Facilitator Tone
What is tone, and how can it be used to effectively facilitate online?
Think about emails or letters you have sent. Did they all "sound" the same? Did you want them to? A message to your credit card company contesting a fraudulent charge would have a distinctly different tone than an email asking a neighbor to meet you for coffee, or even a message to your child's teacher asking for more information on a recent assignment. The audience and the purpose of your writing impact the tone and voice you choose.
There are a variety of tones to choose from as you write. Facilitators have found the following options successful when choosing tone:
- Nurturing
- Curious
- Humorous
- Imaginative
- Analytical
- Informal
- Neutral
- Whimsical
(Collison et al, 2000, p. 125)
Obviously this list is not exhaustive! Within any one message, it is possible to include several different tones. A neutral tone is always appropriate when handling an intervention or correction. Neutrality is never "wrong," but it can be boring. Incorporating other tones when appropriate will keep your writing interesting and readable.
The tone of the facilitator sets the standard for the class as a whole. Your use of tone will create the norm for your class culture. Modeling a variety of tones in various situations will provide examples for participants to follow.
Analytical
There are times when you'll want to encourage your participants to go deeper...push farther...investigate more fully. Your encouragement and nurturing tone will help. A stream-of-consciousness post in which you "talk through" your thought process as you wrestle with an issue will help your participants join in the discussion as well.
Encouraging a deeper dialog means avoiding conversations consisting of brief shallow praise. Repetitive, short posts that say little more than "well done" will eventually have participants ignoring your posts completely and assuming that compliments are a replacement for critical thinking. We'll discuss the forums more in Module 3.
Informal/Personal
An informal, friendly, welcoming tone can help to create a safe environment in your class. Include personal stories that share who you are and what you are like beyond the words on the screen. Self-revelation is a first step in creating community online. As you share yourself, participants will follow your example. Personal stories regarding your success—and sometimes failure—with a particular skill will also be an important part of your engaging weekly openings (more on those later).
Inclusive
Be sure to avoid assumptions about your participants. You won't always know at first (or at all) if the Lyn in your class is male or female. You can't assume that everyone in your group celebrates the same holidays. Participants are joining your class from time zones, countries, and political environments very different from your own. If nurtured, these differences will invigorate and add depth to your community.
Humorous
If you don't allow humor in your classroom, you will become the subject of humor in your classroom. That advice from a PLS founder is certainly valid online as well. Humor in your class can be inspired, encouraging, and just plain enjoyable. It can also be dangerous.
Unlike a face-to-face environment, it's almost impossible to know how your joke or comment is received. If there is any chance at all your joke or comment could be misconstrued, don't use it. Remember, there is no body language or even smile on your face to show the audience that this is a joke. You must be sure that your words on the page convey the humor you intend.
Safe humor starts with self-deprecating humor. If you joke about yourself and your experiences, then you will be on fairly safe ground. Being able to laugh about your failures and share that laughter with your colleagues will encourage the same type of appropriate humor from your participants.
Formal/Neutral
Formal is the tone to use when setting guidelines, enforcing rules, and providing structure in your class. Have you ever noticed that road signs have incredibly boring fonts? No curlicues or fancy serifs...just boring print...in big font. Why? It's not about being cute or inspired. It's about getting the message across in a way that is direct and easily understood. Adding animations and a flashing font will not help your participants remember to check in with their small group. A clear facilitator forum post with guidelines and expectations for group participation can make a difference. Keeping your message neutral will help avoid a condescending tone. More detail on maintaining a neutral tone is coming in Module 3.