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Effective Use of Online Forums

This case study explores a project aimed at addressing challenges expressed by students and staff at UCL relating to the use of Fora activities as a part of online learning.

28 July 2021

Case study by Manuela Sadik

What was the aim of your project?

As part of the UCL Connected Learning Initiative, the Department of Communication, Culture and Media (CMM) within IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society, proposed this ChangeMakers project. Various academic staff members, PGTA and students had expressed that they were struggling with the sheer volume of posts within the Fora activities featured in their online Moodle modules.  The asynchronous nature of the modules also meant that they were difficult to manage. For example, students completed Fora tasks over different timescales, large courses generated high volumes of Fora traffic, and who would respond to each post (as well as when, how and why) were not always clear to module tutors and students. Our aim was to address such challenges by exploring the use and design of Fora activities.

What did you do?

Various module tutors had already trialled a range of different approaches to try and alleviate these challenges. We wanted to capture and share some of the more successful practices and Fora designs used within the MPhil and EdD Communication, Culture and Media course page on Moodle. A combination of desktop reviews (which could be easily conducted remotely) and online interviews with module tutors enabled us to collect the relevant information. Using this, we created a guide entitled ‘Avoiding Fora Fatigue: Guidelines for best practice Moodle Fora design’ filled with advice on challenges such as managing forum clutter and task fatigue.

“Working on this project gave a great insight to the impact different fora design can have on the workload for both staff and students alike. I hope our findings and the guidelines we created can help to reduce this workload and enhance the usability of these online spaces.”

Andrea Vaughan; MPhil Culture, Communication and Media

“Working on this project gave a great insight to the impact different fora design can have on the workload for both staff and students alike. I hope our findings and the guidelines we created can help to reduce this workload and enhance the usability of these online spaces.”

Andrea Vaughan; MPhil Culture, Communication and Media

What was involved in terms of approach, logistics, time and resources?

The review started in November 2020 and we completed the report in January 2021. This allowed us to share it with module tutors and staff members while they were still finalising their Moodle pages for Term 2 and Term 3. 

The tasks involved included:

  • Interviewing module tutors
  • Auditing learning materials
  • Comparing different approaches used in existing Fora designs 
  • Deciding which designs reflected preferred practice
  • Writing the guidelines

What difference has this project made to staff or students?

The guidelines have informed the design of Fora within Moodle modules across all CMM programmes.

These useful guidelines show that we can go a long way when we involve students and place them at the heart of the conversation about good teaching/support. In my Teaching Associate Programme course for PGTAs, I often discuss projects PGTAs would like to be more actively involved in to shape the learning environment of other students and this case study aligns perfectly with perceived priorities and good practice.”

Dr Silvia Colaiacomo, Programme Director of Arena One