Both instructors and students at Ohio State were asked what advice they would give to those who use electronic class discussion in the future. Their main points included the following:

1. The decision to use electronic class discussion should be linked to course goals. One instructor said, "I think you have to have in mind why you are using the list and a vision of what you want it to become." Another said, "It should not be tangential to the course." Instructors and students recommended linking the electronic discussion to things that occur in the classroom setting by referencing points made in the discussion, linking assignments to class activities, and the like.
   
   
2. An explicit orientation to the notion of electronic class discussion should be provided. One instructor said, "You should spend at least 15 minutes with the class explaining e-mail and talking about it culturally-talking about what's going on with e-mail as a medium; what's happened to letter writing, how are we using it?" Another said, "I can set it up so that they can give each other support and encouragement and feedback and ideas, but it doesn't work if that's not what they want. If you can begin to move the students toward seeing the way they can complement one another with these kinds of exchanges, I think that would be really important."
   
   
3. Instructors should only use electronic class discussions if they are comfortable with technology. Several recommended being part of a listserver first or doing a trial run in advance of the course. One instructor mentioned that it would be good to have a partner who has used this form of teaching before. Instructors also emphasized the time commitment. One suggested, "Don't do it at a time when you're teaching another new course. There's lots to learn-technically, conceptually, philosophically, pedagogically."
   
   
4. Instructors and students alike pointed out that the instructor needs to be willing to put in the time needed for being a good facilitator. Students recommended that instructors maintain a balance between enough structure to ensure order and civility but not so much as to dominate student discussion. One instructor indicated that the amount of structure will depend on the course goals: "If it's a writing class, I'd say that the [electronic discussion] should be the students' space and that the instructor should be very passive and talk about issues and conflicts in writing as they come up and help them bring this to their paper assignments. . . . If it's for more of a content area, I would focus it upon certain issues that they're going to discuss: reactions to books they may have read, reactions to historical events. The students and faculty suggested that instructors emphasize good netiquette and model it themselves. The instructor should also structure the list. As one said, "You can't just say, 'Write about something.' It has to be an assignment. [The students] have to feel it's important."
   
   
5. Most faculty pointed out that it is far better when using a listserver to subscribe students rather than have them subscribe themselves. Class lists now come with electronic mail addresses on them and instructors have found these far more reliable than students' memories of their mail addresses.
   
   
6. Instructors cautioned against assuming that students know more about using electronic mail than they do. Although we are accustomed to hearing about the information age and that students have been using computers for years, much of this use has been for games and entertainment, so knowledge of mail programs, the conventions of word processing, and the like might not be as developed as assumed.
   
   
7. Students called for more direct help in getting started with electronic discussion. First of all, instructors should make sure that all have access to the computers, modems, and software that they need. Distributing lists of computer labs and their hours was suggested. Several instructors also mentioned that faculty must be ready to provide this instruction themselves or should link students with peers or with technical support staff. A few students mentioned that printed instructions or taking the class to a computer lab for a first class session on learning the system would be helpful.
   
   
8. Although some students resented requirements for a certain number of postings, most frequently because they felt that they did not have anything to say, most recommended that instructors require participation in some way. One instructor commented, "Motivation in a learning environment within a university means it has to be related to grades and requirements rather than some kind of intrinsic value. I don't like being reminded of this, but it's true." Several students called for an explicit grading rubric as well. They recommend that instructors specify how their contributions will be evaluated.
   
   
9. Students recommended that instructors limit the number of messages to a reasonable amount. They would like this number to be set based upon class size so that students do not receive an inordinate number of messages. One student suggested that when class sizes are large, separate discussion lists be set up for subsections of the class to keep the numbers down.
   
   
10. Students and instructors both suggested that instructors supplement the use of electronic class discussion with other forms of electronic communication such as personal e-mail and web-based assignments.