Creating and Managing Groups and Assignments

Making the Most of Discussions

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Workshop Overview...... 4 Roadmap...... 5 The Student Experience...... 6 The Discussion Board...... 7 Within a Forum...... 8 Changing the Displayed Threads...... 10 Within a Thread...... 11 Replying to Posts...... 12 Rating Posts...... 14 Creating Threads...... 15 Collecting Posts...... 16 Best Practice: Set Etiquette Guidelines...... 18 Creating Discussions...... 19 The Discussion Board...... 20 Creating Forums...... 21 Creating Threads...... 24 Email Subscriptions...... 25 Best Practice: Craft Effective Questions...... 27 Moderating Discussions...... 29 The Art of Moderating...... 30 Assigning Forum Roles...... 31 Moderating Posts...... 33 Changing Thread Status...... 35 Managing Discussions...... 37 Modifying Forums...... 38 Copying Forums...... 40 Organizing Forums & Threads...... 42 Tagging Threads...... 43 Grading Discussions...... 47 The Grading Process...... 48 Assigning Grades...... 49 Emailing Students...... 51 Best Practice: Define Grading Criteria...... 53 Workshop Wrap Up...... 54 Spotlight on Your Course...... 56 Resources...... 57

This workshop provides a hands-on introduction to the Discussion Board tool, a place where you and your students can post messages for discussion. Research supports the relationship between interpersonal interaction in the online environment and the learning that takes place. One study1 of over 6,000 college students found that:

 Students who rated instructors highly on "teaching presence" behaviors, such as facilitating effective discourse, also reported high levels of satisfaction and learning in the course

 Students’ interactions with each other were related to course satisfaction and learning

Discussions offer an important vehicle for interpersonal interaction and can be created to serve a range of purposes:

 An online meeting place for social interaction among peers

 A medium to pose questions about homework assignments, readings, and course content

 A graded activity that demonstrates understanding or application of course material

First, you will use the tool as a student to familiarize yourself with how it will appear to your own students. Then, you will move to the instructor perspective and learn how to use the tool at each point in the lifecycle of discussions – from creating forums and threads to moderating, managing, and grading discussions.

1 Shea, P. J., Pickett, A. M., & Pelz, W. E. (2003). A Follow-Up Investigation of "Teaching Presence" in the SUNY Learning Network [Electronic version]. JALN, 7 (2), 73-74. Retrieved January 11, 2006 from http://www.sloan-c.org/publications/jaln/v7n2/v7n2_shea.asp

The Student Experience Navigate messages: Learn to access forums and threads

Post messages: Learn to reply to posts and create threads

Rate messages: Use the peer rating feature to rate posts and receive feedback on your posts

Creating Forums and Threads Create forums: Learn about forum settings, including grading and peer rating options

Set thread options: During forum creation, set thread options such as grading and student creation of threads

Moderating Discussions Assign forum roles: Share administration responsibilities or moderate activity in the forum

Use the Moderation Queue: Return or approve posts

Set thread display: Change thread status or lock threads

Managing Discussions Modify forum settings: Learn how to change forum availability and settings as the discussion progresses

Copy forums: Use the copy feature to save time when creating forums

Organize forums and threads: Learn how to keep discussions organized by reordering forums, and removing forums and threads

Grading Discussions The grading process: See how the discussions grading process works for you and your students

Grade discussions: Learn how to assign grades to forums and threads and how to edit or remove them

In this section, we’ll explore Discussions from the student perspective. This will allow you to try common functions, such as navigating forums and threads, reading and replying to posts, and collecting and printing posts. The information will also provide some context for the decisions you make as an instructor.

Learning Outcomes

After completing this section, you will be able to:

 navigate discussion forums and threads

 create threads and reply to posts

 collect posts for sorting, filtering, and printing

 explain the different ways to view selected threads

 rate posts

 use appropriate discussion etiquette

Depending on how the course has been set up, you might access the Discussion Board tool from:

 the Course Menu

 the Communication link on the Tools Panel

 a Content Area

In addition, discussions can be set up for groups. If a group Discussion Board has been set up, you access it from the Group Pages link under Communication. Any group’s Discussion Board is private, with forums available only to those users who are part of the group.

Each Discussion Board contains: World Politics Forum One or more forums. A forum is an area where a topic or a group of related topics are discussed. Energy & War Global Warming Within each forum, there can be multiple threads. Post a Post 1 Thread

 A thread is the initial post and Post b Post 2 any replies to it

Post c Post 3  A post is a message within the thread

The Discussion Board Page The main Discussion Board page displays a list of available discussion forums. For each forum, the page displays the total number of posts, the number of posts you have not read, and the number of course members who have participated in the forum.

YouYou cancan seesee datadata onon thethe numbernumber ofof postsposts and participants ClickClick thethe forumforum namename toto and participants enterenter thethe forumforum

Figure 1

Within a forum, a list of threads is displayed. The following information is included for each thread:

 Date: the date the thread was created

 Author: the person who created the thread

 Thread status: whether the thread is published, hidden, or draft. Instructors set the thread status, but students can select which kind of threads to display.

