Course homepage: Difference between revisions
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{{ | {{Courses}} | ||
== Standard view of a blank course== | == Standard view of a blank course== | ||
Our examples will be for a course homepage that is the standard default for a new install on a site. There are many course options that determine a course's appearance and make it look very different from our examples. The example course has a header, a footer (both content largely determined by a theme) and 3 columns in the middle. | Our examples will be for a course homepage that is the standard default for a new install on a site. There are many course options that determine a course's appearance and make it look very different from our examples. The example course has a header, a footer (both content largely determined by a theme) and 3 columns in the middle. | ||
Here are basic elements of a course page and links to Moodle documentation. | Here are basic elements of a course page and links to Moodle documentation. | ||
[[Image: | [[Image:Blankcourselayout.png|thumb|600px|none|Example of Weekly format, teacher view, edit off - [https://docs.moodle.org/20/en/File:Blankcourselayout.png full resolution here]]] | ||
===Parts of a course homepage=== | ===Parts of a course homepage=== | ||
Using the above image, here are the parts of a course homepage. It is possible to move and hide parts of the page, so not all courses will look like this. | Using the above image, here are the parts of a typical course homepage. It is possible to move and hide parts of the page and different themes display blocks in different regions, so not all courses will look like this. | ||
{| style="width:75%; height:200px" border="1" | {| style="width:75%; height:200px" border="1" | ||
|- | |- | ||
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|- | |- | ||
|- | |- | ||
| *1 [[Course_settings#Full_name|Course full name]] || * | | *1 [[Course_settings#Full_name|Course full name]] || *6 Section header & [[News forum|News topic]] || *9 Login information | ||
|- | |- | ||
| *2 [[Course_settings#Short_name|Navigation bar]] ||* | | *2 [[Course_settings#Short_name|Navigation bar]] ||*7 Current week - First section || *10 Turn editing on button | ||
|- | |- | ||
| * | | *4 [[Navigation block]]|| *8 Future week - Second section|| *11 [[Latest News block|Latest news]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
| * | | *5 [[Settings block]]||*14 "Show only this section" || *12 [[Upcoming Events block|Upcoming events]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
| * | | *15 "Switch role to"|| || *13 [[Recent Activity block|Recent activity]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
| * | | *16 User profile settings || || | ||
|- | |||
| *17 Site Administration || || | |||
|} | |} | ||
== | ==Adding elements to your course home page== | ||
*Turn on the editing by clicking the button top right or the link in ''Settings>Course Administration.'' | |||
*For [[Resources| resources]] and [[Activities| activities]], dropdown menus will appear in each section. Click the appropriate dropdown menu to add your item. | |||
[[File:Addresourceactivitydropdown.png]] | |||
*For [[Blocks| blocks]], click the "add block" dropdown which is usually situated bottom right of the screen. | |||
==Editing elements on your course homepage== | |||
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:'': | |||
:[[Image:Edit.gif]] - the edit icon allows you to change the wording or settings of the item. | |||
:[[File:Duplicateicon.png]] - the duplicate icon allows you to copy an activity or resource within your course | |||
:[[Image:Open.gif]] - the open-eye icon means an item is visible to students. It will close when you click on it | |||
:[[Image:Closed.gif]] - the closed-eye icon means an item is hidden from students. It will open when you click on it | |||
:[[Image:Right.gif]] - the right icon is used to indent course elements (there is also a left icon) | |||
:[[Image:Move.gif]] - the move icon allows course elements to be placed anywhere | |||
:[[Image:Movehere.gif]] - the move here icon appears when moving a course element. Click into the box to re-locate your item. | |||
:[[File:Updownarrow.png]] - the up/down arrows allow you to move course sections up or down. | |||
:[[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'' | |||
===To move a Block=== | :[[Image:Delete.gif]] - the delete icon will permentantly delete something from the course | ||
:[[File:Groupsicon.png]] - the groups icon allows you to change between no groups or separate/visible groups | |||
:[[File:Rolesicon.png]] - the roles icon allows you to assign roles locally in the item. | |||
The following icons are visible when editing is both on and off | |||
:[[Image:One.gif]] - This icon is used to show only the selected section | |||
:[[Image:All.gif]] - This icon is used to show all sections in a course | |||
The following icon only applies to sections | |||
:[[Image:Marker.gif]] - the highlight icon allows you to highlight a section as current | |||
===Moving sections or blocks on your course's homepage=== | |||
====To move a Block==== | |||
Blocks appear at the side(s) of your course area. To move one, | Blocks appear at the side(s) of your course area. To move one, | ||
#Turn Editing On and *click and release* the Block's | #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. | ||
[[File:Moveblocks.png]] | |||
#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. | #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. | #The block should now appear in the location you chose. | ||
===To move a Section=== | ====To move a Section==== | ||
To move a Topic or Week section: | To move a Topic or Week section: | ||
#turn editing on | #turn editing on | ||
#click the up or down arrow | #click the up or down arrow or the crosshairs icon to move the section | ||
==Tips and tricks== | ==Tips and tricks== | ||
Line 76: | Line 117: | ||
''More advanced example'' | ''More advanced example'' | ||
*There is a youtube video that gives an example of how to do this [http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XtHPUh_BaxM here] | *There is a youtube video that gives an example of how to do this [http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XtHPUh_BaxM here]The video is of a Moodle 1.9 course but the principle still applies. | ||
*You can actually set up your whole course using this method. | *You can actually set up your whole course using this method. | ||
*Set your course to have two topics (or more if you wish) | *Set your course to have two topics (or more if you wish) | ||
