Online discussions: Improving the quality of the student experience

Over the past five years, the School of Applied Vision Sciences at the University of Sydney has used orientation activities to improve the quality of the students’ online learning experience while they are located remotely from the campus undertaking professional practice placements. During 2004 and 2005, students were introduced to Salmon’s five-stage model of online learning and teaching in the orientation sessions to provide a structure for reflection on the quality of their online learning experiences before and after participation in asynchronous discussions. These student reflections were coded and compared to the student ratings of their stage of development as online learners and their academic performance. There was a significant change in the learners’ stage of development and degree of reflection before and after their participation, which was positively correlated with their online participation assessment results. Important insights including strategies that improve the quality of asynchronous discussions are considered.