Tel Tales

Adventures in Technology Enhanced Learning @ UoP

Author: Mandy Harcup (Page 1 of 3)

Top 4 Moodle Questions - Part 2 - Students

Top 4 Moodle Questions – Part 2 Students

October 19, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Are you a new student at the University or a returning student? How has the start of Teaching Block 1 (TB1) gone so far for you? There’s just so much to think about and everything’s so different, this year more than ever. Don’t worry in a few short weeks time, things will start to fall into place and it’ll be like you’ve been here for ages. Welcome to the University of Portsmouth.

Last week’s blog post looked at the Four Top Moodle Questions for Staff, so this week we’re looking at the most frequently asked questions from students. As you’re aware many educational institutions use one form or another for their virtual learning environment (VLE) and here at Portsmouth, we use Moodle. So here are the top four students questions:

Q1) I’ve logged into Moodle and I can’t see any information, where are my modules?

This question normally starts being asked as soon as the students finish registering at the university, which can be even before Induction week!  Hopefully, by now all the students that have Teaching Block 1 (2020/21-SMSEP) and Year-long (2020/21-SMYEAR) modules can now see their sites on their dashboard. Modules are hidden from student view so that the sites can be updated and are usually released by the lecturer in their first taught session with students. This isn’t written in stone and the lecturer can unhide the site any time once the module is ready.

Q2) I’ve got some modules, but some are still missing, can you add them to my Moodle dashboard?  

Teaching Block 2 (TB2) modules are normally kept hidden until the beginning of Teaching Block 2, which this year starts on Monday 8th February 2021. Some lecturers release these modules before January but others prefer for students to view their material in chronological order.  If you’re still missing modules in February 2021, please contact us at the servicedesk@port.ac.uk so we can investigate the issue further.  

Q3) Where can I find my timetable in Moodle? 

The answer to this question is, you won’t be able to find your timetable in Moodle.  Your timetable can be found on MyPort. Once on MyPort scroll down the page until you come to the three main sections ‘Application’, ‘Manage my course’ and ‘Services and Support’. In the middle section ‘Manager my course’ you’ll see the title ‘My Timetable’, click on here. Once you’ve logged in using your student ID  you’ll see your calendar with your timetable on, you can look at it daily, weekly or monthly. The information shown is the length of the lecture, the building where your lecture is taking place, plus the room number, along with the title of the lecture.

Three sections taken from My Port they are ‘Application’, ‘Manage my course’ and ‘Services and Support’.

Q4) I’ve been given the wrong year modules. Why do my modules end with the date of the last year?  

This question normally appears in January and may not happen this year as the codes now include both years that the academic reflects. Most academic Undergraduate courses begin in September/October and end in July, so regardless of which Teaching Block it is, the module will include 2020/21. It is the year that August/September starts in, which indicates what year appears on the code and not the calendar year. So in January 2021, you’ll see that your modules will end with 2020/21-SMJAN.

We hope you find this blog post useful and that maybe it’s preempted some questions, but either way, don’t forget to contact us for further assistance should you need it by emailing us at servicedesk@port.ac.uk.  

Good Luck with your studies!

Top 4 Moodle Questions

Top Four Moodle Questions – Part 1 Staff

October 12, 2020 / / 0 Comments

After the most unusual academic year ever, with everyone adapting their teaching style and working online. It was the TEL Team’s mission, along with help from the Online Course Developers to get this academic year 2020/21 modules redesigned and ready to go.  All their hard work has paid off, but would you believe it, the same top four questions appear again this year!

Q1) I cannot see my module(s) on my Moodle dashboard, why not?

Are you a new member of staff or have you recently taken over the module? Has the module changed name/code and has it had a Moodle presence previously? These are some of the reasons you may not be able to see a module on your dashboard, to help us resolve the issue we will require some details about the module(s) – the module title and/or the module code, the level of access that you require for the module(s), and your username. With this information, we can add you to the module or create a blank module (or clone an existing one) for you to build.

Q2) My students are not attached to my modules, why not?

Students are added to modules in Moodle by mapping course codes and registration instances, or modules codes and attendance groups against Student Records. We do not manually add students as this access will not update should they change their modules of study.  Let us know if you are missing students and we will try to see if we can resolve this problem for you or bring it to the attention of your Admin Hub if a change needs to be made in Student Records.

