Bulletin Board (Discussions)
Bulletin Board Structure
Picture a series of bulletin boards on the wall of a campus hallway. One bulletin board panel may be set aside for job announcements, while another may be reserved for postings from student organizations. Another area may be set aside for general announcements that don’t quite fit anywhere else. The WebCT Bulletin Board (Discussions) can be organized in a similar fashion.
WebCT bulletin boards are organized by topics. Every WebCT bulletin board has a Main topic where general messages may be posted. Most courses will also have additional topics where specific messages should be posted. If you have been assigned a group assignment, you may also have access to a private group topic that only you and your group members (and perhaps the instructor) can access.
All bulletin board messages are posted within one of the available topics. By default, messages will appear in the Main topic, but you can choose to post messages in other topics. When someone posts a new message within a topic, they start a new thread in that topic. The subject of that original message is also the subject of the thread. Anyone who replies to that original message adds to that thread. In WebCT, a thread is defined as an original message plus all of the replies to that message. Understanding the structure of WebCT’s bulletin board system will help you understand better how to view, reply to, and post messages.
Viewing Messages
- Click the Bulletin Board button on the course homepage or in the Course Menu.
- Enter a topic by clicking a topic title OR click the All link at the bottom of the topic list. The All link will display messages from all topics.
- You should then see a listing of message threads available in that topic.
A thread is marked by a magnifying glass icon to left of the thread subject.
- The Status column indicates the number of unread messages and the total number of messages that are in the thread. In the figure above 12 messages have been posted in the first thread and all 12 are unread.
- To view all messages in a thread in a new window, click the magnifying glass icon. All of the messages in the thread will appear chronologically so that you can see the flow of the discussion.
- To view a specific message within a thread, you must first expand the thread list by clicking the green triangle in the Status column.
To read a message, click the subject of the message. The message will appear in a new window.
View Options
The Display options control which messages you see within a topic and how the messages appear in the listing.
When you first begin using the WebCT bulletin board the display is set to show only the Unread messages and to show these messages in a Threaded view (as shown in the example above). If you would like to view a message that you have previously read, then you must change the display settings to show All messages in the topic: just click the All button on the display line. You will probably want to change the display back to Unread so the previously read messages do not clutter the bulletin board listing.
Change the view to Unthreaded if you need to quickly find a message by author or by date or would like to see a chronological listing of messages.
Note: You can not delete bulletin board messages, although your instructor can. They may be temporarily hidden from you (with the Unread display option selected) but they are not lost from the bulletin board.
Searching Messages
Click the Search button to find a specific message in the bulletin board.
Using the criteria in the example figure above, all messages in the Main topic that had the word exam in the subject would be found in the search. Searching within the Bulletin Board can help you find messages that may be difficult to find by just browsing the bulletin listings. You can search by date, by name, or other criteria.
Reply Options
To reply to a message, choose one of the following options, depending on what kind of reply you wish to post:
| Reply |
Creates a blank message window with the original subject and topic automatically selected. |
| Reply privately |
Creates a WebCT Mail message window that is automatically addressed to the poster of the message to which you are replying. This is a private message between you and the other person. |
| Quote |
Similar to the Reply option but includes all of the text from the message to which you are replying. You can refer to the text in your message to provide context to your comments. |
Posting a New Message
Make sure that you have reviewed the general communication and bulletin board tips provided earlier in this section before posting new bulletin board messages. In addition, you should perform this mental checklist before posting any new message.
- Is this message appropriate for the bulletin board or should I use mail to keep it private?
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Am I posting my message in the appropriate topic?
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Have I included a good subject for my message?
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Have I included the file attachment (if you intend to attach a file to the message)?
To post a new message, follow these general steps:
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From the main Bulletin Board page (where the topics are listed), click the topic in which you want the message to be posted.
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Click the Compose Message button. This will open a new browser window in which you will compose the new message.
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Check the topic and make sure it is the correct one. You can change the topic if necessary.
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Enter a descriptive, but concise subject that describes the main point of your message.
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If allowed in this topic, you may be able to post the message anonymously. If you wish to do so, check the Post anonymously option.
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Type your message. You must type a message before you will be able to post it to the bulletin board. That may sound obvious, but some students may be in the habit of attaching a file to an e-mail message and not entering a message. This procedure won’t work in the WebCT bulletin board. You must type something in the message area.
- Optional step: Use the HTML Editor to format your text with styles, colors, or other formatting.
- Optional step: Attach a file to the message (you may do this rarely, but it is an option that you can use when appropriate).
- Click the Browse button.
- Locate the file that you wish to attach (similar to finding a file to Open in another program) and double-click it OR click the file once and then click the Open button
- Click the Attach file button to upload the file and attach it to your message.
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Click the Preview button to see how your message will appear when posted. Make any changes that are necessary.
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Click the Post button. Your message will be posted.
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Your message will not appear automatically on your screen until you refresh the message listing. Click the Update listing button to see the updated list.
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