How to Post to a Discussion Forum in Moodle

Discussion forums are one tool used by instructors at BCC to encourage academic discussion and conversation in your online class.  You might be asked to write in a forum as an assignment for your class.  Keep in mind that your professor and other students will be able to see what you post and comment or reply back to you.  

Here are instructions on how to post to a discussion forum in Moodle.  

NOTE: We always recommend using a full computer when writing to a discussion forum and not a mobile device such as a cell phone.  You may run into limitations or problems if trying to post to a forum from your cell phone.

1. Click on the Forum Discussion link from within your Moodle course.
   
2. The Forum Discussion screen will open.  Read the question/instructions from your instructor completely before continuing.
   

   TIP: If writing a long forum post you may want to write in Microsoft Word so that you can save while you work.  When your post is ready you can use the lettered instructions within Step 5 to keep all your formatting. 

3. Click on Add a new discussion topic.

   NOTE: Some instructors may already have a topic setup for you, in this case you will click on the Discussion Topic title and select Reply instead.

4. Type a Subject into the Subject box.
5. Type your discussion forum response into the Message box. 
   

   TIP: If copy/pasting from Word make sure you use the Word import text button as shown in the image below then follow the additional lettered instructions.
   

   1. Click on Upload a file from the menu on the left
      
      
   2. Click on the Choose file button and select the Word file with your assignment in it then click the Open button.
      
   3. Click on the Upload this file button and your text will appear in the discussion message box.
6. Click on the Post to forum button when your assignment is ready to submit.

NOTE: You have 5 minutes after submitting your post to edit if you see any errors or mistakes you want to fix, just click the Edit button at the bottom of your post.  After that period of time the post is locked and you cannot edit it again.