 Unread posts: number of posts in the forum you have not yet accessed

 Total posts: includes both read and unread posts TwoTwo views:views: TreeTree ViewView andand ListList ViewView

ClickClick thethe threadthread titletitle toto readread thethe postsposts

SearchSearch fieldfield hiddenhidden byby defaultdefault toto savesave screenscreen realreal estateestate

Figure 2.1

PostsPosts cancan bebe searchedsearched inin aa timetime rangerange asas wellwell asas aa datedate rangerange Figure 2.2

© 2007 Blackboard Inc. 8 Making the Most of Discussions About Tree View and List View: When a student clicks on a forum, a page loads displaying all of the forum threads. Students can view this page in one of two ways: Tree View or List View.

1. Tree View: Tree View shows the thread starter messages and their replies. In Tree View, unlike List View, students can expand and collapse threads. Students can also flag important posts or remove flags from messages that no longer matter.

TreeTree ViewView

Expand/collapseExpand/collapse messagesmessages byby clickingclicking onon thethe +/-+/- iconicon

Figure 2.3

2. List View: In List View, threads are presented in table format. Students can sort threads by clicking on the carat at the top of any table column. They can also choose to display only those threads whose status is either “hidden,” “draft” or “published.”

ListList ViewView

SortSort threadsthreads byby clickingclicking onon thethe “carat”“carat” atat thethe toptop ofof eacheach columncolumn Figure 2.4

Published Thread A post with published status can be read and replied to by other students.

Draft Thread A draft thread has been saved to the Blackboard Learning System™ by the author, but has not been submitted for publication. It becomes available to other users when is has been published.

Hidden Thread A thread that is locked and not visible by default. Students can’t read or reply to it.

The instructor sets the thread status, but To change displayed threads students can choose which type of threads 1. Access the forum. to display. By default, published threads are displayed. 2. Go to List View. 3. From the Display drop-down list, select the type of threads you want to see in the forum (Figure 3). 4. Click Go.

ToTo seesee thethe DisplayDisplay drop-downdrop-down list,list, youyou mustmust bebe inin ListList View.View. ThenThen youyou cancan selectselect postsposts thatthat areare published,published, hiddenhidden oror drafts.drafts.

OneOne clickclick accessaccess toto allall unreadunread postsposts inin thethe topictopic

Figure 3

When the student clicks a thread, the thread detail appears. The page is divided into three parts.

TheThe toptop partpart containscontains functionsfunctions thatthat allowallow studentsstudents toto collectcollect oror flagflag selectedselected posts,posts, andand toto searchsearch postsposts

TheThe middlemiddle partpart containscontains aa listlist ofof allall thethe postsposts inin thethe thread,thread, beginningbeginning withwith thethe initialinitial post.post. TheThe selectedselected postpost isis highlighted.highlighted.

TheThe bottombottom partpart containscontains thethe texttext ofof thethe postpost youyou selectedselected inin thethe middlemiddle partpart

Figure 4

You can reply to posts if the thread status is To reply to posts published. You cannot reply to posts in 5. Access the forum. locked or hidden threads. 6. Access the thread. Depending on settings, when you reply to a post you can: 7. In the middle part of the page, select the post to which you want to reply (Figure 5.1).

 change the Subject line 8. In the bottom part of the page, click Reply (Figure 5.1).  attach a file 9. Enter your reply in the Message area (Figure 5.2).  use the Visual Text Box Editor to format your message 10. To attach a file, click on Attach a File, hyperlink. To attach a single file, use the File Attachment  respond anonymously function in the Visual Text Box Editor. 11. Click Save to store a draft of the post or click Submit to create the thread.

First,First, selectselect thethe postpost byby clickingclicking itsits titletitle

Next,Next, clickclick ReplyReply

Figure 5.1

EnterEnter aa newnew subjectsubject oror leaveleave unchangedunchanged

EnterEnter youryour messagemessage and,and, ifif desired,desired, formatformat itit usingusing thethe VisualVisual TextText EditorEditor

Figure 5.2

Depending on the forum settings, you may To rate a post be able to assign a rating to posts. 1. Access the forum. You can only assign a rating once, and you 2. Access the thread. cannot change the rating after you have submitted it. 3. Select the post you want to rate. 4. Next to the post, use the Rate this post drop- down list to select a star-rating (Figure 6.1).

Figure 6.1

After you rate the post, your rating appears where the rating drop-down list appeared previously:

TheThe post’spost’s averageaverage ratingrating isis displayeddisplayed nextnext toto OverallOverall ratingrating YourYour ratingrating appearsappears nextnext toto PreviouslyPreviously ratedrated

Figure 6.2

Rating posts gives members feedback on the value of their contributions and also allows members to focus on posts others have considered especially informative or useful.

