Discussion forums are a great way to get students talking about a topic! As teachers, we must see the value in student conversation. Students learn in unique ways, but much of our learning as humans comes from conversation. Whether it is the stories we tell each other – or the debates we have, conversations can be assessed through discussion forums.
Think about the existing online model. Sure – project-based learning sounds good on the surface ‒ but how many students are capable of self-directed learning? Discussion forums, on the other hand, are much more bite-sized and allow all students to contribute.
An online discussion forum allows a teacher to pose a question and have students debate, discuss, collaborate, and defend ideas. Learning in an online ecosystem can be tricky, but with a discussion forum rubric ‒ it doesn’t have to be.
What is a Discussion Forum?
On a super basic level ‒ a discussion forum is a place for students to interact in the same way as they would in a normal classroom. Instead of talking to one another about a specific reading topic or science experiment, a teacher poses a question and the students are able to respond in their own way.
How to Use Discussion Forums in Online Classes
If you’re using Google Classroom you can create super simple discussion forums by using the Question assignment.
NOTE: Be sure that you select the boxes that allow students to respond to each other. This will make it so that after a student posts a contribution, they will be able to see their classmate’s responses and collaborate.
Tips for Optimal Engagement
- Place your SUPERRUBRIC directly into the assignment.
This will ensure that each student understands the required criteria and will influence them to be more critical in their response.
- Jump into the Discussion Forum
Teachers can moderate the conversation by placing comments when the discussion goes stale or assisting students who are having difficulty with engagement.
- Reinforce with Consistent Feedback
Providing students with constant feedback is crucial. You could run an entire class using a discussion forum if the feedback helps students build their knowledge and skills.
- Make the Content Relatable
Be sure that the questions you are asking relate to the students in some way. In this financial literacy class, students have often engaged to budget their money by using real-world dollar values for video games, online subscriptions etc.
- Use Optimal Questioning Tactics
Why questions are okay but sometimes lead to huge variability in responses. Try using questions that ask ideal positions or hypotheticals. This style of questioning helps to keep your students engaged and thinking critically about the topic while not getting too far off track.
Free SUPERRUBRIC Template Breakdown – Discussion Forum
Our rubrics are built to help improve assessment. We use specific assessment criteria that are common across all types of classes and curriculums and combine the criteria with specific keywords to establish student scores.
Our discussion forum has 5 specific assessment criteria:
Primary Contribution
This is the initial response, or post, that the student enters online. Depending on your class and expectations, a teacher could establish that the primary contribution is about 40% of your final score.
Critical Engagement
Is the student effectively collaborating with other classmates? Does the conversation within the discussion forum further the debate and improve comprehension? As a student, critical engagement is all about improving your understanding by reflecting and collaborating with others.
Frequency
This one is subject to the teacher’s expectations. Ideally, you want the students to be engaging 2-3x/week. Assessing the students on the frequency of their posts will help to reinforce thoughtful and consistent engagement during the week.
Use of Language and Conventions
Assessing Language and conventions is essential. If students are formulating, defending, arguing ‒ teachers need to make sure they are doing it in an academic format. On our free rubric discussion forum template, this is not a huge position of their mark ‒ but it is important to include.
Formatting and References
This criteria is subject to the level you are teaching at. Grade 8+ should start to understand how to use literature to further their points and start to identify ways to utilize and manipulate online resources. Assessing students on their ability to correctly format and reference their contributions will ensure students post well-constructed academic responses.
Free Discussion Forum Template Download
Use our free rubric builder to edit, customize and download a free SUPERRUBRIC today. In less than 5 minutes your assessment will go from basic to SUPER!
Click here to Create Your own Discussion Forum SUPERRUBRIC.
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