Discussions play a role in larger, multi-party communication in the class. They can be used for everything from informal community building to formal, academic, written discussions. They're particularly useful for the latter in an online class. In that role, discussion participation requires students to actively use knowledge they've learned, and write about it effectively.

Canvas provides an integrated system for class discussions, allowing both instructors and students to start and contribute to as many discussion topics as desired. Discussions can be created as an assignment for grading purposes (and seamlessly integrated with the Canvas Gradebook), or simply serve as a forum for topical and current events. You can also create group discussions.

Discussions allow for class and group conversation, in addition to permitting interaction among classmates and between students and instructors.

The key things to remember about discussions are:

Unlike announcements, discussions include robust tools for students and you to communicate as a group.
Unlike email, discussions are typically seen by the entire class or a group within a class.
Students (and you) write and respond to distinct posts, similar to taking turns in a face-to-face conversation.
Although both discussions and assignments can be used to assess student learning, discussions are useful for formative assessment to check in on student learning regularly throughout the quarter.