Depending on which forum settings the To create a thread instructor has selected, you may be allowed to 1. Access the forum. create new threads. 2. Click Add Thread (Figure 7.1). Students cannot create threads if the forum allows gradable threads. 3. Enter a subject and message (Figure 7.2). 4. Click Submit. ClickClick AddAdd ThreadThread

Figure 7.1

EnterEnter aa descriptivedescriptive subject.subject. UsersUsers willwill clickclick thethe subjectsubject toto accessaccess thethe thread.thread.

TheThe messagemessage becomesbecomes thethe firstfirst postpost inin thethe threadthread

Figure 7.2

From the Thread Detail page you can only read one To collect posts post at a time. Use the Collect feature if you want to 1. Access the forum. read multiple posts from the same page. Once you have collected the posts, you can filter, sort, and 2. Access the thread. print them. 3. Select the posts you want to collect (Figure For example, you posted a question to request help. 8.1). A number of your classmates have replied. You 4. Click Collect (Figure 8.1). collect your post and the replies and then print 5. From the Collection screen, filter, sort, or them. print the posts (Figure 8.2).

TIP: The Collect feature is also available from the thread listing page. Use it from there if you want to pull together postings from different threads.

Figure 8.1

IfIf aa forumforum managermanager hashas enabledenabled taggingtagging ofof posts,posts, studentsstudents cancan useuse tagstags toto furtherfurther sort,sort, filterfilter andand ToTo limitlimit thethe displaydisplay toto oneone searchsearch collectionscollections ofof postsposts author’sauthor’s posts,posts, filterfilter byby authorauthor

UseUse thethe OrderOrder drop-downdrop-down listlist boxbox toto changechange thethe orderorder inin whichwhich thethe postsposts areare displayeddisplayed

Figure 8.2

From the Communication Content Area in your Student Course, access the Discussion Board and explore the following forums: s

Icebreaker Forum  Create a new thread with your name as the title. In the t

message, introduce yourself. Include one or two details about u

your life you’d like to share with the class. d e

 Navigate through some of the other threads. n

 Reply to several posts. t

Scavenger Hunt Forum  Navigate through the posts. o u  Collect some interesting posts and use the sort and filter r

features. s e Ellis Island Forum  Navigate through the posts.  Read several posts and rate them.

At the beginning of your course, it is a good idea to establish guidelines for discussion etiquette.

Today, as you complete the hands-on activities, keep these guidelines in mind. Later, as you are developing your own online course, you might want to share these guidelines with your students.

Be thoughtful  Include something new in your reply. For example, include more than “I don’t agree” or “Good point.”  State why you agree or disagree and be considerate of the points made by others.

Be concise  Keep your postings short. Include web addresses or attachments (if enabled) where necessary.

Keep the discussion public  Unless there’s a good reason not to, click reply so that all participants see your post.

Stay on topic  Make sure your message fits within the general topic of the forum. If it doesn’t, look for a suitable forum or a miscellaneous forum.

Include a descriptive subject  Make threads easy to follow by using accurate, descriptive subject lines.

Create new threads as  If your message will take the current thread’s topic in a new needed direction, start a new thread.

Use plain English  Use simple, conversational, uncomplicated language. Remember that your audience is reading on-screen and may have several messages to read. Also, English may not be the first language of all participants.

In this module, we’ll turn to the instructor perspective and learn to create discussion forums and threads. You create forums and threads to organize your discussions into units or topics relevant to your course. Depending on your pedagogical goals, you can select forum settings to:

 grade discussion forums or threads

 use the moderation or peer review feature to ensure quality postings and to assist with your workload

 encourage forthright discourse and increase student participation

Learning Outcomes

 explain the difference between the student and instructor view of discussions

 create discussion forums and threads, choosing forum settings based on pedagogical goals

 enable email subscription to forums and threads

 enable peer rating of posts

 set grading options for forums and threads

 describe techniques for crafting effective questions

The Discussion Board tool organizes forums. On the main Discussion Board page, the instructor interface contains the functionality you used in the student interface. In addition, with the instructor interface you can:

 create forums

 modify forum settings

 manage forum roles

 grade forums

 copy forums

 remove forums

CreateCreate aa forumforum ModifyModify allowsallows youyou toto changechange forumforum settingssettings andand descriptionsdescriptions

AA gradegrade iconicon appearsappears nextnext toto gradablegradable forumsforums

Figure 1

ManageManage allowsallows youyou toto assignassign forumforum rolesroles

During forum creation, you choose forum To create a forum settings to reflect your pedagogical goals 1. Click Add Forum (Figure 1). for the discussion. 2. Enter a name and description (Figure 2). The many forum settings give you the option of using the tool in very different 3. Select forum availability (Figure 2). ways. For example, you may want to 4. Select forum settings (Figure 2). control the forum, creating all threads yourself and moderating and grading the 5. Click Submit. postings. Or, you might want more of a student-led discussion, where students TIP: Some settings cannot be selected in combination. create new threads based on the For example, if you are grading forums or threads, requirements of their discussion and have anonymous posts are not allowed. the option of posting anonymously.