Q3) I can see my students are attached to my module, but they are saying that they can’t see the module on their homepage, why not?

It could be that your module is still hidden from the student view.  

To unhide your module, go to the module, click on the ‘Actions Menu’ (top right-hand-side), click on ‘Edit settings’, click on the drop-down arrow in the box alongside the ‘Course visibility’ title, click on ‘Show’ scroll down and click on ‘Save and display’.  Once your students have refreshed their Moodle page, students should be able to see the module.  If students still cannot see the module, please supply the module’s details and we will investigate to see if we can resolve this issue. 

screenshot of the words Course Visibility next to a box with a drop down arrow showing the word Show

Here is a screenshot of the drop-down box, if it says Hide click on Show.

It is also important to remember that modules ending in JAN stay hidden from student view until Teaching Block 2 starts (or until the module is unhidden).  So you’ll see the students, but the students won’t see the module.

Q4) My colleague needs access to my module, can I add them myself?

Yes you can – on the module page click on the ‘Actions Menu’ (top right-hand-side), click on ‘More’ at the bottom of the list. Click on the tab ‘Users’, then in the ‘Users’ section click on ‘Enrolled users’ (first title).  This will take you to the participants’ page, click on the box that says ‘Enrol users’ a box will appear, first assign the role you wish your colleague to have from the drop-down menu, then type their name in the top search box, where it says ‘Select users’. When the name you require appears click on it, so it appears above the box, then click on the ‘Enrol selected users and cohorts’ button.  

screenshot of the enrol users box showing details of where to click

Here is a sample of the Enrol users box.

When your colleague refreshes their page or logs into Moodle the module will appear on their dashboard.  With Lecturer access you can give a colleague a ‘Lecturer’, ‘non-editing Teacher’ or ‘Guest’ role, you cannot assign the ‘Student’ role.

Alternatively, complete the Moodle Request form on My Services and we’ll add new users for you. 

Don’t forget the TEL Team are here to help with your queries and questions so please do get in touch with us at servicedesk@port.ac.uk

Credit Image: Photo by Raychel Espiritu on Unsplash

An iPad laying on a table so you're looking at it flat on. On the screen is the titles of the new training sessions

TEL Training Workshops and Bespoke Sessions

August 3, 2020 / / 0 Comments

For the next few weeks, the Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) Training Team have put together a schedule of workshops, incorporating some of your old favourites, sprinkled with some online interaction, a dollop of digital technology and stirred in with a jugful of pedagogy resulting in some great revamped, updated and brand new workshops. During the last few months of virtual workshops, we’ve taken on board your comments and suggestions, which we’ve received through the feedback you’ve given us. The topics you really want sessions on and recommendations on breaking some workshops down further into bite-sized chunks. In addition, we’ve collaborated with the Academic Development (AcDev) section of the Department of Curriculum and Quality Enhancement (DCQE) to develop a new familiarisation programme to help colleagues find out more about using digital technologies to complement and enhance their teaching and interactions with students.

How do I book on a session and find more information on TEL Training Workshops?

You’ll find our calendar with all our new times and description on the sessions by going to the Department of Curriculum and Quality Enhancement (DCQE) website and clicking on the TEL Training Calendar.  For alerts on up and coming training sessions from ourselves and the Academic Development (AcDev) workshops, follow us on our social media platforms:

Who are your training sessions for?

Primarily, the workshops are for lecturers and PHD Students, but they can be adapted for professional service members of staff too. 

Bespoke sessions

If you’re not available at the times of our training events, or if the programme does not cover a specific area you’re interested in, we can offer a 1-2-1 session tailored to your needs or a group session for you and your colleagues. Topics for bespoke sessions can be based around our programme, or we can tailor the session to answer any specific questions or needs that you have. Please complete a Bespoke Training Request form and simply tick the box next to the session you would like training on. If you tick ‘Other’ please give a brief explanation of the topic you wished to be covered in the session. Complete with the date on which you would like your virtual training session to take place, along with your preferred time then click ‘SUBMIT’.

