Abstract
This chapter presents synthesized insights from varied literature focusing on using an online discussion task to promote critical thinking skills from their participation in an asynchronous collaborative learning management site. This platform offers online discussion boards that are designed to foster social interaction virtually. Foo and Quek (2019) highlighted that online discussion tasks do support collaborative learning and higher-order thinking skills. Data were gathered from students through a survey, and a content analysis was carried out using Bloom's taxonomy model to determine the presence of critical thinking in the messages posted online. The findings affirm that students' written reflections promote critical thinking skills.
TopIntroduction
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic hazards, many higher institutions of learning have switched the delivery of lessons to an emergency remote teaching and learning mode for the safety of the campus community which includes lecturers and students. The rapid increase in cases of Covid infection across the globe, compelled all learning institutions to remain in isolation. This has led to the postponement of all traditional face-to-face and blended classes, including lab praticals and other hands-on learning activities on campus. Therefore, as mentioned by Hodges, Moore, Lockee, Trust, and Bond (2020) and Harper (2020), Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) in an e-learning setting is an interim pedagogical approach adopted to fill the teaching and learning needs of the campus’ discourse community. The ERT approach is a fully remote instructional approach which is comprehensively facilitated by technology, such as video conferencing software, online discussion boards, and learning management systems.
As a “novel” approach, the ERT has to weather its share of criticisms. Trust & Whalen (2020) mentioned that one obstacle of remote teaching and learning is students are merely passive spectators of the online lesson and are not motivated to actively engage, when compared to physical classes. This could be attributed to the lack of staff preparation and training to integrate technology seamlessly in lesson delivery. To bridge this hitch, Zweig and Staffrod (2016), called for the inclusion of learner-centered activities such as online forums in remote teaching and learning environments or in e-learning environments to support learner engagement. Therefore, the use of discussion boards as communicative tools among online learners and distance learning institutions can offer crucial support. This e-discussion tool can be used for providing feedback and exchanging ideas among participants in an online learning environment. With the interactivity and interpersonal communication generated among participants, team spirit will be enhanced. Delany, Kummer and Singh (2019) in their study which focussed on international students, stated that online discussion did increase student participation over the semester. The use of discussion boards as communicative tools for providing feedback and exchanging ideas in a web-based learning environment is common.
As stated by Mc Donald (2002), a discussion board has many functions. It is an independent learning tool where students can seek out information by themselves, evaluate and critically analyze the information, engage in discussion with others and learn to build the structure of arguments. This implies that the discussion board is an ideal tool for problem-solving activities as it allows students to develop their cognitive and critical thinking skills. In addition, Gokhale (1995) mentioned that collaborative learning not only increases active participation among learners but it also promotes critical thinking. Similar findings were stated by Koh, Herig, and Hew (2010) in their study on the use of online asynchronous learning to enhance students’ knowledge construction through project-based learning.
Many web-based learning systems rely on discussion boards as a form of computer-mediated communication to enhance learning and develop higher-order thinking skills. For this study, the terms “higher-order thinking” and “critical thinking” are used interchangeably. In general, higher-order thinking skills can be defined as the top four levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy (1956). Furthermore, Anderson and Krathwohl (2001) came up with a revised version of the higher-order thinking skills with Remembering, Understanding, Applying, Analysing, Evaluating, and Creating. These skills are essential to get students to take ownership of their learning. There are learning benefits when students actively engage in online discussion. For instance, students have the opportunity to reflect on their understanding of the content and develop related comments through their postings that can contribute to the learning environment.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Inquiry-Based Learning: A student-led learning approach that starts by posing questions, problems, or scenarios.
Higher Order Thinking: The student's ability to apply knowledge and skills to new contexts that goes beyond memorization.
Independent Learning: Independent learning is a self-directed learning process to promote The goal of independent learning is to shift the learning process to the student, making them an active participant with the teacher providing guidance and structure.
Critical Thinking: Critical thinking is the capability of an individual to think precisely and reasonably, understanding the logical connection between ideas.
Bloom’s Taxonomy: Bloom’s Taxonomy aims to categorize the learning process into phases ranging from remembering facts to creating new concepts based on the new knowledge gained.
Collaborative Learning: Collaborative activities are any activities where learners are working co-operatively in pairs or groups like in a group discussion.
Online Reflection: Online reflection allows learners to acquire and adopt the online information more effectively by integrating their new knowledge into their existing knowledge.