CourseCourse membersmembers willwill clickclick thethe forumforum namename toto accessaccess thethe forumforum

TheThe descriptiondescription willwill appearappear belowbelow thethe forumforum namename

YouYou cancan createcreate forumsforums aheadahead ofof timetime andand setset thethe availabilityavailability toto “No”“No” untiluntil youyou areare readyready toto startstart thethe discussiondiscussion

AllowAllow usersusers toto addadd filefile attachmentsattachments toto theirtheir postedposted messagesmessages

SelectSelect toto allowallow membersmembers toto assignassign aa star-ratingstar-rating toto otherother members’members’ postsposts

Figure 2

RemoveRemove thethe gradegrade SelectSelect toto allowallow membersmembers toto assignassign aa star-ratingstar-rating toto otherother members’members’ postsposts

Suggestions for Organizing Discussions You can pose your discussion question in the forum description. This is the most common approach:

 Enter the discussion topic in the forum description Forum: Reducing our Reliance on Oil field. Question: President Bush recently stated that we’re addicted to oil. How can we reduce our reliance on oil? Remove the grade  Allow students to create Remove the grade threads. In this example, each thread represents a student’s solution to the Nuclear Power Solar Power Conserve problem of oil addiction. Threads  Course members can post Post a Post 1 Post x to existing threads to comment on given Post b Post 2 Post y answers, or create new threads to present Post c Post 3 new solutions. Post z

Another approach is to pose the discussion question in a thread. This can be an efficient way to organize related questions.

 Enter the general subject area in the forum title Forum: Addicted to Oil field.

 Create threads that contain Discuss the Discuss the pros feasibility of and cons of the specific issues to be replacing oil with conservation discussed. nuclear power Threads  In this case, you may want to disallow thread Post a Post 1 creation, ensuring that course members can only Post b Post 2 post to existing threads.

Post c Post 3

If you want to… Select these settings

Create effective social forums  Allow anonymous posts  No grading in forum

Create forums where members have  Allow author to remove own posts control of the discussion  Allow author to modify own posts  Allow members to create new threads  Allow members to rate posts

Have a tightly controlled forum  Force moderation of posts  Grade by forum or grade by thread  Do not allow thread creation

a s k D r . C

Participation

Q: What can I do to A: There are a couple of ways you can encourage encourage participation? participation: You could allow students to modify and remove their own posts. Especially in gradable forums or threads, students appreciate the option of being able to edit their own posts. You could allow anonymous posts. This is especially important at the beginning of the course when students are still getting comfortable with discussions. If you are concerned about quality, you can assign a moderator to review each post before it is made public.

Once in a forum, you can create threads. To create a thread Threads are a series of posts related to a 1. Access the forum. similar topic. Creating a thread as an instructor is the same as creating a thread as 2. Click Add Thread in either List View or Tree View a student, with the possibility of extra (Figure 3.1). options for grading. 3. Enter a subject and message (Figure 3.2).

If the forum allows gradable threads, when 4. Select the grading options (Figure 3.2). you create the thread you must select 5. Click Submit. whether the thread will be graded and, if so, enter the total points possible. If threads are graded, students can’t start threads in the forum.

TheThe listlist ofof forumforum threadsthreads cancan bebe presentedpresented inin eithereither TreeTree ViewView oror ClickClick AddAdd ThreadThread ListList ViewView

Figure 3.1

IfIf thethe forumforum isis setset toto gradegrade byby thread,thread, youyou decidedecide onon aa thread-by-threadthread-by-thread basisbasis whetherwhether thethe threadthread willwill bebe gradedgraded

Figure 3.2

You can allow students to either subscribe to a To enable subscriptions forum or to specific threads within a forum. 1. Click Modify next to the forum. When email subscription is enabled, 2. Choose one of the following options: ® Blackboard sends out email alerts if there are a. “Allow members to subscribe to new postings to read. You can choose to have threads” restricts subscription to the subscription email contain the post text or a specific threads within the forum link to the post. (Figure 4). Subscriptions to forums or threads can be b. “Allow members to subscribe to topic” allows subscription to all enabled either when you first create the forum threads within the forum (Figure 4). or when you modify the forum settings. 3. Choose one of the following options: a. “Include body of post in email” includes message text and link to reply to post in email notification (Figure 4). b. “Include link to post” includes link to post in email notification (Figure 4). 4. Click Submit.

Figure 4

From the Discussion Board in your Practice Course, create discussion forums for the following scenarios: p

Scenario #1  Create a forum titled Introductions where students can share some r

details about themselves (e.g., where they are from, their departments, a

their favorite movies). c t

 Instruct students to create their own threads with their names as the i titles. Encourage students to post replies. c e

Scenario #2  Create a gradable forum for discussing current issues in your subject c

area. Decide whether you want to grade by forum or by thread and o

choose forum settings accordingly. Allow students to modify, but not u

remove their own posts. r s

 Within the forum, create several threads for specific subjects. e

Research indicates that the quality of the first post in a thread influences the thought level of subsequent postings.2 Therefore, a carefully worded discussion question is perhaps the most important factor in using discussions to satisfy your learning objectives.

