Enable anonymous posting (Open Forum)
Open forums have the additional functionality of anonymous posting. This guide provides information about anonymous posting and how to make private replies.
A great way to use anonymous posting is when you want students to ask questions around exam materials or around points they find confusing. This can help students feel more comfortable engaging and seeking help. However, if students are having discussions with each other, then it is best to avoid anonymous posting to get students to take ownership of their comments and to limit potential online bullying.
Anonymous posting hides the author's name (teacher and students) for posts in the forum.
To enable anonymous posting:
- Navigate to your Open forum and click Settings in the top menu.
- Under Post options, check the Allow anonymous posting check box.
Teachers can choose to reveal their identities in posts by checking the Reveal yourself in this post when creating or replying to a post. You can select this option for individual posts and remain anonymous in others.
View author of anonymous post
Students can not reveal their identities if anonymous posting is enabled. However, you can toggle between student identities being shown or hidden and reveal who has made a post and see posters. This will not affect students, who will still see other students as anonymous.
- In the top menu of your Open forum, select View posters.
NOTE: Academics can reveal who has made a post and see posters. This will not affect students, who will still see other students as anonymous.
Private replies
You have the ability to turn on private replies to your students in an Open Forum. This enables you to provide a student with individual private feedback to their post that others cannot see.
- Navigate to your Open forum and click Settings in the top menu.
- Click on Post Options to expand the section.
- Select the Allow private replies check box.
- Click Save and display.
Open forums have all the features of a Forum with the additional functionality of anonymous posting. This guide provides information about anonymous posting and how to make private replies.
NOTE: Settings for Forums such as highlighting of new posts are not available in Open forums.
Add an Open Forum
- Click Turn editing on in the top right corner of the unit banner.
- In the topic you would like to add an open forum, click +Add an activity or resource.
- Select Open Forum and click Add.
- For more information about how to set up a forum, which is similar to Open Forums, see Add a Forum. To change the way forum posts are notified through email, under your forum preferences, select a different email digest type.
Enable anonymous posting
A great way to use anonymous posting is when you want students to ask questions around exam materials or around points they find confusing. This can help students feel more comfortable engaging and seeking help. However, if students are having discussions with each other, then it is best to avoid anonymous posting to get students to take ownership of their comments and to limit potential online bullying.
Anonymous posting hides the author's name (teacher and students) for posts in the forum. To enable Anonymous posting:
- Under Post options, check the Allow anonymous posting check box.
Teachers can choose to reveal their identities in posts by checking the Reveal yourself in this post when creating or replying to a post. You can select this option for individual posts and remain anonymous in others.
View author of anonymous post
Students can not reveal their identities if anonymous posting is enabled. However, you can toggle between student identities being shown or hidden and reveal who has made a post and see posters. This will not affect students, who will still see other students as anonymous.
- In the top right of your Open forum, click the settings cog.
- Select View posters.
NOTE: Academics can reveal who has made a post and see posters. This will not affect students, who will still see other students as anonymous.
Private replies
You have the ability to turn on private replies to your students in an Open Forum. This enables you to provide a student with individual private feedback to their post that others cannot see.
- Click on Post Options to expand the section.
- Select the Allow private replies check box.