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How can I set up a forum so students can ask a question anonymously using QuAK?

Questions Answers Knowledge (QuAK) is an app created by Oxford Brookes University based on an original idea by student Tom Wilford for use by our current students.

The app allows students to ask questions (anonymously or openly) and allows their lecturer or other students to provide answers to those questions (again, anonymously or openly).

How do I configure a Moodle forum to work with QuAK?

Create a Discussion Forum in Moodle. The name of the forum must always start with a prefix “Question forum – “ followed by a forum name, for example, Question forum – Q&A for Assignment 2

Using the prefix “Question forum – “ allows the forum to appear within the QuAK app.

Note: For the Forum to display in Quak, the Course has to be considered “in progress” ie. the current date is within the “Course start date” and “Course end date”.

How do my students use the QuAK app?

Once a Module Leader has set up the forum (as above) students will need to use QuAK to ask a question anonymously.

Please note: Any questions posted directly in the Moodle forum without using QuAK will not be anonymous. 

How to access and use QuAK:

  1. In Moodle, select ‘Brookes Apps’ from the ‘Student help‘ dropdown menu at the top of the Moodle page.
'Brookes Apps' list item highlighted when clicking on 'Student help' item in top Moodle menu
  1. Scroll down and click on‘QuAK for iOS’ or ‘QuAK for Android‘.
  2. You can also access the page directly at: https://moodle.brookes.ac.uk/local/obu_apps/quak.php
  3. Locate and select the Moodle course (the one where you would like to ask an anonymous question).
  4. Locate the forum. Add your question and make sure the ‘Ask anonymously‘ box is ticked. Then click ‘Ask‘.
  5. You can respond to a question by selecting the question and clicking on ‘Add answer‘. Make sure the ‘Answer anonymously‘ box is ticked before clicking the ‘Add‘ button.

Instructions for students

Detailed guidance for students can be found in our ‘Digital Education for Students’ Knowledge Base: How do I ask a question anonymously in a Moodle forum using the QuAK app?

Updated on July 31, 2023

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