The collaborative process extended beyond the online forum since the students also composed a ‘micro-essay’ (150-200 words) in answer to a separate question posted to the weekly discussion board. The essay question was either directly related to the further analysis of the primary source or was framed as a question that required higher level cognitive analysis (e.g., compare and contrast). These micro-essays served primarily two purposes. First, they required the student to compose a formal written response in order to exercise composition and rhetoric skills. Second, the ‘microessay’ provided the students with a memory jogger and type of “position paper” for sharing their thoughts with a student peer during the in-class meeting. In fact, at the start of the face-to-face class students were asked to pair with a classmate in order to discuss their individual written responses thus reviving the collaborative process begun during the on-line forum. Finally, after a five minute discussion period, the instructor called on specific groups to share their insights and evaluations of each other’s thoughts with the entire class. This step not only promoted additional discussion, but also allowed the instructor to assess individual student learning. Likewise, instructor participation in this dialogue provided the opportunity to expand upon specific student comments, provide missing historical context, or to correct items related to factual inaccuracies or historical error. After the initial class discussion, the students turned in their “micro essays” which were graded and returned by the instructor at the next class providing an additional opportunity for assessing student learning as well as individual composition and rhetoric skills.