Discussion Groups/Forums and Why You Should Use Them

Discussions have been around since man first uttered words....okay maybe even grunts.  Discussions help us to learn through social interaction and help encourage social growth at the same time.  You do this in your classrooms.  You do this in your homes.  You do this with complete strangers from time to time.  This is one of the fundamental ways humans gain knowledge and grow as human beings.  Discussions are everywhere.  Discussions are even online these days.

The discussions you see online are usually in forums and to keep things relevant forums usually have strict topics.  There are moderators (just like if you have a discussion in class), participants (again, just like in class), and streams of discussion can blossom from unexpected places and take you places you hadn't anticipated (just.......hey are you catching onto a theme here?).  A discussion online does everything you expect a discussion in a face-to-face environment to do (except allow you to talk directly to someone's face).  An online discussion also does more though.

Discussions online are a matter of public record in a sense.  Words spoken online are not just confined to a small room with a limited audience.  Discussions online are in print, and as such require editing and more forethought than answers blurted out in the heat of the moment.  Online work encourages even the most meek and timid to "come out of their shells," as it were, and that can lead to higher self-esteem.  You can use online discussions in your own classroom to "go green."  You can use them as a reflective tool for students.  You can even use them to get feedback from your classes on how well they are understanding the material you are covering with them.

The main reason some would shy away from this type of work in their room deals directly with liability.  Contrary to popular belief, all forums are not the same.  A forum is as safe and appropriate as it's moderator wants it to be.  Schools have tools to allow you to do this safely.  At our own school we have Moodle, which can do only forums if that is what you would like or it can do more.  We also have our teacher pages which have a discussion area if that is more your taste.  In either case you are the one in control of the "classroom."  It is as safe, and functional, as you allow it to be.

Think about it.  Can you use a discussion forum in your classroom to expand on what you teach?