Influence of group configuration on online discourse reading

Abstract

Online discourse reading plays a very important role in collaborative discussions. However, not many studies have examined the influence of group configuration on online discourse note reading. The current study examined note reading workloads and participants' perceptions of the three group configurations (large whole class, small whole class, large with subgroups) in online graduate-level courses from one institute. In this mixed-methods study, we analyzed tracking logs from 25 graduate-level online courses (25 instructors and 341 students) and interviews from 10 instructors and 12 graduate students with diverse backgrounds. Findings suggest that all three configurations had their own advantages and disadvantages in fostering online discourse reading. However, our analysis suggests that the advantages of subgroup discussions in supporting note reading outweigh those of the Small and Large configurations. The overload effects in information reading due to large class sizes can be minimized by dividing students into small groups for discussion purposes. Group configuration into proper-size groups may reduce students' reading loads. Interviewees felt that the waving of small groups into large classes benefited their collaborative discussions. We conclude this paper with a list of pedagogical recommendations and new software features that may help group configuration and enhance learning in online courses. This study may have implications for both practitioners and researchers to seek optimal group configurations to achieve more fruitful online discussions through note reading.