Adding/editing a course: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 14:17, 28 December 2011

This page provides teacher documentation on how to add and edit a new course, the main learning and teaching space in Moodle.

Creating your new course

A regular Teacher in Moodle can only edit and add content to courses which have already been created. If you need to have a brand new course, you must either ask your admin to set up the blank course for you or else give you Course Creator privileges.
If you have been given Course Creatorprivileges then in the Category where you wish to set up your new course, you will see a button "add a new course" beneath the current courses. Click on it to create your new, blank course.

Enter the course settings, then click the "Save changes" button. (You can always go back and change settings later.)
On the next screen, choose your students/teachers to assign to the course. (You can skip this step and do it later)

Getting started on your course

A blank course looks typically something like the following screenshot, but it may vary according to the theme and default settings of your establishment's Moodle. Down the left and right sides are blocks which can be added to and removed, and in the middle is the "work area". This is your course homepage

Once you have a new blank course, you can start work on it by turning on the editing, either with the button top right or the link in the Course Administration block:

NOTE: If you don't see either the button or the link,then you need to ask your admin to give you Teacher rights in the new course.

Editing elements of your course

With the editing turned on, each item on your course homepage and each section/block will have icons next to it which all perform different functions such as edit/move/copy/delete/hide. Note: your theme may have icons different from these below::

- the edit icon allows you to change the wording or settings of the item.

- the duplicate icon allows you to copy an activity or resource within your course

- the open-eye icon means an item is visible to students. It will close when you click on it

- the closed-eye icon means an item is hidden from students. It will open when you click on it

- the right icon is used to indent course elements (there is also a left icon)

- the move icon allows course elements to be placed anywhere

- the move here icon appears when moving a course element. Click into the box to re-locate your item.

- the up/down arrows allow you to move course sections up or down.

- the "crosshairs" move icon allows you to move items or sections by dragging and dropping. It appears if your admin has enabled Ajax in Settings > Site Administration > Appearance > Ajax and Javascript

- the delete icon will permentantly delete something from the course

- the groups icon allows you to change between no groups or separate/visible groups

- the roles icon allows you to assign roles locally in the item.

The following icons are visible when editing is both on and off

- This icon is used to show only the selected section

- This icon is used to show all sections in a course

The following icon only applies to sections

- the highlight icon allows you to highlight a section as current

Adding activities to your course

Moodle provides a great number of learning activities for students. There are 14 standard activities, but there are many others which your admin can add to your Moodle. The Activities page shows you how to set these up and use them.
To add an activity, turn on your editing, choose the section in your Course homepage where you'd like it to appear and click the drop down menu "Add an activity".

You can have students send in their work to you via Assignments or have Moodle mark it automatically using Quiz or SCORM activities. You can set up independent or step-by-step tutorials with Lessons.Students may collaboarate with others on Wikis, Databases or Glossaries. They may communicate and share knowledge via Chats and Forums. They may peer or self-assess using Workshops and evaluate their learning with Choice, Feedback or Surveys.

Adding Resources to your course

As well as adding interactive exercises for your students, you can provide them with static resources. The Resources page shows you how to add and use static resources such as useful weblinks or documents.
To add a resource, turn on your editing, choose the section in your Course homepage where you'd like it to appear and click the drop down menu "Add a resource".

You can share individual Files - either from your own computer or from any external sites your Moodle admin has allowed. You can save time and space by displaying a whole Folder or by adding your information directly onto a Moodle Page. It is also easy to share links to websites or import pre-made content as an IMS content package. A Label is a "spacer" that helps break up your Course homepage.

Adding Blocks to your course

Blocks appear to the right and left of the central "work" area into which you add your Activities and Resources
There are many standard blocks which allow you, for example, to display a Calendar share Quiz results or Glossary entries, display RSS feeds, add personalised content, show who is online or allow Comments on your course. The Blocks page shows you how to set up and use the blocks.
A teacher can add new blocks when the editing is turned on by clicking the "add block" drop down menu at the bottom right of the screen:

As well as the standard blocks, there are many contributed blocks which your admin could add to your Moodle.

To move a Block

Blocks appear at the side(s) of your course area. To move one,

Turn Editing On and *click and release* the Block's crosshair icon. Place holders - zones with a dashed border - appear on the screen indicating the possible areas where your Block can appear.

Click the placeholder where you want the Block appear. On course area homepages, you can move Blocks from one side to the other, but not into the middle.
The block should now appear in the location you chose.

