Sample discussion assignment guidelines

From D2L Wiki

Here are some sample discussion assignment guidelines/rubrics that have been used in online and hybrid courses at Oshkosh. Faculty/IAS who have shared these have given permission for them to be used. (If you have a set of guidelines or a rubric you would be willing to share, please let us know.) Many other examples can be found by searching for "online discussion guidelines" or "online discussion rubrics."

Contents 1 3-point weekly scale 2 5-point scale for each assignment 3 Overall participation grade, graduate course 4 Quality, Timeliness, Quantity Graduate course 5 Extensive tabular discussion rubric

3-point weekly scale

It is expected that students will complete the Discussion entries after attending class and having read the assigned material. Discussion assignments typically require you to present and analyze case examples or scenarios using course concepts. Entries will be evaluated based on how well they demonstrate your ability in this regard. Weekly grades will be recorded using the following system:

1 = needs improvement

2 = meets minimum requirements

3 = demonstrates very well the ability to analyze using course concepts.

Remember you are also responsible for reading all other student and instructor entries. Please consider your remarks as public as if spoken in class - keep comments relevant to the topic, and use only appropriate language. If at any point during the semester you would like feedback on your entries please let me know.

5-point scale for each assignment

All students are expected to participate in the questions in their group discussions in a concise, well-organized, and scholarly manner. Saying, “I agree with Jennifer” is not adequate. You need to say why you agree (or disagree) and support your comments. Comments should be based upon information obtained from appropriate reference sources including your textbooks, previous coursework web-based information or personal experience. You must use proper grammar and spelling for all contributions.

• 5 points. Responses reflect thoughtful analysis of material from text and other appropriate sources. Spelling and grammar are correct. Responses are posted on time. Responses do not repeat what others have already posted.
• 3-4 points. Fairly complete response. Thoughts not as clearly articulated as could be. Grammar and spelling errors are evident. Repeat what others have posted.
• 1-2 points. Minimal response, incomplete, superficial. Late responses to modules that have posting deadlines.

Overall participation grade, graduate course

Your participation is a function of your involvement with your assigned groups and the general class discussions. To participate effectively, you will need to read the assigned materials and complete assigned tasks ahead of time. Your participation grade will be based on three criteria:

(1) your regular and consistent involvement in your group discussions (as group leader and/or participant);

(2) your participation in overall class discussions (my expectation is that you will have an average of one substantive comment per week. By "substantive" I mean a comment that has been developed by using the course materials and clearly supports a position, begins a new topic, or somehow adds to the discussion by critically reflecting upon what has been discussed and/or moves the discussion in a new direction (Palloff & Pratt, 2001)); and

(3) your level of engagement in class discussions (reading and responding to others’ posts, asking questions of the class, substantive comments on other students comments, etc.).

Quality, Timeliness, Quantity Graduate course

When I evaluate discussion in this class, I look at three elements: quality, timeliness, and quantity. All three are roughly weighted equally.

Quality

I want to see discussion posts that add value to the discussion. In short, this means I am not a big fan of “I agree” posts, even ones that go 1-2 paragraphs or more.

So, how do you add value? Here are some ways, including many that students without [course topic] experience can do:

1. Post an original answer to one of the questions.
2. Indicate whether you agree or disagree with what another person posted, and why. Here, a useful technique is the 2x2 technique—give 2 instances where you agree with the post and 2 instances where you disagree with the post.
3. Ask another person a question.
4. War stories that relate to the topic are great. These can be from work, from volunteering, from your personal life, or elsewhere.
5. Relate a recent news event, article you have read, or similar to the class.
6. Come up with a scenario/example of how you might apply the materials.

Timeliness

Research and experience shows that students get the most out of an online course by participating in the discussions early and following them as they evolve. Each of you has significant contributions you can make to the class. Thus, I would like you to begin involvement in discussions early in the “class week,” and contribute to them as the week goes on.

However, given the nature of most of our lives, weekends are prime times to do course work. In addition, this course is set up for the course week running Monday-Sunday which tries to push work to the weekend.

