In an article which appeared in Educational Leadership, October 1995,  Lisa Kimball included a number of steps which facilitators can use to make the most out of the online learning community experience. The teachers at Concord Virtual High School, believe that good discussions are essential to on-line learning and VHS currently sponsors a short course for teachers on improving on-line discussion.

1. Identify the Purpose -- make it explicit. 

Will members exchange info? generate new ideas? learn and explore? 
 
2. Define roles -- peer learners? team members? support and encourage? 

 
3. Create an ambiance --  use the first post to set the tone, model message formatting. Your first response should model what you are looking for in responses. Don't be heavy handed and create a boring experience, but state the type of atmosphere you hope to create. 

 
4. Nourish conversation -- keep the group fresh and growing.  Ask questions. Offer a case study. Suggest polling the group. Get participants to respond to each other. Watch for overload. [polling software available]

 
5. Provide feedback -- encourage writers who contribute good messages by sending thank you e-mails. Be quick to find people doing something right. 
   Be cautions giving any negative feedback, give suggestions for improvement. Encourage lurkers by asking them questions they need to respond to. 

 
6. Adjust the pace -- if some participants sign on four/five times a day and respond, they may need to be slowed down for the others or the others may need to encouraged to look on more often. 

 
7. Support and recruit new members -- if new members join the group after it is in progress, get them to introduce themselves to the group. Encourage them to respond. 

 
8. Recap by weaving -- summarize and synthesize multiple responses --- or ask the participants to take that project on. Identify issues   that people agree/disagree on, that may need more information. Weaving keeps the group from *spinning its wheels*. 

 
9. Track participation -- pay attention to who is doing what.  Who reads which messages, who responds, etc. This can be semi automated in some course management shells.

 
10. Go with the flow -- no right answer on what should be happening, just pay attention so you can be a more purposeful facilitator. 

One of the toughtest problems in on-line teaching is reluctance on the part of 20% of the students to fully participate.  Unless you demand it, some students will never send an email, ask a question, or post an opinion on-line.  Be sure to include on-line participation in your grading policy and in your assignments.  Based on a 1998 THE article by Dr. W. R. Klemm, Texas A & M [tamu.edu] 

1. Require participation.   Don't let it be optional.  Set aside a portion of the grade allocation for participation in online discussions.  Let  students know they must post x-number of times each week or for each topic. Do not tolerate lurking.  All of these suggestions are designed to prevent lurking and non-participation.

 
2. Form learning teams . The advantage for promoting online interaction is that learning teams should bond making each student want to  do his/her share. 

 
3. Make the activity interesting. Give students a reason to get engaged. 

 
4. Don't settle for just opinions. Students should support opinions with data, rational discourse, etc. 

 
5. Structure the activity . Give students guideposts to help them think of things to say that are academically meaningful. Choice of topics  is influential here. Organize topics around academic themes that serve course objectives. Consider an online debate: student posts a position, others respond with pro or con supporting arguments, group critiques arguments.  Consider brainstorming online with students  generating a list of alternatives. Have students reach a consensus on best choices followed by prioritization. 

 
6. Require hand-in assignments . This activity capitalizes on the advantages of constructivist theory --- students learn best when they have to integrate, synthesize, and apply information. Students can attach assignments to email, post them to a discussion group or bulletin board, provide a url for a web site, etc. 

 
7. Participate in discussions - Know what you are looking for and involve yourself to make it happen . When the professor participates in the conference,  providing extensive critique, feedback, and encouragement, students cannot help but become more involved. 

 
8. Peer grading.   Or perhaps better stated as peer assessment of a thread, etc.