Using
Seminars and Debates
What's the difference between a debate and a seminar? A debate is live. Therefore it requires that more than one person is connected at the same time. Seminars can happen over a period of time. You would use a debate to discuss a particular topic with fellow students and tutors in a less formal way . To participate in the live discussion it is not expected that you can verify an opinion, instead it is hoped that you will respond to the live conversation with ideas and thoughts as they occur to you. Seminars The Seminars found in Whitehall On-line are web conferences. Web conferences are discussion areas. Typically conferences have administrators and moderators who create and manage discussions on certain themes (sometimes known as 'threads'). The administrator is the person who manages the whole conference set up, while moderators may be tutors who take responsibility for managing particular discussions. Conferencing is asynchronous - in other words discussions are not 'live' and do not depend on participants being connected at the same time. The Whitehall Seminars are designed so that people who share an interest (a course for example) can:
Some discussion areas may be set up so that contributors need a password before sending a message. Generally this is not the case. Be aware that any messages you post may be read by anyone. Periodically discussions will be managed. This means that moderators will decide that there are either too many messages, some messages are out of date and or messages are not relevant or helpful. Messages can therefore disappear. Usually a moderator will give a week's notice before a radical clean up. If there's useful information in a Seminar discussion it is best to note it down when you see it rather than relying upon it being there next time you visit. There are various Seminar discussions. Discussions may be divided into sub-topic discussions. There are various ways of reading the discussions. From the Seminar Viewer drop down menu at the top of the page you can view messages by topic or by when messages were posted. In addition you can search the seminars for key words. Contributing to Seminar discussions To contribute a message to a Seminar you will find an 'Add A Message' box at the bottom of each topic or sub-topic page. Type your message in the message box, then enter your name. If you have an e-mail address include it in the box provided, and also include the correct password if necessary (your tutor will have informed you about this). You will then have to press the Post/Review button. Your message is presented to you for checking. Make ammendments if necessary or press the Post button. Your message will be added to the discussion. The Seminar section has its own help system which can be found under the headings in the Seminar Viewer drop down menu at the top of the page:
Debates Whitehall On-line Debates take the form of web-based Chat. There are various Internet Chat systems around. The system used here is deliberately simple and not sophisticated. This is because we recognise that many people who use Whitehall On-line are new to the Internet. To participate in a Debate you must first announce yourself by typing your name in the login. Click the Enter button. Your arrival will be announced so that anyone else who is present is aware of your arrival. You are then presented with a line where you can type your contribution. Pressing Send submits your comment to the live discussion. Using the other buttons you can discover who else is logged in and obtain more detailed help. You should announce your intention to leave the discussion when you have finished. How do I know when a debate is taking place? Because debates are live they need to be scheduled. If a tutor thinks that it would be a good idea for students to debate an idea the tutor will inform students either directly or by posting a message to the Seminar. In addition a Debate Schedule page is available to announce forthcoming debates. Can I practice using the Debating system? Yes. To do this Whitehall On-line provides the Cyber Cafe. If you want to practice or meet others for an informal chat post a message to the Seminar called Meet Me in the Cyber Cafe setting a time. If there's a demand Whitehall On-line will provide a regular time slot for get togethers in the Cyber Cafe. |
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