Please click on the link below for the Bespoke Training Request form:

Bespoke Training Request Form

We look forward to welcoming you at a TEL Training Session in the near future.

 

Credit Image: Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Roles in Moodle

Roles in Moodle

June 29, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Do you often feel baffled by the many roles and privileges of your role in Moodle. Are you clear about what the definition of your role is and what it allows you to do? For example, do you know the difference between the ‘Non-Editing Teacher’ and the ‘University Admin Staff’ role? Did you know that there’s a PhD student role titled: ‘Student-Teacher’? Have you ever wondered what the difference is between the ‘Unit Reviewer’ role and the ‘External Examiner’ role?

I hope that this blog will give you answers to some of these questions. Although while the roles themselves shouldn’t change, some of the processes might be different in the summer, due to new systems and upgrading. New features are added and old tools are upgraded to improve functionality of Moodle at the end of August, this is when Moodle is taken down for a couple of days. This year the date for the Moodle upgrade is week commencing 24th August. We try to encourage anyone with an active role in Moodle to attend our training sessions, although our sessions cover more then just Moodle. To see the description of all the sessions we run, go to the Department of Curriculum and Quality Enhancement (DCQE) website and click on the TEL Training Calendar. 

Differences between the roles:

The Lecturer 

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is mainly given to content creators.

  • What are the privileges?

The main privileges of this role is the person can add, edit and delete the content within the site. It allows the person with this role to view hidden and visible content, along with being able to complete activities and view student activity reports on the site. This role can also switch between roles so that they can see the view, of a lesser role or a role that is equal to them.

On most sites in Moodle, the ‘Lecturer’ role is given to the person responsible for the information on the module. This is normally the module co-ordinator, but not always, for instance a Project or Dissertation module may have many lecturers updating key information onto the site as each may be responsible for certain areas, or different groups of students. 

The Non-editing Teacher 

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is given to lecturers, who teach on the module, but do not have to update or upload content onto it.

  • What are the privileges?

This role has four privileges, the person can view hidden and visible content, along with the ability to complete activities on the site and the capability to view student activity reports.

The ‘Non-editing Teacher’ role may be given to lecturers and in some cases PhD students who teach on the module, although a new role has been created titled ‘Student-Teacher’ role so that they are more identifiable. The person with this role may be permanently on the module or acting as a substitute, but there would be no reason for them to touch the content on these sites. The ‘Non-editing Teacher’ role is occasionally given to external examiners, rather than the ‘External Examiner’ role, as this role can see hidden content, which the ‘External Examiner’’ role isn’t able to view. 

The Student-Teacher

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is only given to PhD Students. 

  • What are the privileges?

The privileges of this role are very similar to the ‘Non-editing teacher’ the only difference with this role is they cannot view student information including their activity. 

The ‘Student-Teacher’ role is for PhD students who are assisting with the teaching programme of the module. The main reason for the role was PhD students needed a greater level of access than a student, but couldn’t have a ‘Non-editing teacher’ role as they would then be able to see student information.  The ‘Student-Teacher’ role cannot see any of the students activity reports, emails or details for General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) purposes.

The University Admin Staff

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is given to members of the Department of Student and Academic Administration. 

  • What are the privileges?

This role has the same privileges as the ‘Lecturer’ role, they can add, edit and delete the content within the site. They can view hidden and visible content, along with being able to complete activities and view student activity reports on the site. This role can also switch roles whilst on a site so that they can see the view of a lesser role or one that is equal to their role.

The role of the ‘University Admin Staff’ has increased across the university with administrators needing to use Moodle for reporting or analytic purposes as well as inputting some key information.

The Student

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is given to any participant taking the module. 

  • What are the privileges?

This role has two privileges, they’re able to view visible content and able to complete activities.

When students are uploaded onto modules in Moodle through Student Records they are automatically given the ‘Student’ role. The ‘Student’ role is also given to members of staff when they are given access to core training sites in Moodle.

The Student (Interest only)

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is given to participants taking the module who have not been added to the module through Student Records, unless asked otherwise in their request. 

  • What are the privileges?

The privileges are the same as the ‘Student’ role, they’re able to view visible content and to complete activities.

