Also discussions are mostly limited to text and lack nonverbal cues. Moderators can do a great deal to facilitate group process on-line. Help the group grapple with the content. Participants have more time to reflect before responding to the discussion questions or to particular messages that have been posted. This aspect can be an advantage in dealing thoughtfully with the content.
Moderators can ask questions and probe without putting someone on the spot.
Use questions to help the discussion progress. While one or two questions may be all that a group can tend to when the issue is introduced, more specific questions related to the on-going discussion can focus thinking and keep the discussion productive. Save an adequate amount of time for closing the discussion. In order to harvest the voices and summarize common and divergent points of the discussion, it is important to allow for further participant input. Because participants may not be on-line everyday, it is important to leave enough time that everyone who wants to can have a final comment.