Forum FAQ

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How do I enable students to rate forum posts?

Access the Assign roles page via the Roles tab in editing forum page, then follow the "Override roles" link. (In Moodle 1.9 onwards, click the "Override permissions" tab in the editing forum page.)
Select the Student role.
Set the capability mod/forum:rate to allow.
Click the "Save changes" button.

Note: By default, only administrators are able to override permissions. Instructions on enabling teachers to override permissions can be found in Override permissions.

How can I create a teacher-only forum?

A teacher/tutor-only forum may be added to a course by creating a hidden forum. Teachers are able to view hidden course activities whereas students cannot.

How can I remove the news forum from a course?

Delete the news forum from the course homepage.
In Course settings set "News items to show" to 0.
Delete the Latest news block.

How can I remove test messages from a new forum?

There are several options (Here is a nice graphic). Remember you can

Move the discussion/thread to another forum
Edit the post with your moderator powers
Delete the post with your moderator powers
Split the thread at a particular post and move it to another thread
Split>move>delete your test messages.

How do I enable logged-in users to view the site news?

In Moodle 1.9 onwards:

Access Site Administration > Front Page > Front Page settings
Set the default front page role to student.

For Moodle 1.8, see "How do I enable logged-in users to participate in front page activities?" in Roles FAQ.

Why does 'Post threshold for blocking' still not stop students from exceeding the threshold?

Once the 'Post threshold for blocking' is armed and set in the forum activity instance, it is actually the mod/forum:throttlingapplies capability that enforces it. By default, this is set to 'Not set' in the student role. Either set this to 'Allow' for the student role in system, or use a override on the forum activity instance this applies to. While one forum can have one limit, it can be applied to one user and not another by using the roles system. For more information see MDL 10720 or discussion here.

How can I set a display period for news forum announcements?

Timed posts are disabled by default, but the feature can be enabled by checking the forum_enabletimedposts checkbox in the forum settings via Administration > Modules > Activities.

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