How to Write a Perfect Discussion Board Post on Your Own

What is the discussion board post?

Discussion board post writing is an inseparable part of online learning process. If you are an active Internet usage, you must probably know that a discussion board post has always been the main social media meeting place. Also known as a message board, online form, discussion form or discussion post, the online board post serves as a means of communication and exchange of ideas on a specific topic. Actually, a discussion board is a bulletin board where people with similar interests can share their views and opinions and exchange their experience. As a rule, people who are frequent visitors of discussion boards communicate on some topical and controversial issues or problems. You can create your own discussion board or participate in the already existing one by posting replies and comments to other students’ posts.

The tradition of discussion forums has also merged into the college and university studying process as students are frequently encouraged to register on some platforms where they could discuss specific topics and exchange ideas. In this case, an online discussion post serves as a method of communication among students and professors. It is especially beneficial for establishing rapport between a student and a professor because students often distance themselves from professors and are frequently afraid of taking part in discussions in class.

As such, the core functions of discussion boards for studying are the following:

1. Online discussions enable you to meet with your classmates for discussion of interesting and controversial topics;
2. You can exchange discussions related to your home assignments;
3. You can learn how to apply the theoretical material learned during courses in practice (in the very process of discussing it with your peers and professors);
4. You can obtain valuable information about the terms and concepts learned in a specific class. Your professor might tell you to create a new board for discussions or participate in the existing one.
5. Discussion board post writing may sometimes be a great means of earning additional points for your studying course. Therefore, do not miss this chance by participating in often engaging and interesting discussions with your classmates.

Ways to Ace Discussion Board Post Assignments in an Online Class

Actually, there is a huge difference between face-to-face interaction among students or between a professor and a student in a regular class and online interaction. In an online class, it takes more than head nodding, head shaking, or mumbling something to make it clear whether you agree or disagree with one’s opinion. Actually, such gestures and mimics will not be helpful in an online class at all, so you need to master some other instruments of responding to others. One of such instruments is an online reply to the discussion thread of your fellow classmates or professors. When posting a reply to one’s discussion online post, you can provide a person with your own opinion on the subject or write some kind of a feedback. Besides, when reading classmates’ discussions, you can enrich your knowledge and actually gain more information that you might have derived from reading boring textbooks. Just look through some of the discussion post reply examples for your online class and see how the online communication is organized.

Main Tips on How to Ace Discussion Board Posts

1. Carefully read professor’s instructions and make sure you write your post according to the discussion requirements.
2. Express your opinion directly and briefly. Still, do not forget to back it up with sufficient facts and examples taken from credible sources. It is also perfectly OK to relate the topic of your discussion with some other topics from adjacent fields.
3. Do not procrastinate with discussion posts. Make sure you have enough time not only to post your own discussion but also to participate in the discussions of your classmates.
4. Ask questions if you find something confusing.
5. Make sure you give food for thought by your discussion posts.

Read the instructions and prompt for your discussion post attentively! Make sure that you understand the:

• Purpose of the post: What are the questions that you must answer?
• Specifics: How long should your discussion board post be?
• Quality: Do you need to use any sources? Do you need to incorporate your experiences into your discussion board post?
• Formatting and style: What format and style should you follow? How many sources should you use in writing?
• Follow the instructions and recommendations provided by your course teacher.

How to Write a Good Discussion Board Post

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If you want to learn how to write a perfect discussion post on your own, follow our recommendations below:

Get ready to write your discussion board post

• Before you start writing your discussion post, you will need to review all instructions and requirements provided by your tutor.
• Once you have reviewed the instructions, you will need to take some time and think about your personal experiences and what you are going to share in your discussion post.
• Brainstorm and choose the most relevant and strongest ideas for your discussion board post. Make sure that you remain focused and do not write too much unnecessary information in your discussion post.
• Write a discussion post that follows appropriate formatting and style, with an introduction, a thesis, a body, and a conclusion. Sound compelling and persuasive in your writing!

Create a draft of your discussion post

• Find enough evidence to support your thesis and incorporate it into the body of your discussion post.
• Although discussion board writing is informal, you should still use scholarly and academic tone.
• Write in complete sentences and appropriate paragraph structure. Never use Caps Lock.

Review and revise the initial draft of your discussion board post:

• Now you should revise the initial draft of your discussion post.
• Make sure that you have been clear in the discussion and analysis of your main idea.
• Offer a new perspective on the issue or provide new evidence to challenge popular ideas discussed by your fellow mates.
• Use discussion post reply examples to write replies to the discussion posts made by your fellow students.
• See if you have used enough evidence to support your claims and findings.
• Check the spelling and grammar throughout your discussion board post.

Now you can post your discussion and make it visible to others:

• Use your draft and post it for the students.
• See if other students have responded to it.
• Check your grade for the discussion post online.

You can learn to write perfect discussion board posts if you follow our advice. You can also ask for help online when you feel that discussion post writing is beyond your ability. Your skills and knowledge will boost your discussion board skills. Ask for help now or use our advice to produce an outstanding discussion post today.