Participants might be given access to this role if they’re taking the module for interest only, or have directly come into the University at a different year and need to view the modules to help understand the content of the course. The ‘Student (Interest only)’ role is used where marks received from these modules are not necessarily going towards their end grades. This role is not linked to the students’ timetable, MyPort etc. 

The Senior Online Course Developer

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is given to the Senior Course Developer 

  • What are the privileges?

As you can imagine this role has all the privileges of the ‘Lecturer’ role and more. They have the ability to change site names and module codes along with adding blocks into categories. This role can enrol some users manually and unenrol non-student enrolled users and add tags which attached cohort of students onto sites. They can also backup and restore existing sites and roll over sites for the new academic year.

The ‘Senior Online Course Developers’ role is a new role, created towards the end of last year. This role has been created to help channel and monitor requests for Moodle accounts, who is assigned what role and why that level of access is needed.  This is carried out in conjunction with eLearn.

   The Online Course Developer

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is given to Online Course Developers.

  • What are the privileges?

This role has the same privileges as the ‘Senior Online Course Developers’ role, the only difference being is they cannot manually add Moodle accounts onto sites.

The Unit Reviewer

  • Who is this given to? 

In the past this role has been given to the Associate Deans (Students) and members of the staff leading on the Blended and Online Development Team. In addition, this role is given to auditors, externally and internally to the University.

  • What are the privileges?

This role can view visible and hidden content.

The External Examiner

  • Who is this given to? 

This role is given to external examiners that are not based at the University. 

  • What are the privileges?

This role can view visible content, completed activities and view activity reports.

External examiners don’t normally need to see hidden content, so it was requested that we create a Moodle role that has the ‘Non-editing teacher’ role benefits without seeing material that they do not need to see.

The Guest

  • Who is this given to? 

The role is given to people who just want to view a module.

  • What are the privileges?

This role only has one privilege and that is to be able to view visible content. 

 

Roles and Responsibilities in Moodle

Moodle – Roles and Responsibilities Table

Please Note: The privileges shown on this grid are for Moodle version: 3.7.1

 

Lecturers, do you know you can change the role description in a module?  

If you wanted to change the name of the ‘Student’ role to read ‘Participant’ or the ‘Lecturer’ role to read ‘Facilitator’ or ‘Author’ or even ‘Non-editing Teacher’ role to read ‘Tutor’, it’s easy to do. However, be aware that when you change the role description that everyone with that role will have the new title.  

How to rename the roles:

Click on the module that you wish to make the changes in, then:

  • Click on the Action menu cog (top right hand side)
  • Click on Edit Settings
  • Scroll down
  • Click on Role renaming
  • Find the role and type in the name that you want the role to change to
  • Click on Save and display 

This will change everyone on the module with that role to the new name.

Disclaimer: The privileges of these roles were correct at time of publication. 

which role(s) apply to you?

Image Credit: Photo by Roel Dierckens on Unsplash

Image Credit: Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash

I'll start working when my coffee does

Staying Healthy

April 30, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Lockdown has been in place for around 5 weeks now and in our own way we’re trying to cope and work from home. How are you doing? Remember, don’t be too hard on yourself, you’re doing the best you can in unusual circumstances.  

Right at the beginning of the pandemic the Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) team put together some tips on working from home.  Marie’s blog post ‘Are you ready to work from home? – Tips from TEL’ was published on the 23rd March. If you haven’t read it yet, grab a drink and have a read -there could be some advice here which might just help you! Also in this blog are the links to the eLearning Tools Site which features useful resources and information on working from home, particularly teaching remotely for staff at the University of Portsmouth. 

Whether you’re a student or a member of staff, staying inside and staying healthy is everyones’ main priority at the moment. Many students are probably used to shutting themselves off for hours while they work on their latest assignment or revise for an exam. However, for a lot of people this is the first time they’ve had to work from home, life as they know it has certainly changed. Being able to log onto a device and access work or study materials is only one part of remote working. Having a routine, some physical activity and making sure you take regular screen breaks are just as important for your wellbeing.

Get Dressed

How many of you thought it’d be great just to lay around all day chilling out in your pjs and laying on the settee, whilst working on your laptop? By keeping to your normal morning routine of getting dressed, making breakfast etc, these activities all help your mind to adjust from sleep-mode to work-mode. I’ll be honest I’m not wearing the same clothes I’d wear for work, but what I am wearing are the clothes I exercise in. This is so that when I have a break, I can jump on my exercise bike, no excuses. 