Managing your course

The Course Administration section of the Settings block allows teachers to manage different aspects of their course. (Note that you might see more or fewer of the options in the following screenshot according to what your Moodle admin has allowed)

- Edit Settings - this takes you to the Course settings page (which you see when first creating a course. Here you can, for example, rename the course, change its format from Weekly to Topic or alter the number of sections.
- Users = this is where you can enrol new users - see Course enrolment for details on how to do this.
- Filters - here is where you can enable or disable any allowed Filters for your course.
- Grades -this section allows you to view, add and edit your students' Grades. (You might also have Outcomes enabled here too.)
- Backup/Restore - these links allow you to make copies of your course or bring in courses backed up elsewere. See Course backup and Course restore for more information.
- Import -you can import activities into your course here. The Page Import course data gives you details of how to do this.
- Publish - if your Moodle admin allows it, you can publish your course to one of the Community hubs here.
- Reset -this lets you remove all old user information at the end of an academic year or session in order to start afresh. The page Reset course gives you more information about this.

NOTE: These links are only available to teachers of the course. Students will see their own version of the block which will display a link to their own gradebook and, if enabled, their own course reports.

General advice

Subscribe yourself to all of the forums in your course so that you can keep in touch with your class activity.
Encourage all of the students to fill out their user profile (including photos) and read them all - this will help provide some context to their later writings and help you to respond in ways that are tailored to their own needs.
Use the Notes feature to make notes about students. This is especially useful when team teaching.
Use the Course reports link in the Navigation block to get access to logs, activity and participation reports.
Respond quickly to students. Don't leave it for later - do it right away. Not only is it easy to become overwhelmed with the volume that can be generated, but it's a crucial part of building and maintaining a community feel in your course.
Don't be afraid to experiment: feel free to poke around and change things. It's hard to break anything in a Moodle course, and even if you do it's usually easy to fix it.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-This page describes some of the features and settings in a course, the primary tool of a teacher.  It was originally called "Teacher Documentation".
+This page provides teacher documentation on how to add and edit a new course, the main learning and teaching space in Moodle.
-==Getting started==
+==Creating your new course==
-First, you will need to be [[Log in | logged into]] a course as a user with [[Teacher]] editing rights to use most of the features below. We have some tips if you are having [[Can not log in | trouble logging in]].
+*A regular [[Teacher]] in Moodle can only edit and add content to courses which have already been created. If you need to have a brand new course, you must either ask your admin to set up the blank course for you or else give you  [[Course_creator_role|Course Creator]] privileges.
+*If you have been given [[Course_creator_role|Course Creator]]privileges then in the Category where you wish to set up your new course, you will see a button "add a new course" beneath the current courses. Click on it to create your new, blank course.
+[[File:addnewcourse1.png]]
+*Enter the [[Course settings|course settings]], then click the "Save changes" button. (You can always go back and change settings later.)
+*On the next screen, choose your students/teachers to assign to the course. (You can skip this step and do it later)
-Now on to some details, we will have lots of embedded links in the text. You will find the [[Course homepage|course homepage]] is broken down into [[Course sections]]. A course is created by [[Adding resources and activities|adding resources and activities]].
+==Getting started on your course==
+*A blank course looks typically something like the following screenshot, but it may vary according to the theme and default settings of your establishment's Moodle. Down the left and right sides are blocks which can be added to and removed, and in the middle is the "work area". This is your [[Course homepage|course homepage]]
+[[File:blankcourse1.png]]
-[[File:New Moodle Course 2 1.JPG|thumb|center|400px|New Course in Moodle 2.1 at demo.moodle.net]]
+*Once you have a new blank course, you can start work on it by turning on the editing, either with the button top right or the link in the Course Administration block:
+[[File:turneditingon.png]]
+*'''NOTE:''' ''If you don't see either the button or the link,then you need to ask your admin to give you Teacher rights in the new course.''
-The example above shows a new course set up with topic sections, edit is on and there are blocks both sides of the topics. Resources and activities are ready to be added.
+===Editing elements of your course===
