumptions?
Questions that Probe Reasons and Evidence
• What did you observe in the demonstration / experiment?
• What evidence supports your hypothesis?
Questions that Probe Implications and Consequences
• What effect would that have?
• What could you generalise from this observation?
• What does that remind you of?
• What do you predict will happen next?

14. 4-Question Technique
1. ‘Identify one important concept, research finding, theory, or
idea that you learned while completing this activity.’ (analyzing)
2. ‘Why do you believe that this concept, research finding,
theory, or idea is important?’ (reflecting)
3. ‘Apply what you’ve learned from this activity to some
aspect of your life.’ (relating)
4. ‘ What question(s) has the activity raised for you? What are
you still wondering about?’ (questioning)

16. 1st Example for review
Which of the 4 types of Socratic questions are used in this activity?
1.What is e-business?
2.What are the pros and cons of e-business?
3.Do you know a very un/successful e-business? Share an example.
4.Would you like it to be a part of your future business/career?
Why/Why not?
Analyzing Reflecting Relating Questioning
Write your thoughts on the following 3 points in the chat space:
 number of questions
 content of questions
 order of questions

17. 1st example for review
1.What is e-business?
Analysing: Identifying something you have learned.
2.What are the pros and cons of e-business?
Analyzing: Identifying something you have learned
3.Do you know a very un/successful e-business? Share an example
Relating: Associate the content of the course with prior knowledge/
Experience.
4.Would you like it to be a part of your future business/career?
Why/Why not?
Questioning: Questioning the utility of what has been learnt.
Relating: Apply what you have learnt to some aspect of your life.

18. 2nd example: 4-part question with
stimulus picture.
The following question series was used in a marketing course for
international students.
Purpose: to promote learner awareness of media bias
using stereotypes.
Read each of the 4 parts.
 Look at the order of questions. In your opinion, how do they flow, from
one to the next?
 Do any questions need improvement? Why?

19. 4-Part Question Example

20. 4-Part Question Example
This week we looked at stereotyping in advertising.
Instructions: Look at the advertisement above and discuss
the stereotypes in this advertisement.
Think critically about what this advertisement is suggesting.
To do this, look at the setting, the clothes, the positioning of
the two people, what the advertisement is about?
1st Q: Does this say something about gender stereotypes?
2nd Q: Discuss the stereotypes in this advertisement.
3rd Q: How has reality been constructed?
4th Q: How does the media construct societal norms?
Final instruction: Relate your answers to the readings for this week.

21. Over to you..
Think about a subject in the course you currently teach.
Have a go at writing two types of questions for a discussion in
your course.
Think about the kind of response you would like to get.
In the chat box, write the subject, eg. Counselling
Then write your two questions to share with other participants.
Tag your questions with one of the following labels:
analyzing reflecting relating questioning

22. Sample Collaborative Activities
Week-long class discussion moderated by a strong student.
Choose a strong/ keen student
Ask class to decide on a specific question they would like to
discuss from the current topic.
Place a clear time limit on the forum.
Forum moderator roles:
• Create a friendly environment
• Encourage participation by reminding students of course expectations
• Encourage sharing of ideas
• Prompt participants to pursue their ideas
• Summarise the shared ideas at the end of the week

23. Sample Collaborative Activities
Discussion: Students Choose, then TAG Their
Role
Students can choose the type of intervention:
• Question- about a definition, function or
reason
• Explanation- of a concept, a function, a
system, or a reason
• Conjecture- about an assumption or a
prediction
• Comment- as a justification or a commentary
• Critique- as a complement, a correction, and
alternative
Students then have to ‘tag’ their post with one
of the above labels, at the end. (Laurillard 2012)

24. Sample Collaborative Activities
Online Class Debate (time: minimum 1 week)
• Assign 1st, 2nd, 3rd ‘speakers’ for both sides.
• One person per day posts their argument, and if not the
• 1st speaker, their response.
• Debate goes over 6 days.
• Other students in the class vote on the winner in a post,
giving their reasons.

25. References
Del Medico C, Building Engagement and Reflection in Forums, Navitas Learning 2014
Laurillard D, 2012, Teaching as a Design Science, Routledge, New York
Pappas C, Socratic Questions in E-Learning: ‘What eLearing professionals should know.’
https://elearningindustry.com/socratic-questions-in-elearning-what-elearning-professionals
-should-know (viewed July, 2016)
Salmon G, 2011, E Moderating (Third Edition), Routledge, New York
Salmon G, 2013, E-tivities The Key to Active Online Learning, Routledge, New York

26. Contact me.
jbro@learning.sibt.nsw.edu.au