Using Bloom’s Taxonomy Bloom’s Taxonomy can be useful in determining what type of question to develop as well as how to word it. In this classification system, the least complex level, information recall, resides at the bottom of the pyramid as a "knowledge base." The top three levels: Evaluation, Synthesis, and Analysis require the most complex and abstract thinking. Discussions, along with creative assignments and group work are well-suited for this higher-order thinking.

Evaluation Making judgments based on criteria and standards

Discussions can be designed to assess Synthesis the most complex and Integrate knowledge into new and abstract thinking original products

Analysis Discover relationships and organization of material

Application Use the acquired information

Comprehension Demonstrate understanding

Knowledge Remember information * Blackboard’s assessment tools are ideal for testing knowledge at this level

22 Meyer, K. A. (2005). The Ebb and Flow of Online Discussions: What Bloom Can Tell Us About Our Students' Conversations. JALN, 9 (1). Retrieved February 2, 2006 from http://www.sloan- c.org/publications/jaln/v9n1/v9n1_meyer_member.asp

© 2007 Blackboard Inc. 27 Making the Most of Discussions Essential and Guiding Questions Another technique for ensuring that your discussions go beyond basic knowledge and comprehension is to use essential and guiding questions.

 Essential questions are those that require higher level thinking skills such as analyzing, synthesizing, or evaluating. Answers to essential questions cannot be readily found on the Internet and then copied and pasted into a paper. The focus of an essential question is the personal meaning and insight that is constructed by the student.3

 Guiding questions are related questions that help students answer the essential question. These questions are subcategories of the main topic and may tap into lower levels of Bloom's Taxonomy.

Ideas for Guiding Questions Guiding questions can be developed and used in a number of ways:  Students can work in small groups to develop their own guiding questions to help them answer the essential question.  You can start with guiding questions and lead up to the essential question through the course of the discussion.  You can include them with the initial post to help students get started.  You can interject guiding questions into the conversation when a lull occurs.

Example Essential Question: How would you design the perfect online instructor?

Guiding Questions  What assumptions do you hold about teaching effectiveness?  How would you assess an instructor’s performance?  Identify a list of traits that contribute to the qualification of "perfect." Think about your own experiences as a student.  List traits you would avoid in designing the perfect instructor.  What is the relationship between an instructor’s abilities and a student’s level of learning?

3 McKenzie, J. (1996). Framing Essential Questions. Technology Connection, 6 (1). Retrieved January 19, 2006 from http://www.fno.org/sept96/questions.html

Discussion activity needs to be maintained throughout the term. Without some vigilance on your part, even discussions that start out with ample excitement can dwindle before your objectives have been met. In this section, we’ll focus on the art and science of moderating discussions. The art of moderating involves finding the right balance between guiding the conversation and standing back to allow students to discover new ideas. The science of moderating involves knowing how to use Blackboard Learning System™ functions to keep students focused on relevant discussions and to determine a student’s level of access.

Learning Outcomes

 describe techniques for the art of moderating

 list the four steps to developing successful online discussions

 describe the forum roles and assign users to roles

 use the Moderation Queue to monitor discussion posts and distribute the workload

 describe the options for a thread’s status and identify situations when it is appropriate to change the status

As the "guide on the side" rather than the "sage on the stage," you will need to find the right balance between guiding the conversation and standing back to allow students to discover new ideas.

Some suggestions to help you find the balance:

 Ask probing questions that lead to other perspectives on the subject or ask for clarification.

 Do not respond to every student post or rush to fill silences. If you are patient, you may see students contribute rather than depend on you. You may need to re-engage students when long lulls occur, however.

 Redirect "tangents" to the appropriate topic.

 Provide reinforcement for posts that meet your expectations.

 Acknowledge efforts by those who are taking a brave step outside of their comfort zone.

 Reply privately when necessary, such as when dealing with individual issues or online behavior.

Four Steps to Developing Successful Online Discussions

Define participation Students should be aware of your expectations. For example, you requirements could create a Guidelines forum where you post etiquette and grading rubrics.

Craft an effective question Avoid phrasing the question so that it can be answered with a yes or no. Instead, word the question so it provokes thought and research. Remember, you can include image or audio files with your question.

Encourage new ideas For example, if discussion postings contain too much agreement and not enough questioning of ideas, try assigning students with last names A-M to support one side and N-Z to support the other.

Moderate Remind students you’re there by asking for clarification, resources, or input from silent participants.

Each user in the forum has a forum role. To assign roles Course instructors automatically have the 1. Click Manage next to the forum. role of Manager and students have the role of Participant. 2. Find the course member and from the drop-down list, choose the forum role (Figure 1). You can assign different forum roles, either to:

 limit a course member’s access to a forum

 assist you with forum administration

Figure 1

To limit a course member’s access to a forum, assign the Reader or Blocked role.