*Ignore topic 1 - do not place anything in it. | *Ignore topic 1 - do not place anything in it. | ||
*In topic 2, use the resource: | *In topic 2, use the resource: [[Page]] to make pages relating to your units of work/topics | ||
*Add all your resources to topic 2 | *Add all your resources to topic 2 | ||
*Copy the resources urls into the relevant webpage as hyperlinks | *Copy the resources urls into the relevant webpage as hyperlinks | ||
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*Go back to course settings and set the number of visible topics to 1. | *Go back to course settings and set the number of visible topics to 1. | ||
The student will only see the top of the page. When they click on a link in the header, they are taken to the hidden webpage resources, where they select the resource or activity they wish. This creates a very short visual page but keeps all the course material within the course. | The teacher will see the hidden sections as "orphaned" items on their course page. However; the student will only see the top of the page. When they click on a link in the header, they are taken to the hidden webpage resources, where they select the resource or activity they wish. This creates a very short visual page but keeps all the course material within the course. | ||
==Course homepage capabilities== | |||
*[[Capabilities/moodle/course:sectionvisibility|Control section visibility]] | |||
*[[Capabilities/moodle/course:setcurrentsection|Set current section]] | |||
*[[Capabilities/moodle/course:viewhiddensections|View hidden sections]] | |||
==See also== | |||
* [[Course settings]] for details of how to change the number of sections displayed on the course homepage | |||
[[es:course/view]] | [[es:course/view]] |
Latest revision as of 13:55, 3 May 2012
Standard view of a blank course
Our examples will be for a course homepage that is the standard default for a new install on a site. There are many course options that determine a course's appearance and make it look very different from our examples. The example course has a header, a footer (both content largely determined by a theme) and 3 columns in the middle.
Here are basic elements of a course page and links to Moodle documentation.
Parts of a course homepage
Using the above image, here are the parts of a typical course homepage. It is possible to move and hide parts of the page and different themes display blocks in different regions, so not all courses will look like this.
Column left | Course sections - Center | Column right |
*1 Course full name | *6 Section header & News topic | *9 Login information |
*2 Navigation bar | *7 Current week - First section | *10 Turn editing on button |
*4 Navigation block | *8 Future week - Second section | *11 Latest news |
*5 Settings block | *14 "Show only this section" | *12 Upcoming events |
*15 "Switch role to" | *13 Recent activity | |
*16 User profile settings | ||
*17 Site Administration |
Adding elements to your course home page
- Turn on the editing by clicking the button top right or the link in Settings>Course Administration.
- For resources and activities, dropdown menus will appear in each section. Click the appropriate dropdown menu to add your item.
- For blocks, click the "add block" dropdown which is usually situated bottom right of the screen.
Editing elements on your course homepage
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 move here icon appears when moving a course element. Click into the box to re-locate your item.
- - 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 following icons are visible when editing is both on and off
The following icon only applies to sections
Moving sections or blocks on your course's homepage
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.
To move a Section
To move a Topic or Week section:
- turn editing on
- click the up or down arrow or the crosshairs icon to move the section
Tips and tricks
Make your course home page look more like a regular webpage
Often when a course has a lot of content, students and teachers find the long scrolling tedious and would prefer a 'neater' appearance with hyperlinks to sections in a similar way to the way pages on websites work.
- Anchors/section links can help. But the course page can still be long.
- Hiding the activities shortens the list for students, but then they can not be selected by students.
One method which might be useful is to put the activities into sections which are then made 'unseen' to the student.
Basic Example
- Set the number of topics in the course setting to 1 more than students will see.
- For example, you plan on the students being able to see 6 topics, set it for 7.
- Add activities in topic 7, such as a quiz (in our example)
- Get the url of your quiz
- Copy it and keep it somewhere (such as notepad) for later use
- Go back to course admin>settings and change your topic/weeks to 6
- Or one fewer than you had before
- The section with your quiz will no longer be on the page that the student sees
- In another section, make a hyperlink to the quiz using its url
- You can also put it in a topic summary, label or
- as a resource (link to a file or website)
You will find that the quiz is accessible to students even though the section does not physically appear on the course page for the students. You have shortened the page.
More advanced example
- There is a youtube video that gives an example of how to do this hereThe video is of a Moodle 1.9 course but the principle still applies.
- You can actually set up your whole course using this method.
- Set your course to have two topics (or more if you wish)
- Ignore topic 1 - do not place anything in it.
- In topic 2, use the resource: Page to make pages relating to your units of work/topics
- Add all your resources to topic 2
- Copy the resources urls into the relevant webpage as hyperlinks
- In topic 0, the course summary make hyperlinks -or better- images hyperlinked - to each webpage which contains the activities of that unit/topic
- Go back to course settings and set the number of visible topics to 1.
The teacher will see the hidden sections as "orphaned" items on their course page. However; the student will only see the top of the page. When they click on a link in the header, they are taken to the hidden webpage resources, where they select the resource or activity they wish. This creates a very short visual page but keeps all the course material within the course.
Course homepage capabilities
See also
- Course settings for details of how to change the number of sections displayed on the course homepage