A WORD OR TWO OR THREE OR MORE ABOUT THE ON-LINE DISCUSSIONS
Participation in the on-line discussions were established as course requirements
to achieve two major objectives:
1. To provide each student with the opportunity to “research” and become
conversant on ONE important issue facing American national, state, or local
government. To this end, each student was assigned to play the role of an
“expert” on one of the discussion topics.
2. To provide each student with opportunities to learn from and exchange ideas
with their peers about two additional issues. Therefore, each student was
assigned to be a “secondary” participant on two topics.
To date, we have conducted nine (9) on-line discussions. Some have gone fairly
well; others have been less productive. This handout is intended to facilitate
more lively, interesting, and “tighter” discussions of the remaining topics. As I
see it, there are two major problems that have plagued some of the discussions.
1. There has been a tendency to argue “around the issue;” that is, it is taking too
long to get to the major points. In a couple of cases, discussions have run an
hour and a half to nearly two hours before we ever really get to the issue at
hand. If you keep the following points in mind, the discussions should run a
lot more smoothly:
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Preparation is essential….”experts,” do some research. Remember that
this course requirement was established in lieu of a formal research
paper, therefore, your preparation should approximate the effort required
to complete a formal research paper. Additionally, your role as an “expert”
is worth 100 points - the equivalent of a regular test. This means that you
should demonstrate (during the discussion) a level of understanding of the
issue that you would have to demonstrate if you had to take a test over it!!
These on-line forums are NOT set up to be social events; they are
intended to be learning opportunities. Some of the participants in the online discussions have contended that they “looked and looked for
information, but could NOT find ANYTHING.” This contention simply will
NOT be accepted….all of the discussion topics deal with issues that have
been debated extensively in other forums (newspapers, newsmagazines,
TV/radio talk shows, etc.). If you are having difficulty finding information
on your topic, you may consult with me prior to the scheduled discussion.
I can suggest some things for you to look at.
Secondaries, do some reading ahead of time. Don’t expect that you can
pose relevant questions or make arguments/comments that will contribute
to the discussion without doing some advance preparation. This does not
require extensive effort on your part. At a minimum though, you should
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read one or two articles dealing with the issue, or read the chapter in the
textbook(s) that cover the issue (if appropriate). Your main role is to ask
questions that will “extend” the discussion by requiring the “experts” to
clarify or elaborate points, or perhaps to guide the discussion into an area
that has not received the attention it deserves. “Secondaries” should NOT
limit their contributions to comments such as “I agree with Mark!”
Pay close attention to the discussion….Please do NOT post comments/
arguments that have previously been made by other participants….
Secondaries, do NOT ask questions that have already been “answered” in
the preceding segments of the discussion….
Remember that you can coordinate your arguments/questions (ahead of
time) with other participants in the discussion. I strongly encourage this!!
Please wait until your name is “called” to post your arguments/comments/
questions to the discussion. Otherwise, the discussion becomes
disjointed and slows down as everyone attempts to “talk at once.”.
2. There is too much “dead time.” Some of this “dead time” is simply due to the
fact that some of the participants are not fast typists. If you are a slow typist, I
will NOT hold that against you….however, we should be able to compensate
for this problem by:
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Don’t wait until your name is “called” to enter your arguments/comments/
questions into the field….Type them into the field, then, when your name is
“called,” all you have to do is click on “SAY IT!” If you want to change the
content of the argument/comment/question BEFORE you post it to the
discussion, just click on “REFRESH” and type something else. Then, when
you see your name posted, click on “SAY IT!”
I appreciate your cooperation and earnest effort to act in accordance with these
guidelines. I hope that, at the end of the semester, you will judge your
participation in these discussions to be worth your time and effort. I trust that the
discussions will not be a complete waste of time….after all, I am devoting a
VERY large portion of my time to them.
NOTE: In case it’s not crystal clear, I’m trying to give you some guidance on how
you can make a good grade on your participation in these discussions!!