+With the editing turned on, each item on your course homepage and each section/block will have icons next to it which all perform different functions such as edit/move/copy/delete/hide. '''Note:''' ''your theme may have icons different from these below:'':
-==Editing a course==
+:[[Image:Edit.gif]] - the edit icon allows you to change the wording or settings of the item.
-[[File:Turn editing on button.JPG]]<br>
-First, the teacher should [[Turn editing on|turn editing on]] to add or alter activities or resources after the course has been created. The course view will change to show icons that are hidden from other users who do not have course editing permissions in their roles.
-:''Tip:'' The ''Settings > Switch role to'' menu will allow you to see your course as if you were assigned a different role.
-:''Tip:'' To help you edit in Moodle you have a range of [[Formatting options]] including using the [[HTML editor]] tool bar.  See [[HTML in Moodle]] for more tips.
-===Editing icons===
+:[[File:Duplicateicon.png]] - the duplicate icon allows you to copy an activity or resource within your course
-When editing is on you will see the following icons:
-:[[Image:Edit.gif]] - the edit icon lets you alter/update whatever resource or activity it is next to by taking you to its setup page.
+:[[Image:Open.gif]] - the open-eye icon means an item is visible to students. It will close when you click on it
-:[[Image:Help.gif]] - the help icon will pop-up a relevant help window.
+:[[Image:Closed.gif]] - the closed-eye icon means an item is hidden from students. It will open when you click on it
-:[[Image:Open.gif]] - the open-eye icon means an item is visible to students. Clicking it will make the item invisible to participants and change the icon to the closed eye.
+:[[Image:Right.gif]] - the right icon is used to indent course elements (there is also a left icon)
-:[[Image:Closed.gif]] - the closed-eye icon means an item is hidden from students. Clicking it will make the item visible to participants and change the icon to the open eye.
+:[[Image:Move.gif]] - the move icon allows course elements to be placed anywhere
-:[[Image:Right.gif]] - the left icon is used to outdent course elements. There is also a right icon for indenting items.
+:[[Image:Movehere.gif]] - the move here icon appears when moving a course element. Click into the box to re-locate your item.
-:[[Image:Move.gif]] - the move icon allows course elements to be moved up or down throughout the course.
+:[[File:Updownarrow.png]] - the up/down arrows allow you to move course sections up or down.
-:[[Image:Movehere.gif]] - the move here icon appears when moving a course element. It appears only after you've clicked the move icon, and indicates the destination of the item you're moving.
+:[[File:Ajaxmoveicon.png]]- the "crosshairs" move icon allows you to move items or sections by dragging and dropping. It appears if your admin has enabled Ajax in ''Settings > Site Administration > Appearance > Ajax and Javascript''
-:[[Image:Delete.gif]] - the delete icon will permanently delete something from the course after you confirm a warning on a second page.
+:[[Image:Delete.gif]] - the delete icon will permentantly delete something from the course
-:[[Image:Marker.gif]] - the marker icon allows you to make a section current.
+:[[File:Groupsicon.png]] - the groups icon allows you to change between no groups or separate/visible groups
-:[[Image:One.gif]] - the one icon hides all other sections of the course, showing only this one.
+:[[File:Rolesicon.png]] - the roles icon allows you to assign roles locally in the item.
-:[[Image:All.gif]] - the all icon redisplays all sections in a course.
+The following icons are visible when editing is both on and off
-==Activity modules==
+:[[Image:One.gif]] - This icon is used to show only the selected section
-[[Image:Activity_dropdown.JPG|frame|right|Add an activity drop-down menu]]
+:[[Image:All.gif]] - This icon is used to show all sections in a course
-There are a number of interactive learning [[Modules (teacher)|activity modules]] that you may [[Adding_resources_and_activities | add to your course]].
-Communication and collaboration may take place using [[Chats]] and [[Forums]] for conversational activities and [[Choices]] to gain group feedback. Adding [[Wikis]] to your course is an excellent way to allow students to work together on a single project.
+The following icon only applies to sections
-Work can be submitted by students and marked by teachers using [[Assignments]] or [[Workshops]]. Automatic marking can be achieved by using [[Quizzes]]. You can even integrate your Hot Potato quizzes by adding a [[Hotpot]] activity.
+:[[Image:Marker.gif]] - the highlight  icon allows you to highlight a section as current
-Content may be delivered and supported using [[Lesson module]] and [[SCORM]] activities. Key words can be added to [[Glossaries]] by yourself or, if you allow it, your students.
+==Adding activities to your course==
+*Moodle provides a great number of learning activities for students. There are 14 standard activities, but there are many others which your admin can add to your Moodle. The [[Activities]] page shows you how to set these up and use them.
+*To add an activity, turn on your editing, choose the section in your [[Course homepage]] where you'd like it to appear and click the drop down menu "Add an activity".
