A tendency to revere the contribution of the tutor often appeared in the interviews. One student reported,
Whenever I go on the discussion forum I always search down and look for a lecturer’s name so I go for lecturers more than the students. I mean I do read it all when I expand the text but I look for their notes. I know that’s sort of like gospel. It’s the right one. They know what they’re talking about. (Student, 2009)
For this student, the discussion forum did not in any way disrupt traditional concepts of a tutor’s authority; it merely necessitated the development of new practical strategies for locating that voice. This attitude may well have inhibited the discussion as the strategic students often emailed the tutors directly. When tutors responded to a one-to-one e-message, students were again in effect acting strategically by avoiding the discussion. When the tutor’s ideas are considered the most important, there is a danger that student contributions to the discussion will remain at the level of requests for clarification or confirmation of “rightness.”