Effective Discussion Through a Computer-Mediated Anchored Forum

Computer-mediated discussion forums (such as newsgroups or those in instructional management software environments) are becoming common in higher education. Such forums are interesting because they are not only one of the easiest technologies to add to a class but may also provide an important learning opportunity for students. However, simply making a discussion forum available does not mean that it will be used effec-tively to enable learning. In this paper, we explore the idea that specific features of a dis-cussion forum may increase the likelihood of effective discussions taking place within the forum. We define effective discussions as those that are sustained and are focused on topics related to class learning goals. We then describe the specifications for an elec-tronic discussion forum—a computer-mediated anchored discussion forum—that we propose makes sustained on-topic discussion more likely. We report on the results of two studies that support this proposal. We end by exploring implications for research into computer-supported discussion tools for learning and their design. STARTING TOWARD COMPUTER-SUPPORTED COLLABORATIVE LEARNING As the Internet grows in size and influence, it has become common practice for classes of many kinds to offer some type of Internet-based discussion forum. For