Role Permissions

Participant  Can read and reply to posts  Users with a course role of Student are granted this role by default

Reader  Can read postings, but cannot post messages themselves

Blocked  Cannot access the forum

To assist you with forum administration, assign course members any of the following roles:

Moderator  Can review and approve posts in a forum before they are made available to all users in the course  Can delete, modify, and lock all posts in any forum  If a Moderation Queue is used, may approve or reject posts in the queue

Grader  Can read and reply to posts  Can review posts and enter grades  Users with a course role of Grader are granted this forum role by default. They have some access to Grade Center.

Manager  Have full control over the forum and can change the forum settings, moderate posts, and assign grades  Users with a course role of Instructor or Teaching Assistant are granted this role by default

a s k D r C

Moderation

Q: What are the benefits of A: There are a number of potential benefits to assigning assigning a moderator? a moderator:  A moderator can ensure that postings are high quality and adhere to established etiquette guidelines.  A moderator can give students private feedback on their posts, ask for clarification, correct any confusion, or redirect a student’s focus.  Having a moderator ensures that you do not have numerous posts that contain little valuable content.

Q: Who could I use as the A: You or a teaching assistant could be the moderator. moderator? Or, save time and get students involved by assigning the moderator role to a student. For example, you could ask students to sign up to moderate a topic of their choice, or use the moderation role as an extra credit opportunity.

When you create a moderated forum, all posts to To moderate posts the forum are added to a Moderation Queue. 1. Click Modify next to the forum. You or any user with the Moderator role must review each post. After reviewing it, you can: 2. Select Force moderation of posts and then click Submit.  publish it 3. Access the forum. Make sure you are in List View.  return it to the sender without a 4. Click Moderate Forum on the menu bar (Figure message 2.1).  return it to the sender with a message 5. Click Moderate next to the post (Figure 2.2). 6. Read the post and publish or return it (Figure 2.3).

Only posts added after you enabled forum moderation will be available for review in the Moderation Queue.

Figure 2.1 ClickClick ModerateModerate ForumForum onon thethe ActionAction BarBar inin ListList ViewView

Figure 2.2

© 2007 Blackboard Inc. 33 Making the Most of Discussions IfIf youyou areare returningreturning aa post,post, provideprovide guidanceguidance onon whatwhat you’dyou’d likelike thethe studentstudent toto includeinclude

Figure 2.3

When a thread is created, it is automatically To change thread status assigned Published status. 1. Access the forum. You can change the thread status or lock 2. Go to List View. the thread to keep course members focused on relevant discussions. To do this, you 3. Select the thread (Figure 3). must be in List View. 4. Select a new status from the Change Status drop-down list and click Go (Figure 3).

FirstFirst selectselect thethe threadthread

SelectSelect aa newnew statusstatus fromfrom thethe ChangeChange StatusStatus drop-downdrop-down listlist

Figure 3

Goal for Thread Status

Make thread available to all users  Select Published status

Allow users to read the thread, but not make  Click Lock additions or modifications. Locking a thread allows grades to be assigned without users modifying posts.

Hide the thread from immediate view, but  Select Hidden status still allow users the option of reading the threads. Hidden threads can’t be modified.

Hide thread from view of all course  Select Unavailable status members except forum managers. Even then, forum managers must choose to view the thread.

From the Discussion Board, complete the following activities: p

Moderate discussions  Because of some inappropriate postings in the previous unit, r

you do not want practicestudent09 to post to the Unit 3 forum. a

Change his privileges so he can only read the postings in the c

forum. t i  Lock a thread in the Unit 4 forum so students cannot add c additional posts. e

 For the Unit 1: Astronomy Overview forum, limit your c o Teaching Assistant’s functionality by assigning her the u Moderator role. Her username is teachasst01. r s e

In this section, we’ll look at techniques for managing both the Discussion Board itself and the content within forums and threads. For example, as the term progresses, you might need to modify forum settings or organize forums and threads to keep students focused.

Learning Outcomes

 change forum availability

 modify descriptive information for the forum

 modify forum settings as the discussion progresses

 copy discussion forums

 organize forum and threads

 add tags to threads

You can modify the forum details you To modify a forum specified when you created a forum. You 1. Locate the forum and click Modify. might modify the: 2. Modify the forum name, description and  forum name and description. availability (Figure 1.1). For example, if students are 3. Modify the forum settings (Figure 1.2). posting to the wrong topic, you could fine tune the name or 4. Click Submit. description to clarify the forum’s purpose.

 forum availability. For example, if you created all the forums at the beginning of the term and made them all unavailable, you can modify the forum to make it available.

EditEdit forumforum namename andand descriptiondescription

SelectSelect whetherwhether thethe forumforum willwill bebe availableavailable toto studentsstudents

Figure 1.1

© 2007 Blackboard Inc. 38 Making the Most of Discussions As the discussion progresses, you might also want to modify forum settings to try to resolve discussion issues. For example, if discussion participation is dropping, it could be that the discussion is outgrowing some of its settings.