Therefore, I suggest a couple of things:

• Read the material for the course the weekend before the course week so that you are prepared to join the discussions Monday. I will open up the next weeks’ questions on Sunday so you can even start a day early (if you wish) while you are finishing up the current weeks’ discussions.
• Try to devote at least 15-30 minutes a day to reading and responding to posts; it will help. I know business/personal schedules may not always allow it, but it is a good goal to shoot for.

Quantity

The hardest of the three to address is quantity. First and foremost, I do not require a minimum or maximum number of posts. Some people can say a lot in a few posts, others break thoughts into more posts. Plus, giving a maximum can stifle people who may have a lot to add.

Secondly, there are a lot of questions each week. I do not expect you to answer each of them, but to answer a few of them, and get involved in discussions with the rest. If everyone just answered the questions (essay style) we would not have an opportunity to learn a lot from each other.

Finally, I expect you to be involved in both the whole-class discussions and your small group discussions. Sometimes the small group discussions get ignored.

So, perhaps a better name for this category would be “visible evidence of active participation in discussions,” for that is what I expect to see.

Extensive tabular discussion rubric

All students are expected to participate in the course discussions in a concise, well-organized, and scholarly manner. Posts should be based upon information obtained from appropriate reference sources including your textbooks, assigned readings, assigned web sites, previous coursework, or personal experience. If you are talking about personal experiences or situations from your clinical practice, please be sure to maintain confidentiality at all times.

Group Discussion:  The expectations for the group discussion posts are based on the criteria for the dimensions of activity, content, collaboration, questioning and mechanics.  There is a maximum of 20 points for each group discussion question.

Content Questions:  The expectations for the content question posts are based on the criteria for the dimension of content. There is a maximum of 8 points for the content question answers in each module.  These points are based on the two dimensions of Content and Mechanics.

Dimensions	Excellent 4	Good 3	Satisfactory 2	Poor 1	Unsatisfactory 0
Activity	Accesses all postings. Postings tend to be spread throughout the scheduled module rather than clustered together indicating frequent access to the discussions.	Accesses all postings. Postings tend to be clustered together indicating infrequent access to the discussion.	Accesses most postings. Contributes two discussion messages during any module discussion period; second message is posted near the end of the discussion after the majority of the discussion has ceased.	Infrequently accesses postings. Contributes about one discussion posting during any module discussion period	Less than 50% accesses and/or posts during a module discussion period.  No posts or posts occur after designated time.
Content	Postings are characterized by clarity of argument, depth of insight into theoretical content, relevancy, and sometimes include unusual insights and flashes of brilliance. Information is well supported and may include information from other resources in addition to assigned readings.	Postings tend to produce good general answers but may not always directly address discussion questions. Dominated by opinions rather than by analysis and creative thought. Assertions are not supported by evidence.	Postings tend to address topics peripheral to the discussion questions.  Information provide for content questions generally accurate, but with some omissions and/or errors.	Postings not supported by evidence, contain gross factual error.  Understanding of information for content question not evident.	No posts or late post.
	Note:  For the group discussion posts, providing sources are expected only when appropriate;   Sources need not be cited for every group discussion post.  For the content question posts, sources of information are expected with every post.  One point will be deducted if a source is not provided.
Collaboration	Collaborative learning is evidenced by support and encouragement, as well as willingness to critically evaluate the work of others.	Collaborative learning evidenced by support and encouragement.	Little evidence of collaborative learning.	Lack of evidence indicating an effort to include others.	No posts or late post.
Questioning	Frequently includes good questions that stimulate discussion. Frequently responds to questions from others.	Sometimes postings include questions that stimulate discussion. Sometimes responds to questions raised by others.	Seldom includes questions that stimulate discussion Infrequently responds to questions raised by others.	Postings lack questions that stimulate discussion. Non-responsive to questions raised by others.	No posts or late post.
Mechanics	Postings contain no errors in spelling and/or grammar. Meaning is unquestionably evident.  Subject line corresponds to specific content of post.	Postings contain no errors in spelling and/or grammar. Meaning is clear. Subject line corresponds to general content of post.	Postings contain errors in spelling and grammar Meaning is generally clear. Subject line does not correlate to content of post.	Postings contain errors in spelling and grammar. Meaning is in doubt.  Subject line does not correspond to content of post.	No posts or late post.