Assisting Collaboration and Peer Learning: Case of Anchored Asynchronous Online Discussions

Alrushiedat, Nimer; Olfman, Lorne

doi:10.18374/ejm-13-4.6

Cited by 2 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…In the embedded model, the course is online and relies on selfdirected learning. This model enables online collaborative learning between students and the facilitator and self-directed discussions promote engagement and exposes students to multiple perspectives gained from interaction with peers (Alrushiedat and Olfman 2013;Zydney et al 2012). The auxiliary AODF supplements a face-to-face instruction delivery mode where knowledge is constructed through interaction with peers (Abawajy 2012).…”

Section: Asynchronous Online Discussion Forumsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The network of learning requires active participation (Siemens 2004) where students are in control and interact with peers (Loncar et al 2014). Peers constitute the social structure in a network and create connections and links between various sources of information such as other students, comments and replies (Alrushiedat and Olfman 2013). The nine principles of connectivism (Siemens 2004) are depicted in Table 1 together with a contextual interpretation of these principles within this study.…”

Section: Connectivist Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Through the nine principles connectivism offers a theoretical framework for providing a deeper understanding of students' peer learning, collaboration and interaction (Alrushiedat and Olfman 2013).…”

Section: Knowledge Rests In Networkmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mediating epistemological access through asynchronous online discussion forums during the COVID-19 pandemic: Implications for re-imagining online collaborative self-directed peer engagement and learning

Moosa

2022

SAJHE

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The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated the burgeoning of online learning and asynchronous online discussion forums in higher education due to restrictions on face-to-face teaching and learning interactions. Previous research on asynchronous online discussion forums focused on the processes that enhance or limit discussion threads and how discussion posts develop students' reflection and critical thinking skills. Although asynchronous online discussion forums are regarded as spaces for interactive learning, very little is known about how they facilitate epistemological access and enable collaborative peer learning interactions during periods of disruption such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study explores voluntary asynchronous online discussion forum participation in a non-credit bearing course from a unique angle of mediating epistemological access to online learning. This study draws on connectivist theory as a theoretical framework in a digital age where the student is in control of engagement interaction and information exchange. The central research question posed is how does an asynchronous online discussion forum mediate epistemological access to online learning and facilitate collaborative self-directed peer learning during the COVID-19 pandemic? The present study is underpinned by an inductive qualitative exploratory case study approach. A total of 2 146 discussion posts from 1 348 students across five faculties were downloaded from the learning management system and analysed using thematic analysis. This study indicates that epistemological access using a technology-mediated tool, is best facilitated through agency at the institutional, the instructor and the student level. The findings show that despite academic and technological challenges an online discussion forum enables epistemological access, interactive exchange of information and the formation of collaborative peer learning communities. In an age of digital inequalities, this study provides a starting point to uncover ontological barriers to epistemological access to online learning and signals the importance of integrating epistemological access, pedagogy and technology. This article concludes with implications for re-imagining the design of online multimodal pedagogy to mediate online collaborative self-directed peer engagement and learning. MoosaMediating epistemological access through asynchronous online discussion forums during the COVID-19 pandemic 118

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Section: Asynchronous Online Discussion Forumsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Connectivist Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mediating epistemological access through asynchronous online discussion forums during the COVID-19 pandemic: Implications for re-imagining online collaborative self-directed peer engagement and learning

Moosa

2022

SAJHE

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“…Anchoring in online discussions allows for the selection of any piece of a document (word, sentence, paragraph, or page) to be the focus of the discussion thread [4,5,6]. An anchored asynchronous online discussion (AAOD) tool offers students a simple and effortless interface to participate in discussions.…”

Section: Anchored Asynchronous Online Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, Brush et al (2002) concluded that "anchored online discussions allowed the less vocal students to contribute equally and made in-class discussions more interesting" [11, p. 9]. Anchoring technology was found to be useful for collaborative discussions [4,32]. Asynchronous online discussions are utilized for this purpose to potentially increase students' efforts given that effort has been found to predict success [25].…”

Section: Anchored Asynchronous Online Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anchoring for Self-Efficacy and Success

Alrushiedat

Olfman

2014

2014 47th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences

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In recent years, we have observed a rising interest in studying the effects of Web 2.0 technologies on student learning. We learned that human behavior can be influenced by personal and environmental factors as in Bandura's concept of "reciprocal causation." For business statistics students, we implemented online discussions to extend student involvement beyond the walls of the classroom to help students succeed. We chose business statistics primarily because many students have struggled in it. Students also had difficulty navigating through the standard online discussions. Moreover, their participation was mainly made out of compliance. We implemented anchored discussions to help with the navigation issue. We decided to examine the effects of the two forms of online discussions. We were not sure of the impact on students' self-efficacy and success. Our results from conducting the two studies show that anchored asynchronous online discussions are more likely to help increase students' self-efficacy. Moreover, students using the anchored discussions obtained statistically significant higher exam scores than students using standard discussions.

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Assisting Collaboration and Peer Learning: Case of Anchored Asynchronous Online Discussions

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

Mediating epistemological access through asynchronous online discussion forums during the COVID-19 pandemic: Implications for re-imagining online collaborative self-directed peer engagement and learning

Mediating epistemological access through asynchronous online discussion forums during the COVID-19 pandemic: Implications for re-imagining online collaborative self-directed peer engagement and learning

Anchoring for Self-Efficacy and Success

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