Discussion forums – teacher's guide

1 Where to find discussion forums

Discussion forums are managed on the 💬 Discussion Forums tab of the course form. Students can start discussions and reply to each other.

Course→ 💬 Discussion Forums→ + Add Forum

Note: discussion forums become active only once the course has been saved. Until then the tab shows the reminder “Save the course first, then you can manage forums here.”

You can reach the forums in two ways: from the course’s Discussion Forums tab (creating and managing) and from the Discussion Forums menu in the navigation, which gathers the forums of all courses in one place and where you can read and take part in discussions (see section 6).

2 Creating a forum

Press “+ Add Forum”, and a form opens. Give the forum a name and choose its location; the other fields are optional.

The Add Forum form: title (required), description, location and Required. When Required is ticked, the form shows the required threads and replies and the deadline.

Forum Title – required.
Description (optional) – an introduction to what the forum is for.
Location – the course general area or a specific topic (see section 3).
Required + required threads/replies + deadline – the fields appear only when Required is ticked; see section 4.

3 Location: course or topic

A forum can be placed in two ways: as a general area for the whole course or under a specific topic.

Location “Specific topic”: a second menu opens below for choosing the course topic. The option is shown only when the course has topics.

Course general area – the forum is shown at the level of the whole course, not tied to any topic. Suits general discussion and questions.
Specific topic – the forum is attached to the chosen topic, so the discussion focuses on its content.

The forum card shows the forum’s location (📍 Course general area or the topic name), so you can see at once where each forum belongs.

4 Required forums and deadline

You can make a forum a required part of the course. You can then set how many threads and replies the student must write at minimum, as well as a deadline.

Required – marks the forum as required (the card shows ★ Required).
Required threads – how many new threads the student must start (0 = not counted).
Required replies – how many replies the student must write (0 = not counted).
Deadline – an optional deadline (saved only for a required forum). The deadline is shown on the card with ⏰ and also in the course calendar.

5 Managing forums

The Discussion Forums panel shows all the forums of the course. Each card shows the location, whether the forum is required, and action buttons.

The course’s Discussion Forums tab: forum cards with their location (📍), the ★ mark of a required forum, the deadline and requirements, and the View threads / Edit / Delete buttons.

View threads – opens the forum’s threads and replies; you can follow and moderate the content (Replies, Pin, ✏️ edit, Delete thread).
Edit – change the forum’s details.
Delete – deletes the forum (you are asked to confirm).

6 The Discussion Forums menu

The Discussion Forums menu in the navigation gathers the forums of all your courses, grouped by course. Here you see at a glance where discussions are going on, and you can read and take part in them yourself.

The Discussion Forums view: forums grouped by course; each forum shows the number of threads and replies (or “No messages”), whether it is required and the deadline.

By course – forums are grouped under their course, and the course shows the number of forums (e.g. “2 forums”).
Activity – each forum shows “X threads · Y replies” or “No messages”.
Read and take part – open a forum to see the discussions (threads) and replies. You can read messages, start a new thread (“New thread”) and reply to students’ messages.

The same discussion is shown both in this menu and on the course’s Discussion Forums tab with the “View threads” button – they are the same forums.

7 Names and anonymity

The student chooses the name they use in the discussion forum. This name is shown to other students. As the teacher you always also see the student number and real name (if it is stored in your app).

👨‍🎓 Students see

Only the name the writer chose (e.g. “MathWhiz”). The real identity is not shown to other students.

👩‍🏫 The teacher sees

The chosen name and, after it in grey, the student number and real name, if the name is stored in your app. So you can always identify the writer.

A thread with its replies in the teacher’s view: each student message shows the chosen name and, in grey, (student number — real name); the teacher’s reply has the Teacher badge. Students see only the chosen name.

Anonymity encourages students to ask and discuss with a low threshold, but accountability remains: the teacher always sees who wrote what.

🧩 See also: Topics →