Control of Dialogue in Asynchronous Forums for Teachers: Implications for School Library Media Specialists

Abstract

This study adds to the information on online educational sites by examining the deployment of power and status in an online professional development Web site for preservice and inservice math and science teachers. Initiation and continuation of threads in asynchronous discussion forums is viewed as a powerful activity and parallel to the control of discussion in face-to-face classrooms as an issue of control. Studies of two discussion forums on the same topic, one comprising mainly inservice teachers and the other comprising mainly preservice teachers, showed a significant difference in the number of threads initiated by men and by women, with men dominating. In addition, the threads initiated by men were much more likely to receive responses that continued the discussion, whereas those initiated by women were likely to end with that single post. Other features of educational forums such as flaming did not occur. I conclude that the more subtle features of power and control in online spaces are just as important as overt features in encouraging people to participate and discouraging people from participating in these forums.