Online Q & A discussion forums have recently become important information resources for students and studies have shown that online discussion forums have a positive influence on learning outcomes. However, it remains unclear how the specific characteristics of these forums contribute to this effect. This paper employed a set of evaluative criteria based on the tenets of social cognitive theory to classify Q & A discussion forums according to the features they provide and the quality of the user experience. Experiments were conducted to determine how the characteristics of online Q&A discussion forums influence discussion behavior, the quality of discourse, and learning performance. Statistical results reveal that students using more elaborate online Q&A discussion forums are more likely to actively participate in online discussions, engaging at a higher cognitive level, and enjoying superior learning performance when compared to those using forums that are more rudimentary.
Keywords: Online learning resource Online discussion forum Learning performance Discussion behaviorsAnderson, L. W., & Krathwohl, D. R. (Eds.). (2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives. New York: Addison Wesley Longman.
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