Discussion & online community
Flexible spaces for discussions and interactive learning alongside course materials - Encourage ongoing engagement in a secure, guided environment - Use forums, online whiteboards, and collaborative tools as safe spaces for students to ask questions, share ideas, reflect, and work together.
Contact the Digital Learning team for help, support and advice for any digital learning tool or task.
Affordances
- Continue discussion online following a lecture or seminar to keep students engaged in the topic
- Promote community and allow students to work and learn collaboratively
- Communicate key information to specific grops, or the entire class
- Use as a ‘frequently asked questions’ area to reduce student emails
Forums
Forums are an activity in Moodle allowing you to create forums to suit your needs, right along side your teaching materials.
- Multiple forums can be set up in various formats to suit your requirements
- Create a free-form space where students can have an open discussion any time
- Create a structured discussion prompting responses with specific guidance
- Allow tutors or students to moderate discussion
- Control when students see posts, only allowing once they have posted themselves
Padlet
Online virtual 'pin board' allows people to post comments, media, and resources in one place.
- Post and respond to ideas, questions, and resources in real-time, encouraging active engagement beyond the classroom or lesson.
- Encourage students to share images, links, and videos to build a visually rich, collective knowledge board, fostering a deeper (shared) understanding of the topic.
- Provides a space for students to reflect on lessons, share insights, and support one another with feedback, creating a supportive learning community.
Miro
Online whiteboard for group collaboration.
- An infinite canvas allowing students to brainstorm together by adding sticky notes, diagrams, and drawings, promoting idea-sharing and creative problem-solving.
- Use mind maps and flowcharts, students can visually organize and connect ideas, helping to clarify complex topics and support group discussions.
- Plan and track project tasks on Miro’s shared boards, keeping everyone aligned and actively participating in team goals and timelines.
SiteBuilder
Add a forum page to your internal Warwick website to give visitors a space for discussion.
Teams
Use Teams channels created automatically from Moodle and Tabula Small groups or for entire courses.
Follow our guides to get started
Moodle
- Browse all the Moodle guides
- Introduction to communication and collaboration
- Use announcements
- Create a discussion forum
Padlet
- Get started with Padlet
Miro
- Get started with Miro