When designing courses, many course developers have told me that the introductions discussion seems like an unnecessary task for students because it does not contribute to their achievement of the course goals. I believe there are several benefits for building the introductions discussion as a graded assessment and providing facilitation and feedback in the same way other discussion assignments are handled throughout the course.
I have listed three benefits below; please feel free to add others in the comments!
Introduce discussion expectations in a low-stakes task
Most students have a schema for participating in in-person classes – since most students have been doing that since they were five! You show up, look like you are paying attention throughout the class, make some eye contact with the speaker – whether it’s the instructor or another student – and contribute occasionally.
When transitioning to online courses, students need to develop a new schema for participation. Because of how Canvas portrays discussions, students frequently view the discussion assignments as an academic writing assessment instead of a conversation or opportunity to interact with other students. At the School of Professional Studies (SPS), the purpose and format of asynchronous discussions varies from program to program and even course to course, so a low-stakes, early course opportunity to provide feedback on discussion participation can set the tone for participation throughout the course.
Practice a transferable professional skill
Many students decide to pursue education at SPS to change their career or advance in their current career. To support these goals within an online course, course developers and instructors can incorporate opportunities for students to prepare for networking events and interviews. Every course at SPS has an “Introductions” discussion, and most, if not all, professional events have opportunities to introduce yourself. Making this connection clear to students in the discussion prompt and providing feedback on how an introduction might be received professionally can help students feel more prepared to meet their professional goals.
Form the foundation for your course community
Student-student interactions are a key component of SPS courses. Our programs are made up of talented students with a variety of professional experiences, and interactions within our courses should provide each student an opportunity to develop their academic and professional network.
When we build large assignments into our courses, we suggest scaffolding-or building smaller checkpoints or tasks to prepare students for the large assessment. Scaffolding can also be used to encourage relationship-building and sharing of past experiences: an introductions discussion can encourage students to share basic information about themselves and their backgrounds, which can serve to increase comfort level with sharing more in-depth information and individual opinions in future discussions.
Emphasizing the importance of the introductions discussion and modeling the facilitation and feedback strategies you plan to use throughout the course can benefit your course and your students. If you have questions about how to implement more effective introductions discussions, please schedule a consultation with a member of the distance learning team.