Chapter 4: Using discussion forums to support historical learning Arthur Chapman Introduction This chapter begins by defining and explaining discussion forums. Forms of discussion are then identified and the nature and importance of argument and of historical argument are discussed. Examples of discussion forum use in school history are explored and some general principles of effective discussion forum use are identified. The chapter draws on the author’s experiences of working with discussion forums in history post-16 and on published case studies of the use of discussion boards in history across the 11-19 age range. Discussion forums A ‘discussion forum’ is a form of ‘computer mediated communication’ (CMC) through which participants can ‘post’ written messages, visible to other participants enrolled in the forum, and ‘reply’ to messages ‘posted’ by other participants in the forum (Mercer, 2000: 121-129). A discussion forum is, therefore, at least potentially, a medium for the ‘exchange’ of ideas. Posts can form ‘threads’ or stand alone. A sequence of posts arises when an initial post is ‘replied’ to, this ‘reply’ is ‘replied’ to, and so on, and a ‘thread’ of linked posts is created, with the replies ‘nested’ under each other in order of posting. A series of ‘unthreaded’ posts arises when a number of posts are made, but when each post stands alone and is potentially the beginning of a new ‘thread’ but is not itself ‘threaded’ to any post that came before.