Creating Discussions in Ultra Course View
This page covers how to create Discussions in Ultra Course View.
Overview
The Discussion tool in Ultra can be used for asynchronous course interactions between students and instructors.
Discussions can be created from either Course Content or the Discussion tab.
By default, participation in Discussions open to all class members.
Alternatively, discussions can be set as Group Discussions, in which participants only communicate with members of their groups. For more information see: Group Discussions in Ultra.
Navigate to your HuskyCT course.
Under Course Content, hover over the light gray line where you want to add your Discussion Board.
The line will turn purple, and a plus sign will appear, click the plus sign
On the drop-down menu, click Create.
A window will appear on the right had side, titled Create Item.
Under Participation and Engagement, click Discussion.
A new window will open where you can create your Discussion board.
Give the Discussion Board a name.
Make an initial post, which your students will respond to.
Set any desired settings, such as grading or requiring Post-first.
Set the visibility of the Discussion Board.
Click Save under your initial comment to post the comment.
Creating Discussions from the Discussions tab only differs in the location of where the discussion is created from. The setup after a discussion is added is entirely the same as if it were created from Course Content.
To begin, navigate to your course in HuskyCT.
Click the Discussions tab located under the course name.
Click New Discussion. This will jump to Step 7 in Creating a Discussion from Course Content.
To set the visibility of the folder or discussion, click on the dropdown with the eye symbol and select the visibility setting that is needed.
Much like in the main Course Content area, Folders in the Discussion section can be used to organize Discussions.
From within your Ultra course, click the Discussions tab.
Click Add Folder. This creates a folder that organizes discussions of which can be set to hidden or visible to students.
A new window will appear on the right where you can create the folder.
Give the folder a name.
Set the visibility of the folder.
Optionally, give the folder a description.
Click Save to create the folder.
Discussion Board Settings
Display on Course Content Page- The Discussion will appear on the main Course Content page, as well as under the Discussion tab. This is the only way in Ultra to “link” to a Discussion board on the Course Content page. The default is enabled, and a link is placed on the Course Content page.
Post First- Students are required to post their initial reply before they can see or reply to other student submissions.
Prevent Editing- Students will not be able to delete or edit any discussion board posts once they are submitted.
Allow anonymous response and replies- Makes all discussion board posts anonymous to everyone including the instructor. Grading is not possible when this is turned on.
Grade Discussion- Allows instructors to grade the discussion board. Instructors must configure the following options if they enable grading.
Due Date- The date before which students must make a post in the Discussion Board. Posts made after that date are considered Late. The default is 24 hours after the Discussion Board is created.
Participation Requirement - Allows instructors to designate the requirements of the discussion. This pertains to posts and replies. Instructors can designate the number of posts / replies / both students must complete. There are three requirement options available:
Post or Reply: Students can either create a new/initial discussion post or reply to another student's post to receive full credit. The total number required is determined by the instructor.
Post: Students must create the number of initial discussion posts specified by the instructor.
Reply: Students must respond to other students' posts the number of times specified by the instructor.
Second Due Date- Adds another due date requiring students to contribute new posts and/or replies after the initial deadline. Participation requirements can be set on this as well.
Grade using- The method used to assess a grade. Instructors can choose between Points, Percentages, or the HuskyCT Default Letter Grade. The default is Points.
Maximum points- The total possible score a student can earn on the Discussion Board. The default is 100.
Use Grading Rubric- This option is only visible if grading is enabled for the discussion. Instructors can use a rubric to assess student’s performance on a grades discussion board. Instructors can add a rubric in the same manner as they add a rubric to an assignment or test.
Goals and standards- Instructors can align the discussion board with existing goals or standards.
Group discussion- Instructors can assign the discussion board to a group. Instructors will be prompted to either create a new group specific to this assignment or reuse an existing group. For more information on creating and using groups, refer to Creating Groups in Ultra Course View. For creating a group discussion, refer to Creating Group Discussions in Ultra Course View.
For more information or assistance with HuskyCT, please contact the Educational Technology Office at edtech@uconn.edu or (860) 486-5052