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<\/a>Multi-media messaging walls<\/strong><\/p>\n Like a virtual notice board, students can add \u2018post-it\u2019 notes with questions or comments. They are visually appealing, and students can post anonymously. It can take some effort to gather related questions into themes and keep them organised.<\/p>\n Want to know more? There\u2019s a great write-up of the LITEbox event<\/a> where Dr Jessica Francombe Webb shared her insights. This includes<\/p>\n Another example comes from Mirella Di Lorenzo, Chemical Engineering. She shared her experiences at the first Faculty of Engineering and Design TEL Event<\/a>. Mirella used multi-media messaging walls to manage questions from first year students, and to help students with revision.<\/p>\n Online discussion forums<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s very easy to set up a discussion forum in Moodle<\/a>. In a forum, discussion topics are sorted in \u2018threads\u2019. Working within Moodle means the forum is only available for your students on your unit. You can use Moodle Groups to set up discussion forums for group work. For the time being, students can\u2019t post anonymously to a forum in Moodle (this requires a plugin).<\/p>\n Staff often comment that it can be tricky to get students to engage in online discussion in a Moodle forum. Here are some useful tips for setting up a successful forum<\/a>. The video guide to effective online discussions<\/a> from COFA Online<\/a> is another a good starting point.<\/p>\n Study Space App<\/strong><\/p>\n Here at the University, Keith Brown<\/a> has developed the Study Space App<\/a>. It provides a space where students on a unit or programme can easily collaborate, and ask questions to teaching staff. It has the advantage of being mobile-based, it's presented in a familiar 'social media' style format and allows anonymous questions. Further small scale trials are ongoing across the University. Development of the app continues in response to student feedback, including a new version designed for SSLCs<\/a>, to be co-created by students. When choosing your tool, it\u2019s important to consider privacy settings<\/a>, as discussed in Keith\u2019s blog.<\/p>\n Comparing tools<\/strong><\/p>\n Geraldine Jones<\/a> (e-Learning development officer, HSS) provides a handy at-a-glance comparison matrix<\/a>. It shows the pros and cons and features of these and many other tools.<\/p>\n\n
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