Studying Online;Succeeding through Distance Learning at University

Formal class forums 
When you are studying online, you are likely to have at least one 
formal class forum for every module you attend. Tese forums 
provide support from the module leader as well as addition-
al information to help you with your studies of that particular 
subject. 
Some of these forums do not lead to much discussion. Tey are 
merely a means of communicating important information. For 
example, in my modules, I have a standard discussion forum 
called “Announcements”. It is where I provide important infor-
mation to students on the topics we are covering each week, as 
well as other details they need to know. Sometimes students re-
spond to say thank you or to ask a question for clarifcation, but 
mostly these forums are one way – me providing information to 
the students. 
Other formal class forums do require you to take part. One 
kind of formal forum where your participation is essential is in 

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Using study forums 95 
a discussion that is a component of your assessment. Lecturers 
will use such forums in two ways. Either you can use the discus-
sion as a means of self-assessment so that you can check your 
progress. Or the forum would be used as a means of assessing 
your knowledge and understanding, instead of you having to 
write an essay. Research has shown that when forums are used 
to help assess understanding, they can help improve a student’s 
critical thinking (Yang, Newby, and Bill, 2005). In one of the fo-
rums that I use for class assessment, all the students get a series 
of questions in advance, and they answer these in the discussion. 
Tey are also expected to comment on the answers from other 
students. From what students have written, I can see how well 
they understand the topic and allocate marks accordingly. One 
of the forums that I use makes up 25 per cent of the marks for 
the entire module. 
Other class forums and discussion groups are not assessed. Tese 
forums are general discussion areas for each week’s class. Tey 
tend to provide further information and allow students to ask 
questions relating to the lectures or reading materials. Tey are 
designed to help you extend your learning. Tey are a replace-
ment for the questions and discussions you might have in face-to-
face lectures and classes. When lectures are given in traditional 
campus universities, students will sometimes interrupt and ask 
for clarifcation. Or they may seek out the lecturer at the end 
of the session and ask questions or discuss a point. Sometimes, 
students will go and visit the lecturer in their ofce to talk about 
some aspect of the lecture. Clearly, none of this happens with 
online learning. Hence, these general class forums provide an 
alternative method of asking questions and gaining clarifcation. 
Your lecturer will answer, but so can other students. Indeed, that 
is an added bonus of online forums like this, which is not usually 
possible in face-to-face classes. In that situation, even if a student 
knows the answer, everyone is waiting for the lecturer to respond. 
When a question is asked in an online forum, another student can 
often respond before the lecturer checks in and sees the question. 
Tis means that general discussion forums provide a means of 
peer learning. Learning from other students in this way has been 

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