Abstract
This study looks at online discussions within the context of a group endeavor and attempts to evaluate three assertions: 1) students in an online discussion proceed through higher levels of thinking; 2) Online conversations follow an “ebb and flow” pattern; 3) The level of the first posting to the discussion influences the level of subsequent postings. Postings were classified by the Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives and were graphed to help analyze the assertions. There was only modest support for the first assertion and better support for the second and third assertions. Analyzing online discussions as a group endeavor may well prove an interesting area of research for those interested in applying the existing body of literature and theory on group discussions in the face-to-face arena to the online environment. Researchers need to evaluate whether this literature is applicable to online discussions and what distinctions can legitimately be made between group discussions in the face-to-face or online mode.
Highlights
An earlier study by the author [1] used several frames—including the Bloom Taxonomy of Educational Objectives—to analyze several online discussions of graduate students in educational leadership classes
As a result of this study, it was determined that a further analysis was needed to assess the discussions in terms of how each contribution related to contributions that preceded or followed it, and not in terms of individual contributions
The issue was to capture the progress of an online conversation by using Bloom’s Taxonomy in order to assess the level at which the entire discussion took place and/or the levels the discussion passed through to its conclusion
Summary
An earlier study by the author [1] used several frames—including the Bloom Taxonomy of Educational Objectives—to analyze several online discussions of graduate students in educational leadership classes. As a result of this study, it was determined that a further analysis was needed to assess the discussions in terms of how each contribution related to contributions that preceded or followed it, and not in terms of individual contributions. The issue was to capture the progress of an online conversation by using Bloom’s Taxonomy in order to assess the level at which the entire discussion took place and/or the levels the discussion passed through to its conclusion
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