In our journal club you may act in the role of journal club lead or participant. Ideally, you will take the opportunity to act in both roles.
Do you know how to be a successful online learner?
How Students Develop Online Learning Skills discusses tactics of successful online students. Read and analyze it from both the perspective of student, in our case journal club participant, and of instructor, journal club lead. There are good tips on how you can make the online journal club a valuable learning experience.
Roper’s (2007) study found the following:
The instructor’s role is important in encouraging class discussions online. A student explained, “Weekly discussions were best when the teacher encouraged it, especially by having pro versus con discussion, or asking ‘why’ or ‘how’ questions.” Instructors who establish clear expectations as to how threaded discussions are used or who ask specific questions in response to student postings can expect to encourage richer online dialogue. Students who incorporate a plan for regular communication with their classmates into their overall course schedule will have greater success in their online course. (p.63)
Roper, A.R. (2007). How Students Develop Online Learning Skills. Retrieved from https://er.educause.edu/articles/2007/1/how-students-develop-online-learning-skills
Do you know how to be a successful online journal club lead?
From ‘hello’ to higher-order thinking: The effect of coaching and feedback on online chats discusses how an instructor can improve the quality of an online discussion through providing feedback. This article offers us insight on how the lead in our online journal club can make our discussions more valuable through coaching.
Stein, D.S., Wanstreet, C.E., Slagle, P., & Trinko, M.L., (2012). From ‘hello’ to higher-order thinking: The effect of coaching and feedback on online chats. The Internet and Higher Education, 16, 78-84.