If you’ve ever been in an online community you are familiar with the posts that get a lot of attention. This usually also equals a lot of comments. When the comments start to pile in, it is hard to keep track of what’s what. What’s worse, sometimes the information shared is incorrect. Others times the comments go off track.
One of the most annoying thing is when commenters chime in without reading previous comments and repeat information or just share something that is no longer relevant given the context.
In many cases, once many comments come in, there can be a final answer summing everything up and providing a helpful response to the OP (original poster) and other interested parties.
In the past, this was difficult for a moderator to do, because members could sometimes just be chomping at the bit to share their insights and there was no way to end the conversation.
Thank goodness that is no longer the case. Facebook has added a new control that enables moderators to turn off commenting for a post in a Facebook community.
Directions for turning of commenting on a post
The image below shows you how to turn off commenting.
Tips to Turn Off Commenting Effectively
Before turning the commenting off, the moderator should have a summary statement to inform group members what they will find in the thread and the final result.
There may be someone who really feels they have something valuable to add. To address this, the summary statement should include directions to participants on how to contact the moderator should s/he feel there is something valuable to add. If the moderator agrees, they can temporarily turn commenting back on, and allow the person to respond.
Your Turn
What do you think? Have you been in groups where comments went on and on providing no more valuable information? Some group moderators may not even know this option is a possibility. If you find yourself in a group with this issue, now you know. You can send the moderator this article with directions on how to turn off commenting effectively.
Lisa Nielsen writes for and speaks to audiences across the globe about learning innovatively and is frequently covered by local and national media for her views on “Passion (not data) Driven Learning,” "Thinking Outside the Ban" to harness the power of technology for learning, and using the power of social media to provide a voice to educators and students. Ms. Nielsen has worked for more than a decade in various capacities to support learning in real and innovative ways that will prepare students for success. In addition to her award-winning blog, The Innovative Educator, Ms. Nielsen’s writing is featured in places such as Huffington Post, Tech & Learning, ISTE Connects, ASCD Wholechild, MindShift, Leading & Learning, The Unplugged Mom, and is the author the book Teaching Generation Text.
