| Conference Registration WebCT Homepage | |
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| Friday, July 14, 2006: 10:00 AM-10:45 AM | |||
| Missouri Room (Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers) | |||
| M-13: Using Small-Group Threaded Discussion: Research on What ‘Works’ | |||
| Detailed Description: | This presentation details how threaded discussion, a simple and easily accessible WebCT tool, was incorporated into four different social work courses. When directed toward meeting students' social needs, not just course tasks, the use of threaded discussion in small groups was found to build camaraderie and a positive response to WebCT among students. Using this tool effectively enhanced learning by increasing the likelihood that students would come to class prepared and freeing up more class time for interactive, dynamic activities. | ||
| Presentation Format: | Showcase | ||
| Topic: | Enabling learning: Effective instructional practices and student support models | ||
| Target Audience: | Course Designers, Faculty and Other Instructors, E-learning Managers | ||
| Appropriate Audience Level: | Beginning or new users of WebCT, Experienced WebCT users | ||
| Abstract Text: | Technology must support pedagogy, rather than serve as an end in itself. Based on adult learning literature, the presentation details how threaded discussion, a simple and easily accessible WebCT tool, was incorporated into four different social work courses. Its effectiveness clearly depended upon the degree to which it was integrated into an overall pedagogical approach, and moreover, the extent to which its use in small group work met students' social needs rather than only task needs. The course in which students role-played a family in small groups throughout the semester was clearly viewed more positively by students. Dealing with complex course concepts, students ‘played out' concepts in their pseudo-family roles, learning in the process to meet one another's various needs. When directed toward meeting students' social needs, not just task needs, the use of threaded discussion in small groups was found to build camaraderie and a positive response to WebCT among students. Using this tool effectively enhanced learning by increasing the likelihood that students come to class prepared, thereby freeing up class time for interactive, dynamic activities proven to enhance learning. | ||
| Session Leader: | Valerie Scott Massimo Ramapo College of NJ | ||
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