cnie2008 effects of face to face meetings on discussion boards christine brown
DESCRIPTION
Presentation at CNIE2008 in Banff on the effects of face to face meetings on discussion board postings.TRANSCRIPT
Christine Brown
Agenda
• Study details
• Community of Inquiry
• Discussion board analysis
• How students wrote
• What students wrote
• Some observations
• Questions?
Study Details
• University in a large Canadian city
• School of Business
• 45 students in each of 2 sections
• Random assignment to 2 classes
• Blended learning – definition– 3 face-to-face meetings
• Course management system
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2000). Critical inquiry in a text-based environment: Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 2(2-3), 87-105
Discussion Board Analysis
Discussion Board Analysis
• 356 postings– 191 by the experimental group– 165 by the control group
• FAQ – 30 by the experimental group– 69 by the control group
• Introductions– 28 by the experimental group– 39 by the control group
Discussion board postings
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level• Developed by US Government Department of
Defense as a standard test
• Looks at– Number of words per sentence
– Number of syllables per word
• Used as a numerical indication of the complexity of a piece of writing (eg. 9.8 – grade 9 level)
• Lowest -3.6 and highest is 13
Results: How students wrote
Community of Inquiry ModelCognitive Presence
• Triggering Event – Recognize problem, express puzzlement
• Exploration– Divergence, information exchange, brainstorming
• Integration– Convergence, connecting ideas, suggesting solutions
• Resolution and Application– Application to real world problems, defend solutions
Triggering Event
Exploration Integration Resolution and Application
Experimental 14 307 11 0
Control 33 372 8 11
Community of Inquiry ModelSocial Presence
• Affective– Emotions, humor, self-disclosure, emoticons
• Open Communication– Continuing threads, quoting or referring to others’
messages, asking questions
– complimenting, expressing agreement
• Group Cohesion– Vocatives, inclusive postings, personal salutations
Affective Open Communication
Group Cohesion
Experimental 24 38 36
Control 7 29 35
Posting content –Discussion Forum
Results: What students wrote
Interesting bits …
• One-offs– 2 instances of swearing
– 2 instances of insulting/sarcastic postings
– 1 instance of student suggesting a solution to another student
• Consent forms