26 The Good The Bad and The Ugly of Discussion posts

p>For Discussion Forum Participation, here are some key considerations to keep in mind

Do:

• Compose substantive responses to the discussion prompts.
• Back up (cite) sources you’ve consulted to formulate your response.  For instance, if you are referencing a recent journal article, state the author’s name as well as the title of the article and journal.
• Participate in the discussion forum throughout the week/lesson.
• Pay close attention to the guidelines for forum participation outlined in your course syllabus.

Don’t:

• Give one or two word responses like “I agree”.
• Copy and paste text from other websites without paraphrasing and weaving the cited material into your own well-thought out response.
• Limit your forum participation to one or two days/logins.
• Forget that most professors have different deadlines for original responses and replies to classmates throughout the week.

Other Things to Avoid:

• Although it may seem like common knowledge to most people, be aware that any kind of harassment of others is not tolerated by Bay Path University and will result in disciplinary action as indicated by the University’s official policies.
• Recently, instances of students harassing each other online have been in the news.  Posting negative things about classmates or instructors on social networking sites (i.e. Facebook) or elsewhere on the web is often considered harassment and is not appropriate or acceptable behavior.  Remember to keep your interactions positive and professional, and if you feel that you’re being harassed by another student, report it to your instructor or the online support staff immediately.

Examples of Good Discussion Posts and Replies

An example of a well-written “original post” might look like this:

“Of the theories outlined in our readings for this week, I find myself more attracted to those that identify the nonprofit sector as the area that people seek to solve a common good that cannot or will not be addressed by government and business (e.g. public goods theory and market failure theory). Perhaps because of my business background, I believe that if there is money to be made, business would be involved. I also believe that nonprofits are uniquely equipped to play a role that neither business nor government can play. For example, in our reading from The Resilient Sector, Salamon talks about how nonprofits are perceived as encouraging individual action for the public good in the same way that business corporations encourage individual action for private gain (see p. 36). I also believe that the government is too bureaucratic and driven by the political climate and thus cannot possibly address the wide range of social needs in as nimble or timely a way as nonprofits.”

An example of a well-written “response post” looks like this:

“Maria-Your comments are insightful and I look forward to working with you in class.  Although I agree that the nonprofit sector is distinctive; the dichotomy of mission versus profits is diluted when the two overlap. For instance, I work for a profitable individual who formed a section 501(c)3 Foundation that contributes to other such designated nonprofit organizations. Although this is altruistic, it is not entirely without a profit motive, since for instance, by donating stock with considerable long-term gains, he diverts a large personal tax burden. In this instance, “revenues are resources”, but the “end purpose” becomes blurred. Do you think it is possible for us to view the sector as distinctive while at the same time blended into other sectors? Perhaps this blending is part of the nonprofit sector’s distinctiveness? What do you think?”