Question

At the end of each unit, DB participation is assessed based on level of engagement and the quality of the contribution to the discussion. DBs allow learners to learn through sharing ideas and experiences as they relate to course content. Because it is not possible to engage in two-way dialogue after a conversation has ended, no posts to the DB are accepted after the end of the unit. Learners must demonstrate an appropriate depth of understanding of course content to receive credit for having submitted substantive posts. Typically, this is achieved with 3–4 strong paragraphs for Main Posts and 2–3 strong paragraphs for Response Posts.

Part of successfully implementing a strategic plan is involving everyone in the organization in the plan. You work as an admission coordinator for an assisted living facility that just enacted its 5-year strategic plan. However, no one has communicated any of the components of the plan to any departments, including yours. Instead, management has chosen to include only senior-level management.

• What do you think of this implementation approach?

• Do you think it will be an effective strategy? Why or why not?

• What would you do differently to ensure the successful implementation of the assisted living facility's strategic plan?

• Direct your comments specifically to an assisted living facility's characteristics and how a strategic plan might be implemented in such an organization.

In your own words, post a substantive response to the Discussion Board question(s) and comment on other postings. Your response should address the DB question(s) and move the conversation forward. You will be graded on the quality of your postings, including mastery of the concept as well as critical thinking. If asked for your opinion, do not simply state that it is a good or bad idea; elaborate on your reasons and argument. Include enough detail to substantiate your thinking as well as your position on the questions or comments.

Answer 1

Discussion Board Participation and Expectations

I want to take this time to discuss a few expectations and helpful information about how to participate in the weekly online discussions. You can scroll down the page or use the links here to navigate to each section. All Discussions can be found by clicking on the Discussions link located on the left-hand side of the course.

• Participating in Group Discussions
• Posting to the Discussion Boards
• Grading Rubric for Weekly Discussions
• Online Discussion Netiquette

Participation in the discussion forums is critical for maximizing student learning in this course, both because your participation is graded and because it's a chance to engage in a dialogue about course material. In this course, students are required to be a part of an online community of learners who collectively interact, through discussion, to enhance and support the professional performance of each other. Part of the assessment criteria for the course includes evaluating the quality and quantity of your participation in the discussion forum.

The TAs will facilitate student discussions, although they likely will not address every single post. In most cases, they might share a related idea, intervene when the discussion goes off-track, or tie student comments together to help deepen student learning. Remember, if you have a specific question, pose it directly to Professor Faubion or the TAs--not on the discussion boards.

Some characteristics I consider to be part of excellent discussion contributions are outlined below. I will consider these characteristics when assessing the quality and level of student participation.

• Posts and responses should be thorough and thoughtful. Just posting an "I agree" or "Good ideas" will not be considered adequate. Support statements with examples, experiences, or references. Be brief — keep each post and response to one or two short paragraphs. Keep in mind that fellow learners will be reading and responding to you, too.
• Posts should be within a range of 75-150 words.
• Make certain that all posts and responses address the question, problem, or situation as presented for discussion. This does not mean you should not extend the topic, but do not stray from the topic.
• Discussions occur when there is dialogue; therefore, you need to build upon the posts and responses of other learners to create discussion threads. Make sure to revisit the discussion forum and respond (if necessary) to what other learners have posted to your initial responses.
• When relevant, add to the discussion by including prior knowledge, work experiences, references, resources, etc. (giving credit when appropriate).
• Contributions to the discussions (posts and responses) should be complete and free of grammatical or structural errors.

You will notice there are several non-graded discussion boards available.

Another non-graded discussion board is the Classroom Café Discussion Board. This discussion board is for students to use to socialize with classmates. You can use this discussion board to finish a conversation that drifted off-topic elsewhere in a unit discussion or simply use this space to get to know your classmates better.

Lastly, there are discussion forums for each of the five possible Global Fund countries (you will be introduced to this component in module #1). This is where you can discuss, problem solve, share resources, etc. with your classmates related to the country you choose for your Global Fund project.

Posting to the Discussion Board

1. To post your initial response to a discussion board, simply click in reply box located below the question. You will notice the box will then enlarge and display word editing options. When you have finished typing your response in the box, click "Post Reply."

2. To respond to a classmate's post, navigate to the reply box beneath your classmate's post and type your response in the same manner as described above.