View Thread > Development and the Internet > Rotisserie Feedback > Rotisserie reaction

For the most part, I  quite enjoyed using the Rotisserie for this class. I felt that, as was likely intended, it did indeed cause me to participate more frequently than I might otherwise have done.
It legitmized my participation when the class was considering topics upon which I might have ordinarily felt too 'un-expert' to comment.

But I do have a few comments—some about the Rotisserie, some about the Course—which I've made below and, in some cases, on the Webboard:

1. It would be nice to get more than one response upon which to comment  OR the possibility to select one response from several responses. I've received several posts where I am just not sure how to respond (either post is  off-topic or unclear); this has been frustrating on occasion.

2.  I admit that I am not personally inclined to critique posts, especially in an ansynchronous internat'l forum.

In such a situation the constraints of the Rotisserie means that one can't ask quickly for clarification on the post. I don't feel very comfortable giving criticism or issuing a *quite contrary* opinion to a post in an environment where there are large possibilities for my misunderstanding the author's intent. In some ways this is optimal yet in other ways, it is not.

So I think that real debate over contentious subjects would probably be more likely to occur in a synchronous chat, where clarification and questioning can occur.

3. I  didn't check Webboard until quite late. I missed some of the content (chat times, etc) that was placed there. I had assumed that Webboard had equivalent (though less discursive) content than H20. As I found out, this was not true.

4. I am a bit frustrated by the layout of the discussion threads and wish that there was an easier way to see all comments for a thread.

Also the thread headers often are quite compressed (only a few words) and then go for several lines, with the entire thread thus spanning several scrolls and go quite severely right across my screen.

5. It would be nice to have all the materials available ASAP and to be able to start the reading and responses as soon as the topic is announced—except where this wouldn't be a good idea instructionally.

6. I also yesterday wanted to add clarifying comments (in answer to questions from my responder) on the thread for my response but found that I couldn't. This was a bit of a bummer.

7. I found that, for myself, in the context of having a week to read and to reply, I didn't do many (okay, almost none) of the Assignments. The pull of the Rotisserie caused me to allocate my limited time to that medium when push came to ...pull/shove. ; - )

8. It would be nice to have an ending online chat for the course.

All in all, however,  I can see using the Rotisserie for other projects that I might design and have already suggested that colleagues take a look at it.

Thank you so much for your helpful suggestions.  

We actually included chat in the first years of our online programs.  There are some limitations, however; the different time zones make it difficult for everyone to participate at one time; many firewalls are configured to block it; connection time is extremely expensive in most developing nations; and it's hard for our small staff to support discussion 24x7. So we chose not to offer it with this program because we wanted everyone to have fairly equal access.

To respond to some of your points:

1.  I liked having an assigned question.  This made me feel like an integral part of the course, rather than most distance learning courses- where you simply perform ritual, read the material and plug in a response.  The assigned question made the course more interactive.  A good idea might be to give us an option to answer any 1 question from a set of responses.

2.  The real time chat would be difficult for everyone based on their schedules.  I think that just notifying the person who posted a message that a response has been provided is sufficient for them to go and take a look and respond again, if they have more to say or need to clarify.  The H20 already has this capability and it worked well for me.

3.I use WebBoard in my courses now.  It is a good discussion forum, with some shortfalls.  I liked the H20 in some unique ways, such as its ability to send assigned questions to participants; and, the fact that you can set a time limit, in the case of using it for exams and timed assignments.  I personally would like to know more about it's utility from a manager's perspective.

4.  I did find this aspect of H20 frustrating.  I really had to figure out how to see all the discussion threads.  This was somewhat problemmatic.

5.  I like the paced steps in the course.  I just need to focus on the topic at hand and not move ahead.  I like to digest a segment well first.  I recommend that each module be extended to 2 weeks so that we have sufficient time to really diigest material and think deeply about responses.

6.  I believe you can clarify your comments by going to the editing button.  I did this and it worked.

7. I agree there is insufficient time to read all the materials and then respond in the time parameters currently in place.  More time is needed to do this course well.

8. The online chat is fine, but here again, many people will not be able to participate due to schedules.  A possibility might be on a weekend afternoon, such as Sunday.