FOSTERING COMMUNITY OF RELATIONSHIPS VIA ONLINE DISCUSSION Kellie Smith, RN, MSN Thomas Jefferson University/ Jefferson School of Nursing Philadelphia, PA References Background Statistics reveal that online education continues to expand in significant numbers throughout higher education. Nursing education must evolve and incorporate instructional technologies to meet the needs of the new era of tech-savvy students. An important aspect to consider for online and nursing education is creating and fostering a strong sense of community among students. Establishing a sense of community builds relationships among nursing students, assists in developing a comfort level with online course technology, is conducive to learning, and encourages reflection on learning possibilities. It has been established that online threaded discussions can encourage the growth of a learning community that allows students to learn through the viewpoint of others, enhance interaction for knowledge acquisition and application while allowing students to be exposed to multiple perspectives. This presentation reviews best practices in building online communities. Cox, B., & Cox, B. (2008). Developing interpersonal and group dynamics through asynchronous threaded discussions: The use of discussion board in collaborative learning. Education, 128(4), DeLoach, S., & Greenlaw, S. (2007). Effectively moderating electronic discussions. Journal of Economic Education, 38(4), Ko, S. & Rossen, S. (2004). Teaching Online: A Practical Guide. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company. Levine, J. (2007). The online discussion board. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education. Retrieved October 25, 2008 from Moore, M. G. (2007). Handbook of Distance Education (2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. Nicholson, S. (2005). A framework for technology selection in a web-based distance education environment: Supporting community- building through richer interaction opportunities. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 46(3), Penn State World Campus. (2008). Faculty development 101: Lesson 14 creating a learning community at a distance. Retrieved October 7, 2008, from Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2009). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Goal: to build relationships, develop comfort with the technology and online communication, encourage the safe practice of revealing, and encourage the reflection of the potential learning possibilities 1) Welcome students - Provide an organized, structured environment for communication - Organize forums to reflect class sequence -Thread topics (questions) with assignments, readings, projects for the same semester week - Post a welcome introduction that sets the tone for open communication - Share personal and professional information - Provide overview of course by reviewing expectations, requirements and benefits of active participation - Review technical orientation and where to go for assistance - Define instructor role - Designate a board for general course questions entitle it “Nuts and bolts” or “Q & A” 2) Provide a discussion for student to student introductions - Example title for the board "Getting to know each other" - Use an ice-breaker, encourage students to post pictures - Purposes of this board is to connect students with similar interests to encourage a learner community Goal- to pose meaningful questions and problems and stimulate participation 1) Practice effective facilitation - Set appropriate goals - Choose questions carefully (community building depends upon the nature of the questions) - Focus on the highest levels of cognitive domain (analysis, syntheses, and evaluation) - Encourage debate - Understand problems that arise and know how to identify when intervention is needed - Nurture discussion - Allow individualization without isolation - Connect ideas, challenge assumptions, resolve differences of opinion, pose follow up questions to further the discussion, moderate, influence, and guide (be careful not to take over!) - Summarize and re-focus (delineate issues that are unresolved) - Refer to past experiences (encourage sharing) 2) Ensure an instructor presence - Logging in and viewing the discussion often - Responding as appropriate (answer questions promptly) - Should not respond to everyone (only summarize) - Let students drive the discussion - Encourage humor, story telling, sharing Initial tasksMaintenance tasksFeedback tasks Goal- to reward participation 1) Grade discussions - Include as a method of course evaluation - Use a scale from minimal effort (failure to identify key concepts, little insight, overlooking key points, posting unrelated claims) to exemplary level (shows insight, thought, understanding and effort) - Publicly recognize exceptional posts - Encourage participation by thanking students fo contributions