Pedagogical lurking: Student engagement in non-posting discussion behavior

  • Authors:

  • Vanessa Paz Dennen

  • Affiliations:

  • Educational Psychology and Learning Systems, Florida State University, 307 Stone Building, MC 4453, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA

  • Venue:
  • Computers in Human Behavior
  • Year:
  • 2008

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Abstract

This paper presents the results of a study of student non-posting participation behavior in two online classes. Most often active message is assessed and thus implicitly valued in online class discussion, but the act of writing messages is not the only factor that contributes to student learning. However, it is the most visible and easiest to measure. Students may engage in processes of reading and reflection on the discussion board, not leaving their mark; it is these acts that may be referred to as pedagogical lurking. In this study, students were asked to self-report their non-visible course activities, the reasons behind these activities and their perceived usefulness related to learning. Findings show that about half of the students felt that they learned through the online discussion experience, and that they believe both posting and reading messages contributed to their ability to learn. These students were likely to enter the discussion before posting to obtain a model for participation, and to return at a later time to check for replies and reflect. Students who participated solely to meet course requirements and who focused on posting messages more than reading messages had less positive impressions of the discussion activity's impact on learning.