Instructor Posts Distinction

Instructor Posts Distinction

by Paul Baumeister -
Number of replies: 4

Is there a way to distinguish which posts are from an instructor? In other words, is it possible to make all of the instructor posts to be highlighted so that it is very easy for the students to see who the instructor is?

Also, is it possible to show the "threaded form" where all of the initial posts show the replies in threaded form under them?

Below is an example from Pearson eCollege. This shows the threaded posts under the initial. If you could see the whole screen it would show more initial posts below with rreplies under it also. So basically it shows all initial posts from all students and all replies on one single page.Screenshot.

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In reply to Paul Baumeister

Re: Instructor Posts Distinction

by Rick Jerz -
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To answer your second question, yes, display posts "in threaded form" (see graphic).

For your first question, I think the answer is "no."  You can add a "feature request" for this in the Moodle Tracker system.  I like the idea and would vote for it.

Attachment Threaded Form.jpg
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In reply to Rick Jerz

Re: Instructor Posts Distinction

by Richard Oelmann -
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If the feature request went in, it may be along the lines of highlighting by selected role (actually by a capability, probably) and/or highlighting the original poster, which may be another very useful possibility.


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In reply to Richard Oelmann

Re: Instructor Posts Distinction

by Rick Jerz -
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Yes, I agree.  By role seems most logical.  But then, maybe not.  My role has always been "Manager", not the more logical "Teacher".  But maybe it should be the "course creator", or "non-editing teacher."  Or maybe different highlight colors for each different role.  Then, what about "guest."  This simple request could get to be very difficult.  Yes, maybe the original poster, or the first poster, or the person who created the topic.  But this is not always the teacher.

Well, maybe this would be a course setting: "Highlight posts by..."

Or maybe it should be a forum setting?

Well, let's see where this discussion takes us.

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In reply to Paul Baumeister

Re: Instructor Posts Distinction

by Ravi Murugesan -
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Hi Paul,

To make the instructor stand out in a discussion thread, you could award a badge to the instructor, which would then appear with every post he/she makes.

As for highlighting the instructors' posts, in addition to what others have said, I wonder if such a feature, if available, would make the forum a less equal and collaborative space. Might students be inclined to read only the instructors' posts? A highlight denotes something important. By highlighting all of the instructors' posts automatically, the message is that the instructors' posts are always important, when they might not be. 

Just my two cents,

Ravi

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