Move 

For those of you with a smartwatch you’ll be familiar with a buzz on your wrist 10 minutes before the hour if you haven’t got around to walking 250 steps.  Don’t ignore the buzz, it serves two purposes. The first, is you need a screen break, but don’t go from your screen to another kind of screen, like your mobile. The second reason is for some activity: get up and move around, pop along to the kitchen and grab yourself a drink (water is good to keep you hydrated) or check on the rest of your family. If you don’t have a smartwatch, set the alarm on your mobile.  

Lunch Break

Whilst working at home it’s easy to forget about your lunch break, don’t!!  More than anything it’s especially important at the moment, it’s time for you to step away from the computer/laptop. Now’s the opportunity to take a walk around the block, get some fresh air or log onto Facebook and follow one of the UoP Sports live sessions. Try to do some kind of activity. Maybe spend time with your family or if you have a garden and it’s dry, take your lunch outside and have a picnic!

Log OffChild playing on the living room floor whilst a lady's faded in the background looking at a laptop

It’s important to maintain a good work-life balance, so after working on and off for eight hours (remember to take short breaks often, and long breaks, less often) or so, log off.  When working from home it’s easy to ignore the separation between professional and personal time, don’t! If you’re lucky and you have a separate room as an office, log off and close the door behind you.  If, like me you’re sitting at your dining room table, log off and put your laptop away. Remember, your home “office” is also your personal space, a place for relaxing and recharging your batteries.

21 Day Self-Care Challenge

The challenge may have started already, but you can start your 21 days at any time.The aim is to help to increase our own self-care with simple tools, strategies and personal challenges to get us through this difficult time. Small changes can have such a huge impact, to your wellbeing. Read more about the challenge in the Isolation Motivation – are you up for the challenge? blog post. Then let us know in the comments box which two things you’re going to drop and the two you’re going to take up.

Positive Pictures from TEL

If you have a minute or two go to our Instagram account #telportsmouth and here you’ll find that we’ve been sharing with our audience some great positive photos taken by members of the TEL Team whilst they’ve been out and about on their daily exercise. Enjoy!

For a more concise interpretation of working from home please refer to Marie Kendall-Waters blog post: Are you ready to work from home? Tips from TEL.

Areas covered in the blog post are:

  1. Create a dedicated work space
  2. Use to-do lists
  3. Learn to deal with distractions
  4. Take regular breaks
  5. Don’t lose touch with your colleagues
  6. Make sure to drink and eat
  7. Make working comfortable
  8. Deal with being disconnected
  9. Don’t be hard on yourself

For regular updates and tips for working at home following us on Instagram #telportsmouth and/or on our Twitter account @TelPortsmouth

Credit image: Photo by Charles Deluvio on Unsplash and Photo by Emma Matthews Digital Content Production on Unsplash

A kangaroo with a joey in her pouch

Working Down Under

April 9, 2020 / / 2 Comments

On the second week of our holiday Down Under visiting family in Australia, it became apparent that getting home was going to be a problem! No matter how long we stayed on the phone or how many people we contacted online, the reality of getting back to the UK, to be back for work for Monday 30th March, was getting further and further away – what was I going to do?

Having worked from home in the past, I knew what I was going to need a laptop and wifi – easier said than done from Australia!  By then the country had started to lock down, shops were shutting, those people that could were asked to work from home and social distance was the name of the game. The news reports on the TV were saying prices of laptops were increasing, and a shortage may occur whilst shops restock. Two shops later we found a laptop in our price bracket, then the hunt for a dongle or wifi, one way or another, commenced. Five shops later with a dongle securely in our pockets we went ‘home’ to see if I could access all the relevant areas I needed to be able to start work on the Monday.

