Encouraging electronic discussion

If you have set up discussion rooms and failed to engage students, then Gilly Salmon’s 5 stage model shows user progression and required tutor input:

• At stage one Individual access and the ability of participants to use CMC are essential prerequisites for conference participation.
• Stage two involves individual participants establishing their online identities and then finding others with whom to interact.
• Stage three participants give information relevant to the course to each other. Up to and including stage three, a form of co-operation occurs, i.e. support for each person’s goals.
• At stage four, course-related group discussions occur and the interaction becomes more collaborative. The communication depends on the establishment of common understandings.
• At stage five, participants look for more benefits from the system to help them achieve personal goals, explore how to integrate CMC into other forms of learning and reflect on the learning processes.

A Flash graphic giving further details of the five stages can be found at http://www.atimod.com/e-moderating/fivestepflash.htm, while full details of the “renewed and refreshed vision” 2nd edition of Gilly’s book are accessible through www.e-moderating.com.

Salmon, Gilly; E-moderating, The Key to Training and Teaching Online, (2nd edition, paperback). Published January 22, 2004 by RoutledgeFalmer ISBN: 0415335442.