The Effects of Using Online Q&A Discussion Forums with Different Characteristics as a Learning Resource
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The Effects of Using Online Q&A Discussion Forums with Different Characteristics as a Learning Resource Eric Zhi-Feng Liu • Shan-Shan Cheng Chun Hung Lin
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De La Salle University 2013
Abstract Online Q&A discussion forums have recently become important information resources for students and studies have shown that online discussion forums have a positive influence on learning outcomes. However, it remains unclear how the specific characteristics of these forums contribute to this effect. This paper employed a set of evaluative criteria based on the tenets social cognitive theory to classify Q&A discussion forums according to the features they provide and the quality of the user experience. Experiments were conducted to determine how the characteristics of online Q&A discussion forums influence discussion behavior, the quality of discourse, and learning performance. Statistical results reveal that students using more elaborate online Q&A discussion forums are more likely to actively participate in online discussions, engaging at a higher cognitive level, and enjoying superior learning performance when compared to those using forums that are more rudimentary. Keywords Online learning resource Online discussion forum Learning performance Discussion behaviors
E. Z.-F. Liu (&) Graduate Institute of Learning and Instruction, Center of Teacher Education, Research Center for Science and Technology for Learning, National Central University, Zhongli, Taiwan e-mail: [email protected] S.-S. Cheng Department of Information Mangement, Minghsin University of Science and Technology, Xinfeng, Taiwan C. H. Lin Graduate Institute of Learning and Instruction, National Central University, Zhongli, Taiwan
Introduction The internet has clearly altered the way that information is collected and shared, particularly among learners, who now regard it as an information resource (Kirkwood 2008; Ozad and Kutoglu 2010; Shaw and Woodthorpe 2009). In a study on more than 1,500 students, Chang and Liu (2011) discovered that 69 % of their subjects regularly searched the internet for resources with which to complete homework assignments. Among these resources, forums were found to be particularly accessible when using search engines to locate required information (Sahin et al. 2010). As a result, student’s use of online discussion forums has been rapidly expanding (Chang et al. 2011; Hong 2011; Hong and Lin, 2010; Tan et al. 2012). Baran and Keles (2011) described how online discussions can actually have a positive effect on learning. Asking questions is an inherent part of discussion forums and a number of researchers have demonstrated that the process of asking questions can facilitate the construction of knowledge (Hou 2008; King 1995, 1994). In addition, different types of questions trigger different cognitive activities, resulting in different types of replies (Yang et al. 2005). Baran and Keles (2011) raised the question of whether different types of online discussion forums have different effects on the acquisit
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