When online classes were starting to be offered in many universities, one of the criticisms against it is that it does not offer an academic environment that is conducive to learning.  Unlike in a traditional classroom setting where students and professors get to interact with each other, it was initially perceived that online courses will result in a student’s isolation from the class.  Presently, through the discussion posts there is a healthy interaction, and even debate, among students and professors in an online class which can be more conducive to learning.

Purpose of Discussions in Online Class

In a traditional classroom setting, there should be a healthy interaction between the professor and the students, and among the students.  Nowadays, discussion boards which are integrated in almost all of the online courses seek to achieve a similar objective.  Discussion boards seek to examine a student’s opinion about a topic presented in class.  When the topics are posted on the Canvas, the students are required to come up with a thoughtful and well-reasoned response on the discussion.  The goal is for the students to reflect on the topic and express their own opinion about the topic. 

Arguably, discussion boards may even be more superior to the face-to-face interaction that takes place in a traditional classroom setting.  On discussion boards, all the students are required to give their own thoughts about a topic.  However, in a traditional class, the discussion is typically dominated by a professor. 

How to Ace your Discussion Posts

There are rules in every discussion posts which must be diligently complied and observed.  Primarily, it is essential to comply with these rules as a minimum requirement. 

The first rule is to be polite and respectful when posting your opinion on the discussion boards.  Before the student submits his posts it is essential to double-check whether there are hurtful words that were used that may be considered as offensive to the other students in the class.

Before coming up with a post, it is essential for the student to thoroughly reflect on the topic of the discussion.  This means reading the topic several times to understand the topic/question.  In many cases, students do not get the maximum points because they totally misunderstand the question which leads to an unresponsive answer to the discussion. 

After a thorough reflection, it is time for the student to start writing his well-researched opinion or post.  In responding to the topic, it is necessary to write a logical and organized post.  Of course, the professor is going to expect in-text citations and sources as supporting authority for the opinions mentioned in the discussion.  When personal experience is needed, the student should feel free to draw from his own experience and integrate them with the theories discussed in class. 

Make sure to accomplish the discussion posts several days ahead of time.  Many students procrastinate and try to put off the submission of the discussion until the last possible minute.   While the system for the online class will still accept the post as long as it is submitted before the deadline, doing so prevents the student from having enough time to thoroughly review the posts and edit the discussion for any grammar errors.