Discussion Questions.  Discussion questions are completed on the Discussion Board function of the Communications area of Blackboard.

• Original Posting by Each Student for Each Assignment
• To enter a discussion comment, click on the appropriate Unit/Assignment link in the Discussion Board (within the Communication area of the Blackboard site for this course).  Then, click on the Create Thread link to begin your entry.  Be sure to include the Subject of your comment.
• Always include your name -- and the subject of your posting -- in the Subject line of your posting.  This makes it easier for everyone to associate the topic of  your posting, with your name.  This is similar to the Email Protocols for this course, except that it is not necessary (or helpful) to include the CRN in the Subject line of Discussion Board posting. For example, when John Nopzinger posts his initial U1D1 posting, the Subject line would indicate "U1D1 Introduction: John Nopzinger" (without the quotation marks).
• Students replying to a U1D1 discussion simply "reply" directly to the existing posting. Do not start a separate new thread when responding to the posting of another student.
  
• For example, students replying to another student's U1D1 posting, simply clicks on "Reply" and enters his or her responsive message.  There should be no "U1D1B" designation, and no change to the subject line.
  
• These are "collaborative" discussions, so the first student to start a scholarly discussion in response to the assigned question has a better chance of earning (but will not necessarily earn) the maximum of three points for the submission if her or his posting covers most of the ground to be covered in response to that particular assignment. Your points on the Discussion Board count toward the total Task Points for purposes of your final grade. See the Task Points page of the syllabus for more information.  The awarding of points is based on thoughtfulness, helpfulness, the careful following of these instructions, and the effort to move the discussion forward (rather than simply offering compliments or agreeing with prior Discussion Board postings).
  
• Each subsequent student's answer should take into account, and add to, the body of comments already submitted.  Students can add to the body of comments already submitted - and can move the discussion forward - by:
• Identifying and explaining points of disagreement in prior answers; and/or
• Providing and explaining points that are substantively and substantially different than prior answers.
• Comments that ignore other students' comments, or that merely "agree" (either in substance or by assertion of agreement) with other students' comments, will not earn any points.
• The last student to add a quality comment will likely not earn fullest amount of available points, since most of the work will have been completed by that time.
• At the end of the semester, each of your Discussion Board assignments will be graded with a 5 for superior work, a 3 for satisfactory work, or a 1 for poor work, and a 0 for no posting (or for postings that provide no new content or critique).
• Non-substantive comments, mere "yes" or "no" (or similar answers) without complete and detailed explanation, and comments that do not significantly or thoughtfully add to the existing body of comments from other students for that question, will earn zero points or one point.
• General Rules for Discussions
• Each discussion assignment is focused on the unit topic. You may also add to the discussion indicating professional experience or citing an interesting website or journal, but please keep personal matters outside of the discussion. Similarly, if you have a personal concern about this course, send it to aspalding@wayne.edu.
• All postings are required to be "substantive" and scholarly in nature.
• In fulfillment of the minimum  requirements of each discussion board assignment, always reply to a different student.  That is, do not reply to the same student more than once unless that reply is in addition to a reply that fulfills the requirement of an assignment.  If, for discussion U3D2 you have replied, for example, to a posting by Samir Smith, do not reply again to Samir Smith for a later assignment until you have first replied to someone else.  By the end of the course, you should have posted replies to at least a dozen of your classmates.
  
• Use the same professional etiquette in this class as you would in real life or on the job. While graduate learners may disagree with one another (this can make for lively learning), do not employ the ad hominem fallacy by criticizing, harassing, or otherwise insulting other learners personally. If this happens, you will receive one warning. After that, you will be removed from the Blackboard site for this course and lose all credit for Blackboard-related tasks. In short, a lack of respect for fellow learners will not be tolerated.
• Please check your postings for spelling and spacing. Double space between paragraphs. If you are transferring or copying a posting from a word processing document or other source, do not attempt to send it as an attachment (unless, as in the case of the Ethical Analysis, the assignment calls for an attachment). Most students write out their discussion board comments in Word, Notepad, or Notebook, and then copy the text to their computer clipboard, and then paste it into the body of their discussion board comment.

• The document should have the look and content of a report prepared by a professional forensic accounting consultant for review by John Dough.
• In addition to the CCH textbook information, some students (especially those students who do not have a strong accounting background) find the recommended Tracy book for this course, How to Read a Financial Report: Wringing Vital Signs Out of the Numbers, to be helpful for this assignment.
  

• For information about embedding Excel information into a Word document, see:
• Link or embed an Excel worksheet
• Integrating Microsoft Word with Other Office Applications
• Embedding and Linking to Excel Files in Word Documents
• Excel 2007 Tutorial
• Making Tables in Word 2007
  
• U2D1 Discussion Board replies should include recommendations for improving the technical forensic aspects of the analysis as submitted by another student, not recommendations for new or separate analyses unrelated to the student's original submission.

• In addition to the data provided in the Chapter 18 of the CCH textbook, additional data for the Tallahassee Bean Case is available as the "TBC Teacher Handouts" file, available at the Course Documents section of the Blackboard site for this course.
  

• The case analysis report should have the look and content of a report prepared by a professional forensic accounting consultant. Clearly label each of the four parts of the analysis.

• U4D2 Discussion Board replies should include recommendations for improving the technical forensic aspects of the reports as submitted by another student, not recommendations for new or separate analyses unrelated to the student's original submission.