Most recent public comments by Fr. Bryan Shackett https://nowcomment.com/users/80140 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872180 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872180 While I haven't used a MANIC framework before, I can see how it would be effective. I can see students being content with it guiding the expectations. Sun, 10 May 2020 20:25:53 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872178 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872178 The idea of having a video question prompt or the word cloud method that this paragraph describes is very intriguing for me. I can see how this could greatly improve involvement and the sense of presence. As always it would increase the amount of work for the professor, but the effort would seem worth it. I can also see a video wrap up (which I believe we've discussed before) to also be helpful in this sense. Sun, 10 May 2020 22:20:13 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872168 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872168 The notion of a socratic method, or something similar, of questioning itself seems like a simple thing, but its effectiveness is clear. I think it can be easy for us to overlook this. I also like the idea of shifting this to the students. It takes some of the burden off of the professor and encourages the students' comprehension. Sun, 10 May 2020 20:15:09 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872164 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872164 I really like NowComment. I think that it is a very useful tool in discussions about certain documents or articles. I especially like that it allows students to have an active discussion on an article while in an asynchronous format. I would definitely use it in an online course. It is very helpful. Sun, 10 May 2020 20:08:29 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872163 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872163 I think that I would strive to have about 5 people in a small group. I would alter this depending upon the size of the class too. As far as roles, I too like roles of the starter, wrapper, and devil's advocate. I might include roles that have the students argue from different starting points, such as from a patristic perspective, or a historical perspective, or a papal perspective (i teach history), or a conciliar perspective. Since all of these points are important, this might help the students bring in each of these aspects. Sun, 10 May 2020 19:58:49 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872158 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872158 I can see in order for a discussion to be effective, proper rubrics must be in place to provide the expectations to the students. I also see the importance of properly directed questions that can guide the discussion. All of this, which is important for the success of the discussion requires a fair amount of work and focus of the professor. Sun, 10 May 2020 19:42:58 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872155 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1872155 As far as rubrics, I would include criteria describing the frequency of expected involvement, the accepted types of evidence or sources, and the level of detail and reasoning that is expected. While I have not tried it, I believe that there would be great benefit in having the students self-evaluate throughout the semester. It would have the effect of forcing them to see where they are in understanding, focus, and participation. Sun, 10 May 2020 19:31:32 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1871900 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1871900 I agree with your concerns about how overwhelming it could be to get "read in" in a discussion. I think this could especially be a problem for a number of our commuter students, who fit class into their lives. A possible solution to this, although it would limit certain aspects of a class being asynchronous, is having deadlines throughout the week when students must comment by. This would hopefully limit some of the overwhelming length and also encourage all students to participate throughout the week. As we've discussed before though, I can see this putting more work on the professor. Sun, 10 May 2020 17:04:24 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1871885 https://nowcomment.com/documents/140998?scroll_to=1871885 I see how more time to consider a topic and seek out support could lead "to more substantive responses." I also agree with Fr. Laboe that there would need to be some kind of accountability system if something they post is unsubstantiated or erroneous. I can see how rubrics could help in this capacity especially some kind of rubric defining what can qualify as evidence. I can see an ideal situation in which the students' can call-out each other if their claims are unsubstantiated. However, I can also see that the professor would also have to step if something erroneous was said. Sun, 10 May 2020 16:37:34 -0400