Content Analysis of Online Discussion in an Applied Educational Psychology Course

This study analyzed discussion in an online conference that supplemented class discussion within a traditional graduate level educational psychology course. At least once during the online discussion, each student in the course assumed the role of a starter who initiated a discussion as well as the role of a wrapper who concluded a discussion. Various quantitative measures were recorded to compare instructor and student participation rates. In addition, Henri’s (1992) model for content analysis of computer-mediated communication was used to qualitatively analyze the electronic discourse. The five key variables examined with this model were: (1) student participation; (2) electronic interaction; (3) social cues; (4) cognitive skills and depth of processing; and (5) metacognitive skills and knowledge. Transcript content analyses revealed that, while students tended to post just the one required comment per week in the conference, their messages were lengthy, cognitively deep, and indicative of a student oriented environment. Moreover, students were using high level cognitive skills such as inferencing and judgment as well as metacognitive skills related to reflecting on experience and self-awareness. Interactivity graphs displayed that student electronic comments became more interactive over time, but were highly dependent on the directions of discussion starter. To better understand the impact of electronic discourse, modifications to Henri’s model as well as qualitative research suggestions were offered.