Practical tips for discussion forum use
The platform organizes exchanges through discussion threads. Each thread is linked to a specific topic. That's what makes navigation through the hundreds of messages easier.
A thread is made of messages, which you can answer. Here are a few tips and rules to have the best experience possible of discussion forums:
Please post your messages in the proper thread, by making sure you send your message from a "Course" page rather and the "Discussion" tab. If you write from a Course page, your message will be automatically properly sorted.
Please indicate the nature of your message in its topic: please indicate if it's a question (to which you expect an answer) or a simple share of your opinion in a discussion.
Make use of the "follow" and "notification" options: if you want to find messages you've posted and the answers you've received, click on the star icon "Follow this message". To find the messages you're following, go to the "Discussion" tab, click on "All discussions" then select "Followed messages". From the Discussion tab, you can also activate the option to receive a mail digest of the new updates to the messages you follow.
Isolate a specific discussion thread: in the same "All discussions" list, you can select a specific thread to see ONLY the messages from that thread (for example: presentations). Very handy to know where you are among all the messages sent!
Vote for messages you find interesting, so that they are highlighted for the whole community.
Best practices for online interactions
Netiquette applies to all the good practices guidelines on discussion forums and the Internet in general. Here are some behaviours to favour if you want to be agreeable online, and create for yourself and others, efficient and inviting forums in this course.
Post your message in the appropriate thread. It will be found and interpreted more adequately.
Write a short and specific title for your messages. Avoid titles such as "Question", "Issue", "I don't understand". Prefer the use of titles like "What does urbanism mean?" "How can I submit my video for the exam?" .
Don't write in all caps. CAPITALS GIVE THE IMPRESSION YOU ARE YELLING and just don't entice answers.
Post messages that are linked to the topic of the course only.
Always be courteous and respectful in your writing, even when you're annoyed or impatient. Impolite messages may not invite quick or constructive answers. Annoyance generates annoyance.
Be patient. Keep in mind that the other participants (learners, staff, experts) are not online all the time. Expect from a few hours to a few days of delay before your message is well received and gets the appropriate answer.
The staff reserves the right to remove any message that is (in part or completely) racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, aggressive, rude, insulting or personal against a member of the course. If the staff has to remove such a message, it may also ban the learner from the course.