Prof. Michael Goldberg
BIS 300: Interdisciplinary Inquiry
Spring 2003

Asynchronous Discussion Assignment

Before posting to the discussion board, read all of the writing assignment postings by your group members as well as any responses made to them, taking notes as you go. Next, decide whether you want to respond directly to a point that has already been made, or a point that you think works best on its own. If the former, determine whose post your are responding to: the original post and the overall discussion taking place, or one of the responses to the post. Then, click the "Reply" button to the appropriate posting. If you feel you are changing the direction of the discussion, note this with a change in the subject line. If you are posting a new point, make sure you reference other points that have discussed anything you are now bringing up. Take care with your subject line, using a descriptive title of your main argument. It's better to be clear than clever.

The class is having this assignment in lieu of a classroom meeting. The reading assignment consists of reading the posted writing assignments. The "classroom" part is the asynchronous discussion. Plan on spending at least two hours on this part of the assignment over several days. You must post once by Wednesday at 1pm and once by Friday at 10pm. You may continue the discussion through Monday's class. Remember that you will need to post a new response paper by Sunday night, on a new Blackboard forum.

Before you start this assignment, read these Online Discussion Tips for Students.

As you are participating in this discussion, be mindful of the ways that asynchronous discussion is both different and similar to in-class discussion. Note its costs and benefits for you as a learner and to the class as a whole.