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English Composition 1

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Using WebBoard: Public and Private Conferences

Most conferences in our class WebBoard are public, meaning that all members of the class can access those conferences, can read messages posted to the conferences, and can post their own messages. The public conferences allow students to interact and to work collaboratively, as when we critique essays or when we discuss reading assignments.

However, one of the conferences that you see on your WebBoard screen is private. The conference with your name as its title is a private conference, appearing only on your and the instructor's WebBoard screen. Only you and the instructor have access to the private conference area, and only you and the instructor can post and read messages in your private conference area.

Public Conferences

All of the conference areas in the example to the right are public, open to all students in the class. Every student in the class would see this same list of conferences.

Many of the assignments in English Composition 1 Online are interactive, and those assignments are completed in the public conference areas, which we use extensively. Remember that all other students in the class and the instructor can read any messages that you post to a public conference.

Make sure to post your messages to a public conference area when the assignment specifies that you should do so. If a message intended for a public conference area is mistakenly posted to a private area, no other students in the class will be able to read the posted message.

You will post most of your work to public conference areas, but it is extremely important that you post your work to the private conference area when the assignment requires you to do so.

Private Conferences

The conference area using your name as its title is private, open only to you and the instructor. The conference list to the right is what Barney Gumble would see on his WebBoard screen. The "Barney Gumble" conference area would not appear on any other student's WebBoard screen.

The word "Private" appears next to your private conference area.

We also use the private conference areas extensively.

You should use your private conference area . . .

• to post completed assignments not intended to be read by other class members;
• to send attached files not intended to be read by other class members;
• to send the instructor questions of a confidential nature; and
• to access and read graded essays and other assignments.

Graded essays and other assignments will be returned through your private conference area. Again, only you and the instructor have access to your private conference area; your private conference area does not even appear on the WebBoard screens of other students in the class.