Admin.krossys: Created page with "Communication is key to online learning. Moodle provides different types of forums for different needs. TOC == 1. Announcements (The "News" Forum) == Every course comes with a special forum called '''Announcements''' automatically created at the top. * '''Direction''': One-way. Only teachers can post here. Students can read, but cannot reply. * '''Subscription''': Forced. All students receive an email copy of these posts automatically. * '''Use Case''': "Class is..."

2026-01-18T23:44:17Z

Created page with "Communication is key to online learning. Moodle provides different types of forums for different needs. __TOC__ == 1. Announcements (The "News" Forum) == Every course comes with a special forum called '''Announcements''' automatically created at the top. * '''Direction''': One-way. Only teachers can post here. Students can read, but cannot reply. * '''Subscription''': Forced. All students receive an email copy of these posts automatically. * '''Use Case''': "Class is..."

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Communication is key to online learning. Moodle provides different types of forums for different needs.

__TOC__

== 1. Announcements (The "News" Forum) ==
Every course comes with a special forum called '''Announcements''' automatically created at the top.

* '''Direction''': One-way. Only teachers can post here. Students can read, but cannot reply.
* '''Subscription''': Forced. All students receive an email copy of these posts automatically.
* '''Use Case''': "Class is cancelled today", "Exam grades are released", "Welcome to Week 1".
* '''Warning''': Do not delete this forum. If you delete it, you lose the ability to blast emails to the whole class.

== 2. Standard Forum (Discussion Board) ==
If you want students to talk to you or each other, add a new Forum.

# Turn '''Edit mode ON'''.
# Add activity → '''Forum'''.
# '''Name''': e.g., "Week 1 Q&A".

=== Forum Types ===
Choose the right "Forum type" in the settings:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Type
! Behavior
! Best For...
|-
| '''Standard forum for general use''' (Default)
| Anyone can start a new topic. Anyone can reply.
| Open discussions, social cafes, general Q&A.
|-
| '''Q and A forum'''
| The teacher posts a question. Students '''must post their own reply''' before they can see other students' replies.
| Assessment tasks where you don't want students copying each other.
|-
| '''A single simple discussion'''
| A single topic/thread, right on the page. No "Add new topic" button.
| Short, focused discussions (e.g., "Introduce yourself here").
|}

== 3. Subscription Mode ==
This controls whether students get emails when someone posts.

* '''Optional subscription''': Students can choose to subscribe or unsubscribe (Recommended for general chatter).
* '''Forced subscription''': Everyone gets emails. They cannot opt-out.
* '''Auto subscription''': Everyone is subscribed initially, but they can opt-out if it gets too annoying.

== 4. Grading Forums ==
You can grade participation!

* In Forum settings, go to '''Whole forum grading'''.
* Set '''Type''' to "Point".
* When you view the discussion, you will see a "Grade" button next to student posts. This is great for "Participation Grade" requirements.

Teacher: Forums & Communication - Revision history