On the main page of a course, the discussion forum link is a square icon with a outline of a speech bubble within it. The link may indicate the number of unread posts within. Click on the link to enter the forum

At first, the forum may look overwhelming, including instructions about what to do, a list of discussions posts, a number of replies to each discussion and even a way to "subscribe" to it (and have forum messages forwarded to your SCC email). To start, just read the instructions, and then post your first message.

When you click on an individual forum message from the discussion list, you are taken to a view of that message. All messages - whether discussions or replies to discussions - will have a reply button. Clicking on the reply button will let you respond to that message with another message that will be listed below it.

This shows an example of a message with a reply. In this example, the reply is shown on the same page as the message but appears indented below it to indicate its status. Notice that on the right of the message screen is a menu that allows you to change how discussions and replies are displayed.

When you click on "Add discussion topic" or "reply", you will open the message edit screen. Be sure to give your message an informative title in the "Subject" field . Then, compose your forum post in the "Message" field. Also, take note of the formatting tools in the text formatting bar above the text editing area. You'll reveal even more formatting tools if you click the "Show more buttons" icon on the formatting bar. Once done, don't forget to click "Post to forum."

Some instructors will choose to grade discussions. For graded discussions, you will often see a grade ("rating") appear in the lower right corner of a message you have posted. This grade is assigned by your instructor, and will be visible to you under the "Grades" tab.