Many Moodle forums remain largely underutilised by students. Encouraging engagement can be challenging – students might feel too shy to post, be unsure of what to contribute, or think their input isn’t valuable. These are just a few of the barriers that can hinder active participation.

In this post, we’ll share some practical tips you can implement to boost student engagement in your forums, making them a more vibrant and interactive space for learning.

• Start with a warm welcome:
  • Action: create a welcome post introducing yourself and invite students to share something interesting about themselves.
  • Benefit: this sets a friendly tone and helps build a sense of community from the start.

• Set clear expectations:
  • Action: clearly outline participation expectations, such as contributing to discussions at least twice a week.
  • Benefit: students know what is expected, leading to more consistent and meaningful engagement.

• Keep the Forum organised:
  • Action: use clear, descriptive titles for threads and organise topics logically.
  • Benefit: a well-organised forum makes it easier for students to find and engage with content.

• Post regularly:
  • Action: share a relevant article or pose a question related to course content at least once a week.
  • Benefit: regular posts keep the forum active and demonstrate your involvement, encouraging students to participate.

• Ask open-ended questions:
  • Action: post questions like, ‘How would you apply this concept apply to xxx scenario?
  • Benefit: open-ended questions prompt deeper thinking and longer discussions, which enrich the learning experience.

• Encourage peer interaction:
  • Action: prompt students to comment on at least one peer’s post each week.
  • Benefit: this builds a collaborative learning environment where students learn from each other.

• Acknowledge contributions:
  • Action: respond to and highlight a particularly insightful student post once a week.
  • Benefit: recognising student contributions increases their confidence and motivates others to engage.

• Create weekly or thematic threads:
  • Action: start a ‘Topic of the Week’ thread every Monday to kickstart discussions.
  • Benefit: regular threads provide a predictable structure, encouraging students to participate consistently.

• Use polls and surveys:
  • Action: use Menti or MS forms to post a quick poll related to the week’s content and discuss the results.
  • Benefit: polls are an easy way to engage students and can spark interest in further discussion.

• Relate topics to real-world scenarios:
  • Action: ask students to share how a concept from the course applies to their work or life.
  • Benefit: connecting theory to practice makes learning more relevant and engaging for students.

• Provide quick feedback:
  • Action: respond to posts in a timely manner to keep the momentum going. The key is to manage expectations. If you check the forums every 3 or so days, let the students know.
  • Benefit: timely feedback keeps discussions flowing and shows students that their contributions are valued.

• Occasionally, keep it ‘light’
  • Action: introduce light-hearted content or activities, like a ‘Fun Fact Friday’ or a course-related quiz.
  • Benefit: keeps the forum lively and reduces the pressure of always being serious.

• Follow up on key discussions:
  • Action: summarise important discussions or themes at the end of the week.
  • Benefit: encourages students to add any final thoughts before moving on to new topics.