Discussion Board - Additional Dicussion Board Tools and Features

Discussion Board - Additional Discussion Board Tools and Features

The Discussion Board is a communication tool used to conduct class discussions. Because the discussions are asynchronous (not live), participants can respond at any time. Instructors can create forums that establish multiple topics of discussion. Discussions that take place in these forums are grouped in "threads" that contain the main message and all replies to that main message. All threads are logged and organized. Ideas to enhance a course with online discussion.

Step One: Create a Forum

Step Two: Start a Thread

Step Three: Read and Reply to a Discussion Board Post

Step Four: Grade Discussion Board Participation (Optional)

Additional Discussion Board Tools and Features

Search

New: Watch a closed-captioned movie that shows you how to search for a Discussion Board post in BeachBoard [opens a new window]

A Search icon appears in the top right corner of every discussion board page. Click this icon to show or hide the search fields, thus conserving screen space in the Discussion Board.

The search fields include keyword, date and time restrictions, and options for where to search. The search function starts at the current level and options exist to work up. For example, in a thread, the default search option only searches that thread but options exist to search the entire forum or all forums. From the search function, users can search all forums in the course, including any forums that appear in the user’s groups.

Lock a Thread

Locking a thread ensures that users may read the thread but not make any additions or modifications. This allows grades to be assigned without users updating or changing posts.

  1. Login to BeachBoard at https://beachboard.csulb.edu/
  2. Under My Courses, click the name of the course that contains your Discussion Board forum.
  3. Click the course's Control Panel link.
  4. Under Course Tools, click the Discussion Board link.
  5. On the Discussion Boards page, click the name of your course [e.g., 2084_LBCMP_ECON_100_SEC01]
  6. Click the name of the forum whose thread(s) you would like to lock.
  7. Click the checkbox to the left of the thread's name you would like to lock.
  8. In the Change Status to: pull-down list in the top right corner of the page, choose Locked.
  9. Click the Go button.

Add a Link to a Discussion Board Forum in a Content Area

Discussion Board forums can be accessed from the Discussion Board tool that lists all the forums in the course. This centralized view is an easy access point, but there are other ways to access Discussion Board forums that immerse the user in the learning experience. For example, Discussion Board forums can be placed in any content area including BeachBoard's Course Documents and Assignments areas. Thus, a Discussion Board forum may appear following lecture notes on the same topic. Further, using adaptive release or date availability restrictions, the forum may only appear after users complete the lesson or after the Instructor has delivered the lecture in class.

  1. Login to BeachBoard at https://beachboard.csulb.edu/
  2. Under My Courses, click the name of the course in which you would like to add a Discussion Board forum.
  3. Click the course's Control Panel link.
  4. Under Content Areas, click the link for the content area in which you would like to create a forum [e.g., Course Documents]
  5. In the Select: pull-down list in the top right corner of the page, choose Discussion Board
  6. Click the Go button
  7. Choose if you want to
    • Link to your Discussion Board page. This adds a course link to Communication > Discussion Board and will show all of the forums in the course
    • Link to an existing discussion board forum by highlighting the name of that forum in the list that appears on the page.
    • Create a new forum by clicking the Create new forum button. If you choose to create new forum, the Add Forum page opens. The instructions at the top of this page show you how to proceed. Once you have created a new forum, you will be returned to the Add Link: Discussion Board page where you will need to click on the name of your new forum to link to it.
  8. Click the Next button to continue.
  9. Edit the link name. This is optional.
  10. Key in a description of the forum in the Text box. This is also optional.
  11. Choose the appropriate availability and date restrictions.
  12. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the Submit button.