Competencies

After reading this document, you will be able to:

• Create, edit, delete, respond, and attach files (when appropriate) to asynchronous communication tools

Discussions Overview

Discussions allow you, your students, and your teaching assistants to send, read, and search for messages. You can also create topics, which center discussion on particular subjects. Topics can be public or private. Everyone in your course can access public topics, while private topics are available only to selected students and teaching assistants. By default, Discussions contains three public topics:

• All: contains all messages from all public topics

• Main: the main discussion area, and the default topic

• Notes: messages related to a page of content in a Content Module

Although you cannot delete these topics, you can rename Main and Notes. You can also make Main and Notes private so learners cannot see them and post to them.

Figure 1: Discussions (Designer View)

Reading and Posting Messages

You can use the Discussions tool to compose and post messages to a course discussion. You also may read messages posted by other discussion participants and post replies to them if you so desire.

Composing and Posting a Message

This feature of the Discussions tool enables users to weigh in on a topic of discussion. Users may take as much time as needed to compose and review a message before posting it. In addition, users can choose to attach files to their postings.

To compose and post a message

1 In the Discussions table, click Compose message. The Compose Discussion Message window opens.

2 From the Topic drop-down list, select the topic to post the message to.

3 Complete the Subject field, and then type your message in the designated text box. Blank subjects or messages are not allowed.

4 If you want to attach a file:

a Click Browse to locate the file on your computer or disk and click Open. The file name displays in the Attachments text box.

b Click Attach File. The filename appears beneath the Attachments text box. If you wish to remove the file, you can do so by clicking the box next to the file name and selecting remove.

Note  While in the Compose Message window, you can click Preview to view your message as it will appear in the discussion. To return to the Compose Message screen, click Edit. To post your message from the Preview window, click Post.

5 Click Post.

Tip  While in the Compose Message window, you may cancel your entry at any time by clicking Cancel. The window closes, and your work is lost.

Reading, Replying to, and Quoting Posted Messages

After reading a posted message, discussion participants have the option of posting a message in direct reply. The reply may include a quote from the existing message as well.

To read a message

1 From the Discussions table, click the topic that contains the messages that you want to read. The Messages screen appears.

2 To display any messages that were just sent, click Update Listing.

3 Click the hyperlinked subject of the message that you want to read. A window opens, displaying the message.

4 If the message includes a file attachment, you'll see a paper clip icon. For security reasons, it is recommended that you download the attachment to your own computer before you view it.

5 To download the file attachment:

a Click the paper clip icon. The Attachments window opens.

b Select the file you want to download, and click Download.

c Follow the instructions for downloading from your browser.

d When the download is complete, click Close to return to the message window.

6 When you have finished reading the message, click Close to close the popup window.

To reply to a message

1 Open the message to which you want to respond.

2 Click Reply in the header of the message window.

Tip  If you want to include the text of the message you're responding to, click Quote instead. You also have the option of clicking Reply Privately to send a message to the author's WebCT Mail account (assuming that this tool has been added to the course).

3 Enter your message in the designated text box. Blank subjects are not allowed.

4 If you want to attach a file:

a Click Browse to locate the file on your computer or disk and click Open. The file name displays in the Attachments text box.

b Click Attach File. The filename appears beneath the Attachments text box. If you wish to remove the file, you can do so by clicking the box next to the file name and selecting remove.

Note  While in the Reply to Message window, you can click Preview to view your message as it will appear in the discussion. To return to the Reply to Message screen, click Edit. To post your message from the Preview window, click Post.

5 Click Send.

Navigating the Discussions Tool

The Discussions table includes headings listing the following information:

• the current discussion topics

• the number of unread messages in each topic

• the total number of messages in each topic

• the status of the topic (public or private, unlocked or locked, or anonymous)

From the Main view, you can perform a variety of functions related to navigating and managing Discussions. These include:

• displaying threaded and unthreaded messages

• selecting messages and marking them as read or unread

• using Manage Messages to move or delete messages

Displaying Threaded and Unthreaded Messages

You can choose to view Discussion messages either in order of their appearance in a discussion thread (Threaded) or in the order they were posted to the Discussions tool (Unthreaded).

A Thread is created when someone replies to a message. The subject of the first message automatically becomes the heading and a twisty [] displays to the left. When you click the twisty so it points downward [], both the original message and the reply are shown underneath and are indented under the heading.)

  

Status: displays the number of unread messages in the thread over the total number of messages in the thread. In the case of the example above, there are two messages, both of which have been read.

Subject: displays the subject of the first message in the thread and the magnifying glass icon. You can view the entire message thread by clicking the magnifying glass icon.

The box to the right of the magnifying glass icon and the thread heading can be used to apply a function to all of the messages in the thread. For instance, you can mark all of the messages in the thread as read or unread by clicking the box, selecting the appropriate function in the Apply to selected message(s) below drop down menu and clicking Go.

To view messages as Threaded or Unthreaded

1 From the Discussions table, click Main. The Main view displays.

2 Choose the topic you wish to view from the Select topic drop-down list.

3 On the right side of the screen there is a Threaded / Unthreaded pairing, with one word a link and the other normal text. The word in plain text describes the current view of postings.

4 If you want to change the view, click Threaded or Unthreaded as appropriate. The postings redisplay as specified.

Selecting Messages for Marking as Read or Unread

From the Main view, you can select specific messages and mark them as either read or unread.

To select and mark messages as read or unread

1 From the Discussions table, click the topic that contains the messages that you want to mark. The Messages screen appears.

2 Display the messages that you would like to mark.

•  to choose from all messages, click Show All.

•  to choose from all unread messages, click Show Unread.

3 Check the check boxes next to the appropriate messages.

4 From the Apply to selected message(s) below drop-down list, select Mark as read or Mark as unread.

5 Click Go. The messages redisplay, reflecting any changes you made.

Moving and Deleting Messages

You can move a message from one topic to another. In addition, you can delete any messages that you wish to remove from the discussion entirely. You also have the option of deleting all the messages in a given topic.

To move a message

1 Click Designer Options.

2 From the Discussions table, click the topic that contains the message(s) that you want to move. The Discussion Messages screen appears.

3 Select the checkbox next to the message that you wish to move and scroll down to the bottom of the Discussion Messages screen.

4 Click the Move to checkbox and chose the appropriate topic from the drop-down box.

5 Click Go.

To delete specific messages

1 Click Designer Options.

2 From the Discussions table, click the topic that contains the message(s) that you want to delete. The Discussion Messages screen appears.

3 Select the message(s) to delete. Scroll down to the bottom of the Discussion Messages screen.

4 Click Delete.

To delete all messages from a topic

1 Click Designer Options.

2 Select the checkbox next to the topic from which you would like to delete all of the messages.

3 Under the Actions Menu on the right hand side of the screen, click Delete Messages.