Increase Engaged Student Learning Using Google Docs as a Discussion Platform

Abstract

Online discussion board activities have traditionally been a primary method of providing student-to-student interaction, especially in asynchronous online classes. This study examines the impact of an alternate online discussion tool on student participation in online discussion assignments. Three identical discussion assignments were examined over the course of two semesters. The first semester utilized the traditional Learning Management System (LMS) threaded discussion board. The second semester incorporated Google Docs as the discussion platform. Overall, students using Google Docs made 68 percent more posts per student than students using the traditional LMS discussion board. Students using Google Docs also demonstrated more engagement by sharing professional experiences and teaching strategies more often than those students using the traditional LMS discussion board. While the data are encouraging, limitations of this study encourage additional research in the areas of discussion platform, discussion group size, and group assignment methods.

Using Google Docs to Enhance Students’ Collaborative Translation and Engagement

“…Hence, the average number of posts shared per student in the Google Docs group was 38% higher than the average number of posts shared per student in the discussion forum group. This result was in accordance with Morse (2021) who found that the number of contributions by the Google Docs' students outperformed those provided by the discussion forum group by 68% in three discussion topics.…”

“…However, they found it tedious and challenging in terms of following and reading a high number of threads of discussions. This result agreed with Gao et al (2013) and Morse (2021) who highlighted some constraints of using discussion forums in collaboration if compared to Google Docs. They believed that the structure of Google Docs encouraged participation since all the comments and revisions were included in the same document and no need to review tens of posts or follow a high number of conversation threads one at a time.…”

“…They recommended using Google Docs over other web-based discussion platforms to support synchronous collaboration and avoid duplication in reviewing peers' contributions. The researcher of this study agrees with Morse (2021) in that some features in Google Docs, like revision history, comments, and track changes, were useful in enhancing students' interaction. This might influence the quality as well as the number of students' contributions in a significant way and ensure effective communication.…”

“…On the other hand, students who collaborated using discussion forums replied to comments by asking questions that require no explanations, replied to questions that provided no explanations, and agreed to suggestions with no justifications. Morse (2021) justified this difference in using cognitive strategies by students' tendency to contribute to the discussion forums as being a requirement. Thus, they were reluctant to read their peers' posts and contribute significantly to the discussions.…”

“…In online platforms, Morse (2021) points out that engaging students in online discussion forums have been an effective tool to support student-to-student collaboration in asynchronous settings. However, students' interaction through threaded discussion boards on LMS might lack meaningful contributions.…”