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Discussion Forum Options

An explanation of the various options that can be utilized in a Moodle discussion forum. These settings can be accessed when first adding a discussion forum to the course page or by turning editing on in the course page, clicking edit next to the discussion forum, and choosing edit settings.

General

Forum Name
  • This is the title that will appear on the Moodle course page. It is a required field.
Description
  • Directions for the discussion forum can go here. If using a standard forum, the discussion prompt can go here as well. If using a Q and A Forum, the discussion prompt goes elsewhere. Images and links can also be included. Click the down arrow on the left side of the text box toolbar for more formatting options.
  • This information can be displayed on the course main page if the checkbox below the text box is checked, but this can lead to a cluttered course page. 
Forum Type
  • This setting impacts how the instructor and students will interact with the forum. The two most common types are Standard forum for general use and Q and A Forum. Please see the page on Forum Types for more information.

Availability

Due Date
  • If a date is set here, students will see the due date within the Moodle discussion forum and on their Moodle calendar. Click the Enable checkbox to choose a date. Students can still post in the forum after the set date, but Moodle will indicate it was turned in late. This option is disabled by default.
Cut-off Date
  • If a date is set here, students will not be able to post anything after this date. Click the Enable checkbox to choose a date. This option is disabled by default.

Attachments and Word Count

Maximum Attachment Size
  • The largest file size that a student can attach to a discussion post. This is set to 1 GB by default.
Maximum Number of Attachments
  • The largest number of files that a student can attach to a discussion post. This is set to 1 by default.
Display Word Count
  • If enabled, students and instructors can see the word count of posts. This is set to no by default.

Subscription and Tracking

Subscription Mode
  • Sets the type of notification options that forum participants will have for this forum. If a participant is subscribed to a forum, then they will receive notifications for that forum based on their notification settings in their profile.
    • Optional Subscription - participants can choose if they want to subscribe.
    • Forced Subscription - participants are all subscribed and cannot unsubscribe. This is the default setting.
    • Auto Subscription - participants are all subscribed but can choose to unsubscribe.
    • Subscription Disabled - subscribing is not an option for this forum
Read Tracking
  • Allows participants and instructors to track which posts they have read.
    • Optional - participants can decide if they want unread posts highlighted. This is the default setting.
    • Off - unread posts cannot be tracked. 

Discussion Locking

Lock Discussions After Period of Inactivity
  • If enabled, participants cannot post to the forum after it is locked.
    • Do not lock discussions - inactivity never locks the forum. This is the default setting.
    • 1 day, 1 week, 2 weeks, etc. - the discussion forum is locked after no one posts for the specified period of time.

Post Threshold for Blocking

Time Period for Blocking
  • If enabled, participants cannot post if they've posted a certain amount of times within a set period of time.
    • Don't block - participants are not blocked from posting no matter how many times they post. This is the default setting. 
    • 1 day, 1 week, 2 weeks, etc. - participants are blocked from posting based on the numbers set below
Post Threshold for Blocking
  • The maximum number of posts a participant can make within the time period set above. This setting is only visible if a time period is chosen.

 

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