Activity:
Students will engage in an online forum on the Moodle platform where they can openly share their experiences with disinformation and deceptive content. The forum will serve as an ongoing space for discussion and reflection on the use of digital tools for verifying information.
Pre-requisites
Students should have basic familiarity with social media, online news consumption, and digital communication platforms. Prior exposure to critical thinking or media studies is beneficial but not mandatory.
Explanation of activity
- Setting Up the Moodle Forum:
- The instructor will create a dedicated discussion forum within the Moodle platform.
- Students will have the option to post openly or anonymously, allowing for free expression without concern for judgment.
- Initial Reflection Post:
- Students will write an introductory post sharing a personal or observed experience with disinformation.
- They should address:
- What was the misleading content?
- How did they realize it was deceptive (or how was it later debunked)?
- What impact did it have on them or their community?
- Peer Interaction & Discussion:
- Students will read and respond to at least two other posts, engaging in discussions, asking questions, or providing additional examples.
- The instructor will guide the conversation by posing weekly discussion prompts (e.g., “Have you ever fallen for a misleading headline? How did you react when you found out the truth?”).
- Exploring Digital Tools:
- Throughout the course, students will be introduced to fact-checking and AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Truly Media, FactCheck.org, etc.).
- They will return to the forum periodically to reflect on their experiences using these tools:
- How effective were they?
- What were their limitations?
- How did their understanding of disinformation evolve?
- Ongoing Reflection & Weekly Engagement:
- The forum will remain active throughout the course, with students encouraged to update their posts or add new experiences with disinformation.
- The instructor will moderate the discussions, highlighting key insights and encouraging critical thinking.
- Final Reflection & Summary Post:
- At the end of the course, students will write a final post, summarizing their learning journey.
- They should discuss their key takeaways, changes in perception, and strategies they plan to use to navigate online information critically.
Teacher materials
- Guide for setting up and moderating Moodle forums
- Suggested discussion prompts
- List of reliable fact-checking resources
- Sample posts for reference
Relevant Reading to Understand the Materials:
Zhang, E., Zhang, Z., Liu, H., Han, S., & Xue, Z. (2025). Exploring peer facilitation and critical thinking in asynchronous online discussions: A lag sequential analysis approach. British Journal of Educational Technology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.13583
Further Reading to Develop the Activity/Understanding of the Topic:
Student Materials
- Access to Moodle forum
- List of digital verification tools (e.g., FactCheck.org, Snopes, Google Reverse Image Search)
- List of (1) Persuasive techniques, (2) Sources’ validity/reliability criteria
Analysis of Student Understanding
- Quality and depth of initial reflection post
- Engagement in discussions with peers
- Application of digital verification tools in reflections
- Final summary post demonstrating critical growth
Assessing and Evaluation
- Participation (30%) – Consistent engagement in forum discussions
- Depth of Analysis (40%) – Thoughtfulness in reflections and responses
- Final Reflection (30%) – Demonstration of critical thinking and growth
Modulations
- Can be adapted for younger students with guided discussion prompts
- Can be expanded into a research project where students track disinformation cases
- Can be integrated with guest lectures from journalists or media analysts
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Resources
June 18, 2025
