Discussion: Overview
What it does
Discussion allows structured conversations that are organized into
categories. Site participants can post replies to a topic (a "flat"
discussion) or to other replies (a "threaded" discussion). A site's
owner can also choose whether or not to allow site participants to
post their own discussion topics.
You may view Discussion in a row or column layout. This is a personal
preference and changes only your view of the Discussion.
Key concepts
Categories and topics: Categories are the top
level in the Discussion tool. Topics appear under the categories,
and replies appear grouped with the appropriate topic.
Deleting: The absence of a trash can icon means that
you do not have permission to delete a discussion item. Only site
maintainers, instructors, and others with special permissions can
delete discussion items.
Things to consider
- When posting a topic, you can limit replies to only the top-level
post (i.e., your initial post), or you can allow replies to any
posts. If you limit postings, then you create a "flat" discussion. If,
on the other hand, you allow replies to any posting, then you create a
"threaded" discussion. Threaded discussions are by nature more
interactive because users are able to reply to a reply. Flat
discussions, in contrast, tend to be more structured and for this
reason are more easily controlled.
- Many collaboration sites allow any site participant to start a
discussion topic, which facilitates a more collegial discussion
environment.
- Some classes use categories like "Homework Questions" and "Exam
Review" to structure their Discussion feature. Others create
categories for course concepts.
- If you read Discussion threads and completely exit the
application, those threads will become unread again. When you return
to the Discussion tool later, all messages that you had previously
viewed will appear as new.