ModifyModify forumforum settingssettings

Figure 1.2

You can make a copy of a discussion forum To copy a forum and add it to the current location or to a 1. Locate the forum and click Copy (Figure 2.1). different Discussion Board. 2. Enter a name (Figure 2.2). You can choose whether to: 3. Select what to copy: settings and content OR  Copy the forum settings only. settings only (Figure 2.2). For example, you might copy the 4. Select which Discussion Board to copy to (Figure forum settings only if you 2.2). created a Term 1 Readings 5. Click Submit. forum, and you want to create a forum for Term 2 with identical settings.

 Copy the forum content and settings. When content is copied, all threads and replies appear in the new location, but file attachments are not copied. For example, as a discussion progresses, you notice two distinct topics emerging. To create separate forums for these topics, you copy the forum and then delete the off-topic postings from each forum.

Figure 2.1 CopyCopy forumforum

TheThe forumforum cancan bebe copiedcopied toto thethe DiscussionDiscussion BoardBoard inin anyany ofof youryour coursescourses

Figure 2.2

As the term progresses, you will need to perform management tasks to keep forums organized. You can change the order of forums on the Discussion Board. For example, you may decide to reorder the discussion forums to keep the current discussions at the top. (Figure 3.1)

You can remove forums from the Discussion Board. When you remove a forum, all content and grades are permanently deleted. For example, you might remove an ungraded forum used to discuss questions about an assignment that is completed. (Figure 3.1) Important: Do not remove graded forums unless you do not want these grades in Grade Center.

ReorderReorder forumsforums RemoveRemove forumforum

Figure 3.1

You can also remove threads from a forum. For example, you might need to remove off-topic or inappropriate threads. When you remove a thread, all replies and grades are permanently deleted. (Figure 3.2)

SelectSelect threadthread andand thenthen clickclick RemoveRemove

Figure 3.2

Tags are text labels that act like bookmarks. To add a tag to a thread You can attach tags to group similar 1. Click on the forum. messages together. For example, if the 2. Select List View. subject of “Scientific Notation” comes up often, you can tag each of the posts with 3. Select threads to tag. Click Collect (Figure “Scientific Notation” and view the 4.2). collection at a later time. 4. Select posts to tag from message list (Figure Your students can read, filter and search 4.3). messages using these tags. Students cannot 5. Enter a new tag name in the Add Tag box (Figure create their own tags. 4.3). Tagging must be enabled in the forum for 6. Click Go. tags to be created. TIP: For faster Discussion Board page loading, disable tagging during times you anticipate forum usage will be heavy. Turning tagging back on will restore all previously entered tags.

ListList ViewView

TaggedTagged messagesmessages

Figure 4.1

Figure 4.2

EnterEnter aa newnew tagtag namename

SelectSelect postsposts toto tagtag

Figure 4.3

Participation

Q: My discussion forum has A: Here are a couple of changes you can make: been available for a couple of weeks but is getting few  If the topic is potentially controversial, it might help contributions. Can you suggest to allow anonymous posts. any changes I can make to the  If threads aren’t graded, allow students to create new forum to encourage threads. This flexibility may encourage members to participation? post their ideas and questions.

Organization

Q: By the end of the semester, A: You can help keep your Discussion Board organized my Discussion Board contains by: dozens of forums. Do you have suggestions for organization?  Changing the order of the forums, placing the most current forums at the top.  Removing forums that weren’t used or contain few postings, if the forums were not graded.

Manage discussions  Reorder the forums on the Discussion Board. r a  Access the NASA Funding forum and look at the postings. This c

forum has been active for several weeks. Modify the forum t

settings to encourage participation. i c

 Access the Pluto Controversy forum and look at the postings. e

Look for posts that are incomplete, inappropriate, or have been added to the wrong forum. Clean up the forum. c o u r s e

Now that you know how to create discussion forums and manage them as the term progresses, we’ll look at how to assign grades to discussions. As you learned when creating discussion forums, either a forum or its threads can be assigned a numeric grade.

Learning Outcomes

 explain the grading process

 grade discussion forums and threads

 use the email feature when assigning grades

 edit and remove grades

 define discussion grading criteria

Below is an overview of the discussion grading process, from what happens when you create a gradable forum or thread to where grades are saved and how students access them.

Key Instructor Student Activity Activity

1. create

When you create a gradable forum or thread, a column is automatically created in Grade Center. The name of the forum or thread is used as the column title in Grade Center.

2. participate

Students participate in the discussion. As the discussion progresses, you can participate and provide feedback by replying to, rating, and moderating posts.

3. grade

Review student postings and enter a numeric grade. You might want to lock the threads once you have graded them.

Figure 1.1

4. view grades

The grades you enter are saved in the Discussion Board tool and added to Grade Center. Students can view their grades from the My Grades tool.

