Facilitating any course discussion can be challenging, but in this post, we will address the specific barriers to facilitating effective asynchronous discussions. In an asynchronous discussion, students participate in the discussion within a specified time frame but contribute on their own schedule. For example, you could open the discussion for a week, but students can post and respond to their peers at times that are convenient for them.

Discussions are an important component of many undergraduate and graduate-level courses. They promote student-student and teacher-student interaction, which are significant contributors to student learning and satisfaction. Asynchronous discussions have their own unique benefits. Without time and space constraints, students can participate in discussions in a way that fits into their schedules. This provides them with the opportunity to carefully craft their own post and fully process their peers’ posts before responding. On the other hand, students may be less motivated to participate in asynchronous discussions due to the lack of immediate feedback, leading to surface-level, inauthentic conversations. Additionally, in a threaded discussion format, students may become overwhelmed, and the conversation can lack focus. Lastly, it can be challenging for instructors to find a balance between engaging in the conversation and dominating it.

Challenge 1: Motivation

You can motivate student participation by making personal connections, leveraging student interests, and explaining your teaching methods.

• Make connections: In your discussion prompt, ask students to connect the content to their lived experiences, whether academic, work-related, or personal.
• Leverage student interests: To leverage student interests, offer choices. For example, provide three discussion questions or prompts and ask students to respond to one. This can be completed in a whole-class discussion or small-group discussions based on a choice of topic. Another option is planning student-facilitated discussions, in which students sign up to facilitate a discussion based on a topic and provide the discussion prompt. One student could facilitate the discussion for the whole class, or a few students could facilitate small-group discussions.
• Explain your methods: In the syllabus, let students know the importance of course discussions and what you hope they gain from them. There are a variety of possible purposes for discussions, including comparing or debating ideas, group processing, synthesizing information, applying concepts, or building community. Consider letting students know how each discussion relates to the overall structure of the course. For example, one discussion may help prepare students for a future project or assessment.

Challenge 2: Surface-Level or Inauthentic Discussions

Often in an asynchronous discussion, students will each post their own ideas, without attempting to promote further interactions or dialogue with their peers. Even when students respond to each other’s posts, the responses may tend to feel inauthentic or bring the conversation to an end. To promote more meaningful conversations, explicitly teach students how to effectively engage with each other asynchronously. You can direct your students to the “Asynchronous Discussions (Discussion Board 101)” in our Online Student Orientation, which includes detailed information on composing asynchronous discussion posts and example posts.  

You can also set clear expectations for posts and responses using a discussion rubric. The following examples provide a variety of ways to structure a discussion rubric:

• Sample Discussion Board Rubric Purdue University. This rubric includes examples of “non-substantive” messages, “moderate” messages, and “significant” messages. This may be particularly helpful in helping students compose meaningful responses.
• Sample Rubrics for Discussion Forums UW-Madison. Four rubrics in a variety of styles and formats.
• Rubrics for Assessment NIU Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning. This page provides an overview of rubric design; in case you would like to create your own rubric or modify one of the examples shared here.

Challenge 3: Organization of Discussion Threads

Threaded discussions can become overwhelming when there are too many participants. Using small-group discussions is one way to improve the organization of a threaded discussion. When structuring small-group discussions consider:

Choosing groups: There are a variety of ways to organize students into groups: random assignment, assigned groups, or student choice groups. Assigned groups can be based on shared experiences of students, such as academic or career goals. Student choice groups give students the opportunity to choose their own group based on their interest in specific topics.

Changing groups: Students can participate in the same group for a few weeks or the entire semester. Alternatively, you could rotate groups on a weekly basis. The timing will depend on your students and content. If your students would benefit from varying perspectives, rotating groups more often would be appropriate. However, if your groups are based on shared experiences, students may benefit from working closely together throughout the term.

Challenge 4: Balance Instructor Input

The perfect balance of post-engagement may vary for each instructor, but here are some guidelines I recommend:

• Read discussion posts daily. If community agreements are violated, you will need to intervene quickly. Visit these additional resources for how to handle difficult moments during discussions:
  • Addressing microaggressions in the classroom
  • Handle Difficult Moments with Respect & Sensitivity
• Respond to a portion of students’ posts to show you are engaged but avoid responding to every post in the thread and turning the discussion into a question-and-answer forum. If you would like to provide feedback to each student, you can do so by grading their post and leaving a comment only they can see.
• When responding to your students’ posts, ask follow-up questions that require reflection.
• Instead of directly answering questions, give students ideas to reflect on and encouragement to solve the problem themselves.
• Your participation within the thread should be used to focus and guide the conversation by re-directing the conversation, clarifying misconceptions, or encouraging participation from specific students.
• Once a discussion has run its course, add a comment to add closure. This comment can summarize the conversation or provide the next steps.

For assistance designing asynchronous discussions for your class, reach out to the Office of Online Learning at online@luc.edu to schedule a one-on-one consultation with one of our instructional designers.

Resources

Discussions in online courses: Best practices and expectations. (2023, May 15). Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering: Teaching and Learning Resources. https://ep.jhu.edu/faculty-staff/teaching-technology-resources/discussions-in-online-courses-best-practices-and-expectations/#_Benefits_of_Discussions 

Gao, F., Zhang, T., & Franklin, T. (2013). Designing asynchronous online discussion environments: Recent progress and possible future directions: Designing asynchronous discussion environments. British Journal of Educational Technology, 44(3), 469–483. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2012.01330.x  

Hrastinski, S. (2008). The potential of synchronous communication to enhance participation in online discussions: A case study of two e-learning courses. Information & Management, 45(7), 499–506. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2008.07.005 

Nilson, L. B. & Goodson, L. A. (2021). Online teaching at its best: Merging instructional design with teaching and learning research (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass: A Wiley Brand. 

Rovai, A. P. (2007). Facilitating online discussions effectively. The Internet and Higher Education, 10(1), 77–88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2006.10.001  

Sher, A. (2009). Assessing the relationship of student-instructor and student-student interaction to student learning and satisfaction in web-based online learning environment. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 8(2), 102-120. 

Weimer, M. (2011). 10 benefits of getting students to participate in classroom discussions. Faculty Focus. https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-and-learning/10-benefits-of-getting-students-to-participate-in-classroom-discussions/ 

Wise, A. F., Hausknecht, S. N., & Zhao, Y. (2014). Attending to others’ posts in asynchronous discussions: Learners’ online “listening” and its relationship to speaking. International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, 9(2), 185–209. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11412-014-9192-9