Here are some recommendations I share with students for using online educational/learning threaded discussion platforms (e.g. Piazza, Ed Discussion, Canvas discussion board, etc)
In the past, some students have decided to use external discussion forums. When used responsibly and appropriately, we think that's a great idea. But we have never endorsed their use, nor we have monitored, moderated or managed them, and we won't do that this time.
- Don't post irrelevant links, comments, thoughts or pictures.
- Don't type in ALL CAPS! If you do it will look like you are screaming.
- Don't write anything that sounds angry or sarcastic even as a joke, because without hearing your tone of voice, your peers might not realize you're joking.
- Always remember to say "please" and "thank you" when soliciting help from your classmates.
- Respect the opinion of your classmates. If you feel the need to disagree, do so respectfully and acknowledge the valid points in your classmate's argument.
- Refrain from personal abuse. Don't badmouth others or call them offensive words. You may express robust disagreement with what someone says, but don't call them names.
- Be forgiving. If your classmate makes a mistake, don't badger him or her for it. Just let it go.
- If you reply to a question from a classmate, make sure your answer is accurate.
- Be brief. If you write a long dissertation in response to a simple question, it's unlikely that anyone will spend the time to read through it all.
- Remember that your public posts are not anonymous. They can be read by your classmates.
- Don't expect other people to do your homework for you. If you're looking for technical help, for example, don't ask questions you could easily answer yourself by reading the manual or help documentation provided with the software tools used in this course.
We'll create individual posts for each type of assignment. Please ask questions, discuss problems, or help out in those posts only. Before asking a question, read through (or search) the whole thread to see if your question has been answered. Likewise, stay on topic.
Please don't give away the answer. You can explain things in a way that still lets other students figure out the essence of the problem on their own, but don't spoil the problem. For example, don't point to a useful stackoverflow or YouTube link that works out essentially what the problem is asking about.
That is not cool.
Post such spoilers after the HW is due. That is totally fine. If you are not sure, post privately to instructors and then we'll let you know.
If you have questions, comments, or other concerns that are not related to assignments, please email the teaching staff. We want to keep the focus of the discussion forum as a Q&A forum for assignments.
While not violating Rule 2, try to make your questions public, because others might have the same question and we don't need to answer them multiple times.
If you think your questions may take more than 3 or 5 minutes to answer, please come to office hours, or try to schedule a zoom meeting with the teaching staff.
Please do not post questions of the form:
- "Is this the correct solution to HW X problem Y?"
- "Would this receive full credit on HW X problem Y?"
- "Is this the right level of detail for HW X problem Y?"
- Please do not use the discussion forum as a medium to ask instructors to check your homework in advance. We simply cannot check every student's homework through this forum.
Feel free to ask questions of clarification about a certain HW problem, or ask questions about the course content to achieve a deeper understanding, but at a certain point, you must apply your knowledge, give it your best shot, and submit your answers with confidence.
Your question should be self-contained. The teaching staff (and other responders) should not have to scan through PDFs to even figure out what the question is. Ask yourself: am I referring to some lecture /HW solution/discussion solution/etc?
If the answer is yes, post a screenshot of the relevant part. This can include your handwritten notes from the relevant lecture.
Don't post one line saying:
"At step n, I get XYZ, and I'm now confused."
This forces the teaching staff to guess:
What happened in steps 1, 2, ..., n - 1?
Most likely, the teaching staff will guess wrong, and we run into a mess of followup questions trying to figure out what steps 1, 2, ..., n - 1 were.
Instead, post:
Starting out, we have: ...
Then, I do ..., and I get ...
Next, I do ..., and I get ...
Next, I do ..., and I get ...
Now, I get $&%&#(, and this makes no sense.
Then, the teaching staff can respond:
The mistake is at step 3, you're not allowed to apply ABC to XYZ because ...
In summary, when asking for help, include details of what attempts you've made to solve the problem. It will save time and also show people that you are making an effort to help yourself.
We reserve the right to delete, move, or edit any posts, and even to make the discussion forum inactive, at any time, without previous notice.
Online discussion resources can be great tools if used appropriately, respectfully, and wisely. Take advantage of them, and make the most out of them.