Start a poll or just an ordinary topic?
Posted: 02 Dec 2012, 05:28
Hallo.
Sometimes I think of some Blyton-related topic I think would make a good topic for discussion, or which I'm curious to know others' thoughts on - and I have to then decide whether to make it a poll with a number of options to choose, or just a general topic. And, in this thread, I'm just wondering about the specific issue of whether to make it a poll or a topic?
Sometimes I think an open-ended question for general discussion would be better, without being straitjacketed into set options that one must choose, but I have sometimes noticed that this tends to paralyze discussion rather - as if some people, faced with an open-ended question, don't quite know where to begin, and it all seems to fizzle out, even if the topic seems to interest some people at least. Perhaps some people might respond better to a poll - but then the tendency is (apart from the set form of the options limiting the range of discussion) for people simply to choose their opinions, then say nothing further. (I think I've started a few polls in the past, and I always took care to include a remark encouraging people not merely to make their choices, but to post further and discuss why they chose what they did. But nonetheless, many people chose their poll options promptly enough, but never posted to discuss the matter.)
Another option is to include a poll in a new topic, but to additionally discuss related issues in the topic. But in doing that, I've noticed that the poll tends to overshadow the other parts of the discussion, so that people respond to the poll, and ignore any comments other than the poll itself.
So would anyone like to tackle these issues, and share their thoughts on the pros and cons of polls vs. topics? I do have a couple of issues I'd like to pose, and I haven't quite decide how to do it. I'll think about it - I must probably post today if I am to at all for some time.
Regards, Michael.
Sometimes I think of some Blyton-related topic I think would make a good topic for discussion, or which I'm curious to know others' thoughts on - and I have to then decide whether to make it a poll with a number of options to choose, or just a general topic. And, in this thread, I'm just wondering about the specific issue of whether to make it a poll or a topic?
Sometimes I think an open-ended question for general discussion would be better, without being straitjacketed into set options that one must choose, but I have sometimes noticed that this tends to paralyze discussion rather - as if some people, faced with an open-ended question, don't quite know where to begin, and it all seems to fizzle out, even if the topic seems to interest some people at least. Perhaps some people might respond better to a poll - but then the tendency is (apart from the set form of the options limiting the range of discussion) for people simply to choose their opinions, then say nothing further. (I think I've started a few polls in the past, and I always took care to include a remark encouraging people not merely to make their choices, but to post further and discuss why they chose what they did. But nonetheless, many people chose their poll options promptly enough, but never posted to discuss the matter.)
Another option is to include a poll in a new topic, but to additionally discuss related issues in the topic. But in doing that, I've noticed that the poll tends to overshadow the other parts of the discussion, so that people respond to the poll, and ignore any comments other than the poll itself.
So would anyone like to tackle these issues, and share their thoughts on the pros and cons of polls vs. topics? I do have a couple of issues I'd like to pose, and I haven't quite decide how to do it. I'll think about it - I must probably post today if I am to at all for some time.
Regards, Michael.