Discussion

Board Grading Rubric

Exemplary/Excellent
Initial
(5-4 pts.) Post is appropriate length to
Discussion develop a specific idea for further
Posting
discussion and stimulates at least one

substantial follow-up post. Well-

structured, logically sequenced
sentences, written in formal language.
Contribution is thoughtful, analytical,
& original. Author makes meaningful
connections between course content
& personal experiences, current
events, or with credible outside
sources. Primarily free of
grammatical/spelling errors.

Reply
(5-4 pts.) Student used one of the 7
Postings
response techniques effectively. Reply
shows insight, depth & understanding
that is relevant to the topic. Personal
opinion is expressed in a respectful
manner and is clearly related to the
original post. Shows a high level of
understanding related to the original
post. Post encourages additional
discussion from classmates. Primarily
free of grammatical/spelling errors.
Frequency (5-4 pts.) Student posted at least once

to the discussion board by Thursday at
midnight. Replied to 3 or more posts
by Sundays deadline.

Kelly Soczka Kaiser, 3/3/15

Acceptable/Proficient
(3-2 pts.) Post is appropriate length, but idea
developed for discussion is vague. Structure is
present but organization of ideas is somewhat
sporadic. Shows evidence of analytical thought
on the idea, but analysis is not fully developed
or clearly presented. Author makes somewhat
meaningful connections between course
content, & personal experiences, current
events, or with outside sources, but
connections are not clearly presented. May
contain some grammatical/spelling errors.

Below Expectations
(1-0 pts.) Short post (one or two
sentences), which does not develop an
idea for further discussion. Lacks
structure and/or flow.
Lacks insight or depth, does not
express opinion clearly, and/or shows
little understanding of course material.
Written in informal language (using
abbreviations or text lingo). Poor
spelling & many grammatical errors.

(3-2 pts.) Student attempted to use one of the

7 response techniques. Posts are appropriate
length, but relationship to original post is weak
or unclear. Personal opinion is expressed in a
respectful manner, but relationship to the
original post is somewhat unclear. Shows some
understanding related to the original post. May
contain some grammatical/spelling errors.

(1-0 pts.) Student did not attempt to

use one of the 7 response techniques.
Reply comments do not add value to
the discussion; shows little
understanding of the original post.
Does not express opinion clearly,
and/or shows no relationship to the
original post. Written in informal
language (using abbreviations or text
lingo). Poor spelling/grammatical
errors.

(1-0 pts.) All posts were submitted over
the weekend by Sunday s deadline,
but did not give others adequate time
to respond. Replied to less than 3
posts.

(3-2 pts.) Student posted at least once to the

discussion board by Saturday at noon. Replied
to at least 3 posts that were submitted by
Sundays deadline.

Initial Discussion Board Postings

In each learning plan (unless otherwise noted), you will need to complete an initial discussion board posting and reply to three other students
discussion board postings. You should attempt to post early and often. The earlier you post your initial discussion posting, the more time your
classmates will have to reply to your ideas. Please refer to the discussion board grading rubric to review the criteria that will be used to grade your
efforts. When you are interacting in an electronic environment as a member of a class, you are subject to the same rules of courtesy and conduct
that you would find in any face-to-face environment. Remember that a discussion board is a public forum and information can be forwarded to
others.

Here are a few tips for writing relevant discussion board postings:

Use a meaningful subject line. Don't leave the subject line blank. Worse, don't use a subject line that's so generic that nobody will know what you
are going to discuss. In the information age, your ideas will be judged on subject lines. Sometimes, if the subject line isn't intriguing, provocative, or
at least informative, your post will never get read. Use the subject line to your advantage.

Take Chances. When offering your ideas in a discussion, brainstorm your idea thoroughly and keep writing. Readers understand that online
discussions are "rough drafts" of your ideas. They don't have to be perfect. Use online discussion as opportunity to "test" your ideas.

Use paragraphs. Don't try to get too fancy with formatting your discussion contributions, but you want to make sure the reader knows where idea
starts and ends. It is very difficult to read discussion postings, papers, or web sites that do not use paragraphs.

Sign your contributions to a discussion. It's always nice to know who wrote a certain contribution to a discussion. Especially when you are part of a
large electronic conversation, readers may find it difficult to know who you are. Sign your posting with your name and location, such as Kelly Soczka
Kaiser, Stevens Point, WI.

Use the "Reply" function. In a Forum discussion, it's helpful to see the "threads" of the discussion. So, when you are replying to somebody, don't
create a "New Message"; instead, use the "Reply to Message" function. Replies result in threaded discussions, which will help readers follow the
conversation.

Use names and specifics. Especially when there are lots of people involved in an online discussion, names will help readers make more sense of a
discussion. When you say, "I agree with you," we don't know who you are agreeing with. Even if we know who you are agreeing with, we don't
know what that person said to make you agree. If, however, you said, "I agree with Joanie that Capitalism does have some problems as an
economic system," then readers can follow your ideas.

Invite Participation. Integrate comments to readers that will invite others to participate. Simple phrases like "I'm anxious to see if you agree with
me" or "What do you think about my ideas? Is it practical enough" can let readers know that you are really interested in their opinions.

Proofread Your Work. Since the discussion forum is a public arena, you want to make sure to proofread your work. Readers find error-prone
writing to be less credible and to reflect negatively on the writer. Also, your words may "sound" harsher than you intend them to be when the
reader cannot see the expression on your face and other interpersonal cues.

Using correct spelling, grammar, and sentence structure is essential to succeeding in the workforce, therefore, these elements are included
in the discussion grading rubric.

Be Respectful of others' ideas. We show respect for the ideas of others by treating them with seriousness. When you simply dismiss a classmate's
ideas without offering criticisms and challenges, you are insulting that classmate. You have an obligation to challenge each other's thinking. You
shouldn't insult a classmate, so you'll want to use sound netiquette (Knowlton, n.d.).

Discussion Board Response Techniques

How should you reply to discussion board postings? When responding to discussion board postings, you should try not to just say, I agree to
someone elses initial discussion board posting. You can agree with their ideas, but you also want to add something to the conversation. Below are
some techniques that you can use to help you respond to your fellow classmates:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Expand on the topic.

Offer a different perspective.
Provide an online resource relevant to the topic (include a hyperlink or attach the article).
Provide a summary of the ideas posted so far (good when you come late to the conversation).
Ask a specific question (but avoid prompting yes or no answers).
Ask an open ended (on topic) question (OConnor, 2009).
Offer an analogy.

References

Churches, A. (2007). Educational origami: Threaded discussion rubric. Retrieved on March 9, 2015 from https://edorigami.wikispaces.com

/file/view/2+threaded+discussion+rubric.pdf

OConnor, D. (2009). E-learning for educators: Discussion quality and participation grade scale. Retrieved on March 9, 2015 from https://www2.uwstout.edu

/content/profdev/eLearning/self_eval_rubric.html

Knowlton, D. (n.d.). Creating strong contributions to electronic discussions. Retrieved on March 9, 2015 fromhttp://www.siue.edu

/~dknowlt/DiscussContributes.htm