Discussions
Canvas provides an integrated system for class discussions, allowing both instructors and students to start (and contribute to) as many discussion topics as desired. Discussion allows for interactive communication between two or more people – users can participate in a conversation with an entire class or group. Discussions can be created as an assignment for grading purposes, or simply serve as a forum for topical and current events.
You will find three types of discussion boards on this programme, as follows:
1. The Global Cafe
The Global Cafe is a programme-wide discussion board which is accessed and used by all students studying on the Business School’s Online Master’s Programmes. This is a space for broader discussion topics, which may be initiated by you or a fellow student. Topics are likely to be about the programme as a whole, or for social discussions with other learners – not specific to the module you are currently on and we encourage you to go into the Global Cafe and introduce yourself to your peers.
For example, you may find discussions here such as;
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- I saw in the news today that …I wonder how that will affect your organisation?
- I’m travelling to London with work next month, are there any students located there who would like to meet up?
If your query or post is about the specific module you’re currently studying, please use the relevant module discussion boards and the Q&A Forum (outlined below).
If you have a question that needs a response from the programme team, a complaint, or something or needs an urgent response, please contact your Student Success Coordinator directly, via studentsuccess@online.lincoln.ac.uk
2. Module Q&A Forum
Each module will have a Q&A discussion thread for general questions about the module, the learning activities, assignments etc., which will be answered by your Online Learning Facilitator within three working days. However, you may also find that your fellow students could be able to answer the question, resolving your query sooner, which is one of the great benefits of online discussion boards.
You might also find your question has been previously answered, so take a look here before posting a new question or thread.
This Q&A Forum should not be used for the discussion activities you are asked to participate in as part of specific learning activities.
Some examples of Module Q&A might be:
- Can someone remind me where to find the deadline dates for the final assignment?
- Is anyone else having problems accessing the link in…?
- I’m struggling with understanding this concept because…
3. Specific Activity-Based Discussions
In every module there will be a number of discussion boards related to specific activities. These will appear in your weekly content, will be numbered and listed in order, and will have deadlines written in the instructions for the discussion.
Please read your instructions carefully, and ensure that you complete the activity by the given deadlines. Please note that often deadlines won’t appear in your Canvas Calendar. This is to ensure that the activity remains open in case it becomes relevant again later. You can also navigate to a list of all the discussions in your module via the ‘Discussions’ link in the left-hand module menu.
Further Guidance
You can get more information on how to use the discussion boards in the following user guides:
Please remember that you are subject to the University of Lincoln’s Student Charter, and unacceptable posts/behaviour online will be addressed appropriately.