A great resource that should be utilised more, but also a place of anxiety: student perspectives on using an online discussion forum

ABSTRACT

A range of studies into the efficacy of online discussion forums is available, and this study seeks to add to the body of evidence around students’ experiences of using online discussion forums within a distance learning context. The Open University (OU) is still the UK’s largest provider of distance higher education. OU distance learners are encouraged to participate in asynchronous online discussion forums and collaborate with their peers, thus benefiting from working with others and reducing social distance. We investigated student perspectives on their feelings about participation in ‘tutor group’ forums. We drew on comments provided via email to identify key themes and provide insights into positive and negative experiences; some findings reinforce existing research, e.g. forums as a welcome source of peer and tutor support. However, we also identified practices and factors reported as causing anxiety or reluctance to enter an online ‘space’, and leading to non-participation. These included the nature of other students’ posts, dominance by peers, unwelcome demands on students’ time and the ‘exposure of the self’ through writing online. We consider the tensions and anxiety reported, discuss the implications, and suggest ways to improve the online student experience.

KEYWORDS:

• Distance learning
• online forums
• student participation
• perspectives
• academic writing

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Lynda Griffin

Lynda Griffin has taught English in the UK secondary and FE sectors and is currently an Associate Lecturer at the Open University in the Faculty of Wellbeing, Education, and Language Studies and the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. She is also an Honorary Associate in the School of Education, Childhood, Youth and Sport. Her teaching areas include English Language and Applied Linguistics and her research interests are in academic writing, academic literacy and online participation in distance learning contexts in higher education.

James Roy

James Roy is a Lecturer in the School of Education, Childhood, Youth and Sport and Associate Lecturer, School of Languages and Applied Linguistics, in the Faculty of Wellbeing, Education, and Language Studies at The Open University. He is the academic manager for Associate Lecturers on the Primary and Early Childhood programmes in the School. He has taught in Brazil, Vietnam, France and the UK. His teaching areas include educational enquiry, English Language and applied linguistics and his research interests are in online learning and online pedagogy in Higher Education distance learning contexts.