Building Discussion Quality with “Virtual Gold Stars”
Cindy HindsAdjunct Psychology Instructor
Ozarks Technical Community College
I have a _____ with Standards requiring me to teach higher level critical thinking skills to students. ◦ A) Department/Division◦ B) College/University◦ C) Professional association ◦ D) More than one of the above
Polling Question
I have students who: ◦ A) already know how to think and write critically.◦ B) are somewhat prepared to engage in critical
thinking work.◦ C) are not prepared to engage in critical thinking
work, but show some promise.◦ D) are not prepared and show no foundation to
begin the process of critical thinking.◦ E) All of the above
Polling Question
OK…..now what?
Knowledge is constructed through interactions with adults or more advanced peers.
Learners do best when information is provided within their ‘zone of proximal development’ through a process called
Scaffolding
Lev Vygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Development
Scaffolding Applied to Response Posts
Gradebook Column
Raising the Stakes
Early in the Semester weekly Response Posts can be worth up to 5 possible points.
Later in the Semester weekly Response Posts can be worth up to 10possible points.
I like to receive recognition for hard work.◦ A) True◦ B) False
The result of the recognition you receive for your hard work makes you:◦ A) work a little less◦ B) coast along◦ C) work a little more◦ D) work much harder
Polling Question
Recognition for a job (Response Post) well done
What student reactions have you had to the movement away from traditional forms of teaching and learning?
Polling Question: The Challenges
Do you think this methodology goes far enough in creating collaboration?◦ A) Yes◦ B) No
Polling Question: The Challenges
Summary of “Virtual Gold Star” Creates a better discussion board response
post. Keeps students “on task”
Requires students to critically think about the material
Creates a nascent community of learners
APA, Principles for Quality Undergraduate Education in Psychology. www.apa.org
Borthick, A.F., Jones, D.R., & Wakai, S. (2003). Designing Learning Experiences within Learners’ Zones of Proximal Development (ZPDs): Enabling Collaborative Learning On-Site and Online. Journal of Information Systems. 17 (1): 107-134.
Elbaum, B., McIntyre, C., & Smith, A (2002) Essential Elements. Atwood Publishing: Madison, WI
Reed, S. (2010). A Model for Scaffolding Writing Instruction: IMSCI. The Reading Teacher. 64 (1) 47-52.
Tsai, A. (2011). A Hybrid E-Learning Model Incorporating Some of the Principal Learning Theories. Social Behavior and Personality 39 (2) 145-152.
Van de Pol, J., Volman, M., & Beishuizen, J. (2010) Scaffolding in Teacher-Student Interaction: A Decade of Research. Educational Psychology Review. 22: 271-296.
References
Cindy Hinds