-[[Surveys]] and [[Database module|Databases]] are also very powerful additions to any course.
+[[File:addact.png]]
+*You can have students send in their work to you via [[Assignments]] or have Moodle mark it automatically using [[Quiz]] or [[SCORM]] activities. You can set up independent or step-by-step tutorials with [[Lessons]].Students may collaboarate with others on [[Wikis]], [[Databases]] or [[Glossaries]]. They may communicate and share knowledge via [[Chats]] and [[Forums]]. They may peer or self-assess using [[Workshops]] and evaluate their learning with [[Choice]], [[Feedback]] or [[Surveys]].
-If all of that does not meet a special need in your course, then your site administrator can add [[Contributed code|contributed modules]] that are not part of the official Moodle release!
+== Adding Resources to your course==
+*As well as adding interactive exercises for your students, you can provide them with static resources. The [[Resources]] page shows you how to add and use static resources such as useful weblinks or documents.
+*To add a resource, turn on your editing, choose the section in your [[Course homepage]] where you'd like it to appear and click the drop down menu "Add a resource".
+[[File:addresource28.png]]
+*You can share individual [[Files]] - either from your own computer or from any external sites your Moodle admin has allowed. You can save time and space by displaying a whole [[Folder]] or by adding your information directly onto a Moodle [[Page]]. It is also easy to share [[URL|links to websites]] or import pre-made content as an [[IMS content package]]. A [[Label]] is a "spacer" that helps break up your Course homepage.
-==Resources==
+== Adding Blocks to your course==
+*[[Blocks]] appear to the right and left of the central "work" area into which you add your [[Activities]] and [[Resources]]
+*There are many standard blocks which allow you, for example, to display a [[Calendar]]  share [[Quiz results block|Quiz results]] or  [[Random glossary entry block|Glossary entries]], display [[Remote RSS feeds block| RSS feeds]], add [[HTML block|personalised content]], show who is [[Online users block|online]] or allow [[Comments block|Comments]] on your course. The [[Blocks]] page shows you how to set up and use the blocks.
+*A teacher can add new blocks when the editing is turned on by clicking the "add block" drop down menu at the bottom right of the screen:
-[[File:Resources add a menu 20.JPG|frame|left|Add a resource drop-down menu]]
+[[File:addblock28.png]]
+*As well as the standard blocks, there are many contributed blocks which your admin could add to your Moodle.
-Moodle supports a range of different [[Resources|resource types]] that allow you to include almost any kind of digital content into your courses. These can be added by using the [[Adding_resources_and_activities | add a resource]] dropdown box when editing is turned on.
+====To move a Block====
+Blocks appear at the side(s) of your course area. To move one,
+#Turn Editing On and *click and release* the Block's crosshair icon. Place holders - zones with a dashed border - appear on the screen indicating the possible areas where your Block can appear.
-A [[Resource page]] is page you can create using the [[HTML editor]].
+[[File:Moveblocks.png]]
-Of course the resource may already exist in electronic form so you may want to [[File or website link|link to an uploaded file or external website]] or simply display the complete contents of a [[Directory|folder]] in your course files and let your users pick the file themselves. If you have an [[IMS content package]] then this can be easily added to your course.
+#Click the placeholder where you want the Block appear. On course area homepages, you can move Blocks from one side to the other, but not into the middle.
+#The block should now appear in the location you chose.
-Use a [[Label|label]] to embed instructions or information in the course section.
-==Blocks==
+==Managing your course==
-Each course homepage generally contains blocks in the left and right columns, with the centre column containing the course content. Blocks may be added, hidden, deleted, and moved up, down and left/right when editing is turned on.
+*The Course Administration section of the [[Settings block]]  allows teachers to manage different aspects of their course. (''Note that you might see more or fewer of the options in the following screenshot according to what your Moodle admin has allowed)''
+[[File:courseadmin28.png]]
+**Edit Settings - this takes you to the [[Course_settings|Course settings page]] (which you see when first creating a course. Here you can, for example, rename the course, change its [[Course_formats|format]] from Weekly to Topic or alter the number of sections.
+**Users = this is where you can enrol new users - see [[Course_enrolment|Course enrolment]] for details on how to do this.
+**Filters - here is where you can enable or disable any allowed [[Filters]] for your course.
+**Grades -this section allows you to view, add and edit your students' [[Grades]]. (You might also have [[Outcomes]] enabled here too.)
+**Backup/Restore - these links allow you to make copies of your course or bring in courses backed up elsewere. See [[ Course backup]] and [[Course restore]] for more information.
+**Import -you can import activities into your course here. The Page [[Import course data]] gives you details of how to do this.
