Course Tools

Discussion Board

Introduction

Discussion Boards are used to provide communication among a group of users. Discussions are grouped into 'forums', while individual discussions are shown by their topic, or 'thread'. This allows users in the group to focus on the discussions that are important to them.

The Discussion Board is a widely used tool, with many parts. To provide as much information as possible, we have spread the Discussion Board instructions over a few pages.

Discussion Board

Discussion Board Forums

Forums divide the types of discussions into logical groups. Your instructor may divide sections of content, or separate course topics with course admin information.

Click on the forum name to enter…

Discussion Board forums

Inside the forum, you will be shown a list of discussions… also known as ‘threads’. Each thread is made up of a message and all replies to it, to make it easier to follow a discussion. If you click on the image below, you will see an expanded view - which includes the columns showing the number of Unread Posts (the number of posts within the thread that you haven't read) and Total Posts.

Click on the subject of a thread to see the discussion...

Message listings within a thread
(Click the image for a broader view)

Click on the subject name of a message to display the post.

Message body

» Discussion Board Threads

Discussion Board Threads are created inside a forum. They basically contain all posts along a particular topic and help keep the forum organized.

Forum - List of Threads

Tree View vs. List View

When viewing the threads in a forum, you may notice buttons in the upper right-hand corner for Tree View and List View. These options give you the ability to choose how you view the threads, and their contents.

Discussion Board - Tree View / List View buttons
(Click for comparison of views)

Starting a new thread begins a new discussion. All replies to that post will be contained within the same thread. Think of a thread as a container for related posts.

Creating a new thread = starting a new discussion

Discussion Board Thread Detail

Create a new thread

» Start a New Thread/Discussion

1. Go to the Discussion Board tool in your course.
2. You should see a list of available forums - click the forum you want to start the new discussion in.
3. To start a new discussion, click the Create Thread button in the menu bar. This allows you to compose the initial post in a thread.
4. Enter a Subject - it's best to make sure it relates to the discussion in as few words possible.
5. Compose the body of your post.
6. Attachments - if you have a file that you would like the class to download, you can attach it here.
   1. Go to section 2, entitled Attachments
      
   2. If you would like to attach a file from your computer: click the Browse My Computer button and locate the file on your computer that you would like to upload.
   3. If you would like to attach a file from your Content Collection folder: click the Browse Content Collection button and locate the file in your content collection folder that you would like to attach.
7. Once you are ready to publish your post, click the Submit button.

» View posts

1. Enter a Discussion Board forum by clicking on the forum name.
2. You will see a list of threads. Click on the name of a thread to see all posts within the thread.
3. To view an individual post in the discussion thread, click on the name of the post. The body of the post will appear in the blue section of the screen.

In the header of the post, you will be able to see who posted it, at what time and whether there is an attachment. Click on the attachment to download it.

If you are given moderator access to a discussion forum, you will see the remove button for this post. Keep in mind that deleting this post will remove it - and all replies to it - from the whole class.

All users will see a reply button - use this to continue the discussion thread.

» Reply to Posts

Message options: Reply, Quote, Set Flag

Replying to an existing allows you to continue the discussion in the thread.

You will find the Reply button on the right side of the post window, while you are reading a post.

If you click the Show Parent Post button, you will see the post to which you are replying. This allows you to refer to the post while you reply. If you would like to copy and paste parts of the original post into your reply, it is best to use the Quote option instead of Reply (if your instructor has made it available in your course).

1. Click the Reply button and it will direct you to the response page.
2. Compose a reply post.
3. Attach a file, if necessary.
4. Click Submit. Your post will appear in the same thread as the post you are replying to, indented from it slightly.
5. If there is a star rating option in the message, this means your instructor has allowed you to rate the message. To rate, roll the mouse over the stars and click on a star. The rating will turn green. Click Ok at the bottom of the page to submit your rating.

» Collect Posts

The Collect button lets you view multiple posts on one page. This is especially useful if you select an entire thread to view at once.

» Search Posts

The Search Function allows users to lookup specific posts based on certain criteria. The Search icon is visible in both the main Discussion Board and within a forum, with only one difference (see description below).

Click the Search button to view the Search interface.

Search button

Discussion Board Search

• Search: the empty text field next to the word search is for any keywords you may be searching by. This can include words used in a post, or even the name of the post author.
• In: what area of the Discussion Board is being searched? Choose from:
  • Current Forum - will limit the search to posts in this forum only (if searching from within a particular Discussion Board Forum)
  • Current Discussion Board - depending on which board you are in, this can be the course Discussion Board, or a private group Discussion Board
  • All Forums in Course - will include the course Discussion Board, and any private group boards
• After/Before - If checked, it will only search for posts after the specified date and/or before the specified date. You may choose either, or both of these criteria.

Click Go to begin the search. The results are Collected, and can be sorted or filtered (just like a regular post 'collect'), and can be printed (using the Print Preview button at the top of the screen).