Figure 1.2

You can enter grades for discussions within To assign grades the forum or thread. You could grade 1. Click the Grade icon next to the forum (Figure 2.1) students on their participation in a or thread in List View (Figure 2.2). discussion, on the quality of their postings, or a combination of the two. 2. Click Grade next to the student’s username (Figure 2.3). At any time, you can use the Modify Forum feature to change the grading option to “No 3. Enter the grade in the Grade Field at the top of Grading.” If grades have already been the page (Figure 2.4). entered for the forum or its threads, a 4. Click Submit to add grade to Grade Center. warning message will appear indicating that changing the setting will remove the associated Grade Center items. If Grade Threads is selected for the forum, users cannot create new threads.

For gradable forums, the Grade icon appears next to the forum title.

GradableGradable forumforum

Figure 2.1

ListList ViewView For gradable threads, the Grade icon appears next to the thread title.

ClickClick thethe enableenable buttonbutton toto enableenable threadthread gradinggrading directlydirectly fromfrom thethe threadthread listlist inin aa forumforum wherewhere threadthread gradinggrading isis enabledenabled

GradableGradable threadthread

Figure 2.2

Figure 2.3

When you click the Grade icon, the student’s postings are displayed. You review the postings and enter the grade on the same page. After a grade has been assigned, it is saved in the Discussion Board and Grade Center.

EnterEnter thethe gradegrade

TheThe student’sstudent’s postingposting displaysdisplays belowbelow

Figure 2.4

Modifying Discussion Grades After you have entered a graded, you can edit or remove a grade from the grading page as well.

RemoveRemove thethe gradegrade ClickClick SubmitSubmit afterafter enteringentering newnew gradegrade

Figure 2.5

While assigning grades, you can use the To email students email feature to quickly contact students. 1. Click the Grade icon next to the forum or thread.

For example, you might want to send a 2. Click the student’s username (Figure 3.1). student a question prior to assigning a grade, or send some feedback after 3. Enter your message (Figure 3.2). assigning a grade. 4. Click Submit.

ClickClick thethe student’sstudent’s usernameusername toto sendsend anan emailemail

Figure 3.1

TheThe forumforum oror threadthread namename isis enteredentered asas thethe messagemessage subject.subject. YouYou cancan editedit thisthis ifif youyou wish.wish.

Figure 3.2

Grade discussions  In the Unit 2: Astrophotography/Imaging forum, review and r

enter a grade for practicestudent01’s postings. a c

 In the Unit 3 forum, assign a grade to practicestudent01 for his t

posting to the Discovery of Trans-Neptunian Object thread. i c

The thread instructions were: Research the topic and give a e

brief description of the latest discovery. Include who, when, a c

description, and the impact this may have on what we consider o

a planet. u r

 In the Pluto Controversy forum, Pluto Opinion thread, change s

the grade assigned to practicestudent06. Send her an email e explaining the grade change.

When grading discussions, it is important to have reasonable expectations about what can be accomplished. Due to the asynchronous nature of an online discussion, it may take more time for well-articulated points to emerge than in a face-to-face classroom. Tell students specifically what you expect both in terms of quantity and quality of postings, and consider sharing some exemplary postings.

When evaluating student postings, keep the following questions in mind:

Did student participation in the discussion meet the objectives you set?  Did students participate regularly?  Did students reply to postings?  Did students post new threads?  Did students use the peer review feature?

Did the quality of the contributions meet the objectives you set?  Were replies or postings on topic?  Were they well thought-out?  Did they add value to the discussion?  Did they introduce new ideas?  How did peers rate their postings?

You might consider compiling your grading criteria into a rubric. By using a rubric to grade discussions, you can provide clear performance requirements to students and consistent grading criteria to graders.

From the student view, you learned how to:

CreateCreate andand collectcollect threadsthreads toto displaydisplay

AccessAccess threadsthreads

SelectSelect threadthread statusstatus toto displaydisplay

CollectCollect postsposts toto displaydisplay

SelectSelect anan individualindividual postpost toto read,read, rate,rate, andand replyreply toto

RateRate andand replyreply toto postsposts

CreateCreate forums,forums, specifyingspecifying forumforum availabilityavailability andand settingssettings

ManageManage participantparticipant rolesroles ReorderReorder forumsforums

ModifyModify forumforum settingssettings

LockLock threadsthreads toto makemake themthem read-onlyread-only

GradeGrade threadsthreads You also learned pedagogical tips for moderating discussions, managing forums and threads, and setting discussion guidelines and grading criteria.

From what you have learned in this workshop, do you have some ideas on how you will use Discussions in your course? Use the following worksheet to help you brainstorm and record ideas.

Items to Consider Notes

What types of forum will you create?  Will you allow students to create new threads within forums?  Will you get students involved in feedback and quality control by allowing them to rate posts?

Will you grade discussions?  Will you grade forums or threads?  What grading requirements (e.g., posting quality, quantity) will you set?

How will you organize the Discussion Board?  How many discussion forums will you make available at one time?  How will you use the availability and status options?  How will you order the forums on the Discussion Board?

How will you moderate discussions?  How involved will you be in discussions?  What methods will you use to provide feedback and instructions to participants?  Will you involve course members as moderators?

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