+**Publish - if your Moodle admin allows it, you can [[Publishing a course| publish your course]] to one of the  [[Community hubs]] here.
+**Reset -this lets you remove all old user information at the end of an academic year or session in order to start afresh. The page  [[Reset course]] gives you more information about this.
-===Activity and information blocks===
+NOTE: These links are only available to teachers of the course. Students will see their own version of the block which will display a link to their own gradebook and, if enabled, their own course reports.
-A [[Blocks (teacher)|wide range of blocks]] exist that can provide additional information or functionality to the learner or teacher. There are both standard blocks that come with Moodle and many contributed blocks developed by Moodlers that an administrator can add to a Moodle site.
-Examples of blocks can be see in the Getting Starting image above. "Latest News", "Upcoming Events", and "Recent Activity" are blocks.
-===Settings block - Course administration===
-[[File:Settings course admin area 2.PNG|thumb|Course administration block 2.1|150px|left]][[Course_settings|Course administration menu]]  allows teachers to manage [[Students | student]] and [[Teachers | teacher]] enrollments and their [[Groups | groups]] under the Users menu, view the course [[Grades | gradebook]], create custom [[Scales | grading scales]], upload [[Files]], view N[[Reports]] and access the [[Teacher_forum]]. Some teachers will find the [[Reset course]], [[Course_backup | backup]], [[Restore]] and [[Import_course_data | Import (course data)]] very handy tools when creating similar courses. .  This block also gives access to a [[Questions | question database]], used in [[Quiz | quizzes]]/tests or in [[Lesson module]].
-The links in the course administration block are only available to teachers of the course. Students will see their own version of the block which will display a link to their own gradebook and, if enabled, their own course reports. As a teacher, you can change the way students (and other teachers) access and view your course by exploring these settings.
-For example the course settings allows the teacher [[Course_settings#Format | format the course]] which determines how the center sections appear.
 ==General advice==
@@ Line 86: / Line 101: @@
 * Subscribe yourself to all of the [[forum]]s in your course so that you can keep in touch with your class activity.
 * Encourage all of the students to fill out their [[Edit profile|user profile]] (including photos) and read them all - this will help provide some context to their later writings and help you to respond in ways that are tailored to their own needs.
-* Keep notes to yourself in the private [[Teacher_forum | "Teacher's Forum"]]. This is especially useful when team teaching.
+* Use the [[Notes]] feature to make  notes about students. This is especially useful when team teaching.
-* Use the [[Logs]] link (under Administration) to get access to complete, raw logs. In there you'll see a link to a popup window that updates every sixty seconds and shows the last hour of activity. This is useful to keep open on your desktop all day so you can feel in touch with what's going on in the course.
+* Use the [[ Course reports]] link in the [[Navigation block]]  to get access to logs, activity and participation reports.
-* Use the [[Recent_activity|Activity Reports]] (next to each name in the list of all people, or from any user profile page). These provide a great way to see what any particular person has been up to in the course.
 * Respond quickly to students. Don't leave it for later - do it right away. Not only is it easy to become overwhelmed with the volume that can be generated, but it's a crucial part of building and maintaining a community feel in your course.
 * Don't be afraid to experiment: feel free to poke around and change things. It's hard to break anything in a Moodle course, and even if you do it's usually easy to fix it.
-* Use the [[Navigation bar|navigation bar]] at the top of each page - this should help remind you where you are and prevent getting lost
 == See also ==
 *[[Teaching with Moodle]] - inspiring links
-*[[Teaching do's and don'ts]] - hints
+*[[Teaching do's and don'ts]] - handy poster
-*[[Moodle manuals]] - A list of links to manuals and books
+*[http://moodle.org/mod/data/view.php?id=7246| Moodle books]- published books on Moodle. Buy one from here to help support Moodle development!
-*[[Using Moodle book]] - A real book you can reprint!
+*[[Moodle manuals]] - A list of links to othere manuals and books.
+*[[Using Moodle book]] - the original book about Moodle, free to download and print off but dealing with an older version of Moodle. (1.8)
 *[[Teaching FAQ]] - common questions
-*[http://moodle.tokem.fi/mod/book/view.php?id=5116&chapterid=256 Course teaching checklist]
+*[[Student FAQ]] - answers to some common questions students might have about using Moodle
-*[[Teaching tips and tricks]]
-*[[Student FAQ]] - students have questions about technology?
-*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOIlg21BfPg Video tutorial on editing a course home page using AJAX]. [[AJAX]] (Asynchronous Javascript and XML) can move blocks around the page by dragging.
 [[Category:Teacher]]