The suggestions for increasing social presence that Vaughan recommended are the following:
1)Faculty should provide opportunities for introductions and ongoing social interaction.
2) Set appropriate norms for online interactions.
3) Discuss the nature of online learning and allow learners who are new to the medium to adjust to their expectations (e.g., everything takes longer online compared to f2f).
4) Be very clear about how to complete the course.
5) Allow appropriate flexibility in how students meet course outcomes
In order to facilitate this, the following learning activities could be used:
Activity 1: providing parameters in which to communicate in the online settings
Some have been expanded upon below:
-Be kind, honest and supportive
-Refrain from using ALL CAPS
Typing in all capital letters is frowned upon; it’s the equivalent of screaming at everyone.
It also makes your message more difficult to read.
-Communicate clearly
Don’t post meaningless messages
Consider sending a reply by e-mail
Refrain from cross posting
-Replying to Others Posts
For a quick reminder of the topic in long threads:
include the initial post in your reply
a link to the initial post if in another post
or cut and paste a section of the initial post
-Be careful when posting personal informatio
-Follow the forum guidelines
Check the message board area for specific Forum Guidelines, such as rules concerning
which topics should be posted in which folders and answers to Frequently Asked
Questions