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Discussions: *How do I post a new entry or read and reply to entries in a JOURNAL topic (student)?

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ANSWER:

Discussions: Journal Topic: Read, Create Comment, Create New Entry

The Discussions tool provides asynchronous communication between Instructors, Teaching Assistants, and Students. With a Journal discussion, you have a place for your own writing. Your instructor can set up the journals to either be kept private between you and your instructor, or the instructor may set it up so that everyone can share journals with the class.

Note: You may not have access to all of the settings discussed below.  If you do not see a button, link, or option that you believe you should have, please contact your instructor or teaching assistant.

Step 1: On the Course Menu, select Discussions.

Step 2: Select the topic in which you want to interact.

Step 3: In working with existing journal entries:

  • If your journal is private between you and the instructor:

    • To navigate pages, click the Next Page or Previous Page icon.

      Because the default number of items shown per page is 10, when there are more than 10 journal entries, you will need to go to the next page view.  Or you can set your paging preferences for this tool to a higher number of entries to display on a page.  To navigate pages, use the paging controls in the lower right of the screen:

      To change paging preferences, click the  icon.

    • The entire text of each journal entry is shown.

    • To read comments on an entry, click Comments.

    • To make your own comment, enter your text in the Create Comment box. When you are ready to send your comment, click on the Post Comment button. It is a good idea to:
      • Preview your message before you post it to the whole class to read.
      • Save as Draft if you wish to review it and post it later
         
  • If journal entries are public (shared with the class):
    • To navigate journals, click the Next Page or Previous Page icon.

      Because the default number of items per page is 10, when there are more than 10 journals (by student name), you will need to go to the next page view.  Or you can set your paging preferences for this tool to a higher number of students to display on a page.  To navigate pages, use the paging controls in the lower right below the Number of Entries box

    • To change paging preferences, click the  icon.

    • Your Journal entries, if any, are always shown first. The names of all students in your class are listed in the Number of Entries box.

    • To read another students entries, click their name in the Number of Entries box. Their entries are shown on the right.

    • To read comments on an entry, click Comments.
       

    • To make your own comment, enter your text in the Create Comment box. When you are ready to send your comment, click on the Post Comment button. It is a good idea to:
      • Preview your message before you post it.
      • Save as Draft if you wish to review it and post it later
         
    • If peer review is enabled, click View All Reviews.

Step 4: To create a new entry in your journal:

  • Click the Create New Entry button.
     
  • Enter the subject.
     
  • Enter the message:
    • To enter a message in Plain Text format, enter it in the Message text box. The message will appear exactly as you have typed it.
       
    • To format your message, you can use the HTML Creator or hand code the HTML:
       
      • To use the HTML Creator, click Enable HTML Creator.

        NOTE: Depending on administrator settings, the HTML Creator may not be available.


         
      • To hand code the HTML, select Use HTML. In the Message text box, enter the HTML code.
         
    • If you want to insert an equation into your message, see the Equation Editor folder in this knowlege base.
       
  • If you want to attach files to your message, click Add Attachments. The Content Browser pop-up window appears. Locate and select the file.
     
  • To look at your message before posting it, click Preview.
     
  • Do one of the following:
     
    • If you are not ready to post the message but want to save it, click Save as Draft.

      TIP: This is insurance if you are typing a very long message and don’t want to lose everything in case your computer or Internet crashes. Drafts can be viewed and posted via the View Drafts button, which is located across from the Create New Entry button.


       
    • To post the message, click Post.

If you have any further questions, please contact us for support. Thank you.

- WebCampus Support