The discussion board is my favorite place in the class. It allows me to directly interact with my students and engage in critical contemplation. There is a lot I could say here so let me just highlight a couple discussion board tactics I like to take. Map of the Week: At the beginning of the week I like to post a couple reminders to get the students started. They often forget APA Citations, word requirements, or how best to respond to other students. I will also post a "How I would answer this question" to get them started on the discussion topic. The rest of the week is responding to their posts with scenarios and Socratic questioning. Pro-Life or Pro-Noncognitivist? Having taught different humanities courses for a while I have noticed that students don't like to discuss theory. They are content to talk about how they feel about say abortion and their own personal experiences. But theoretical frameworks are avoided at all cost. My response then is usually something like: "Sarah, you have some great points! That is very utilitarian of you. Would you agree?". The student is usually propelled into the reading wondering if I am calling them pro-life or pro-choice. :) Online for the Holidays?: I also like to come up with fun posts that still relate to the course objectives. Every session tends to have a holiday at some point. During the week of the holiday I will post: Is it ethical to work on a holiday? We discuss the moral dilemma of celebrating a sensitive holiday like 9/11 but still having to make a living. Food for Thought posts will also call students to analyze critical topics in the media or even job issues like affirmative action and employee hiring processes that directly interest them. In the end... The great thing about academia is that it is holistic. Every field and subject can be related to teach the students. Statistics and anthropology can find common ground, as can physics and philosophy. It is as far as out intellect and introspection can take us.