The first thing I did was add the Virtual Private Network (VPN) onto the laptop. Connecting to the VPN allowed me to access University services as if I were on campus. After adding this and connecting to GlobalProtect, I went to AppsAnywhere.  Here I could start checking to see if I could access the applications required to do my work. The only site I seemed to have problems with was getting onto the Employee Self Service, as I wanted to check to see what annual leave I had left, as when (and if) we were able to get flights home, I knew I’d need time off.  However, I’d been in contact with my manager since 23rd March giving him updates on our predicament and letting him know of the procedures I had put into place to start work on Monday 30th March.Blue sky, a golden sandy beach and the sea rolling in at a distance

Logging in on Monday 30th March was a little surreal, knowing that my colleagues were either in bed or just going to bed!  As you can imagine there were loads of emails to start working through and information about COVID-19 – the main topic. My plan was to work for so many hours, take a break, have lunch, get some exercise, then log back on to work the last few hours at the same time as my colleagues so I could touch base with everyone. This system worked very well for me, I’ve been able to access all areas and I’ve messaged my colleagues using ‘Slack’ and even had a few GMail Hangouts video calls which were great, but made me homesick.

On Friday 27th March we were lucky enough to purchase tickets for Saturday 4th April, so fingers crossed by the time this blog is published I’ll be home.

Credit Image: Photo by Ondrej Machart on Unsplash

First Image: Casarina Beach where I took my daily exercise

Second Image: On Google Hangouts chatting with Marie Kendall-Waters

 

Three female students kicking at laid snow, so that it covers the image

Moodle – Teaching Block 2 Modules

December 9, 2019 / / 0 Comments

One query which we often receive from students here in TEL (Technology Enhanced Learning), is a concern that one or more modules are missing from their Moodle homepage. This is usually because the modules they are enquiring about, are for Teaching Block 2.  Teaching Block 2 modules are normally hidden from student view until students return from the Christmas vacation. 

Teaching Block 2 starts this year on Monday 20th January 2020. However, this is not always the case as some modules have two different cohorts of students attached to them. These modules may have a short name that looks similar to this: UXXXXX-19SEP & UXXXXX-19JAN.  Depending how the module has been set up, both cohorts may have access to the unit in September, or maybe the January cohort have been put into a group and won’t be able to see the module until the lecturer releases it to them at a later date.

Lecturers decide when to release their Teaching Block 2 module(s). Some prefer to release them when the students leave for the winter vacation so that they can start looking at them, while others wait until the first day back or when the first session starts. Some students may be able to see their Teaching Block 2 modules now.  It really is up to the individual lecturer.

We’re often asked; ‘Why does the January code not reflect the new year?’ – for example, ‘Why does the code say 19JAN and not 20JAN, as the year would now be 2020? This is because the code is taken from the academic year in which the course started, so as this academic year started in 2019, the code you’ll see is 19JAN. However if your course starts in the new year, it will have the 20JAN code.

It can be confusing, but as long as you can see your module(s) when the lecturer says you should be able to see them,then there is no need to worry. If you can’t see your module(s), please email us at servicedesk@port.ac.uk and we can investigate this further for you

In the meantime, the TEL Team would like to wish everyone season’s greetings and a healthy and happy New Year!

Image Credit: Photo by Naitian（Tony） Wang  and Aaron Burden on Unsplash

 

Yellow background, with black items on it, including a mobile and an orange book titled Change by Design

LinkedIn Learning – Change

November 25, 2019 / / 1 Comment

The definition of the word change says: “an event that occurs when something passes from one state or phase to another”, other words that could be used are adjustment, development and modification. These are all words used daily in our vocabulary and are words that reflect what is happening within the university as a whole, but mainly within our roles.

Who else looks at their original job description and specification and can only see a few responsibilities that look similar to the work that you’re carrying out now? For me, some areas have disappeared altogether, whilst others have been replaced by new processes and procedures. People are all different, some seem to embrace change easily, whilst others stick their heads in the sand and hope it doesn’t affect them or their role. I’m one of those people who like to digest (in my own way) what’s been said and then find out more information e.g. Where do I fit into the change?  What part will I be expected to play in making the change happen? What knock on effect will it have elsewhere? Is there training that I’ll need to undertake? etc. etc.  

During this period of adjustment when we find our responsibilities have changed and we’re expected to ‘step up to the mark’ and embrace whatever is required to make these changes happen, this is described by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross as a ‘Change Curve’.  Kubler-Ross ‘Change Curve’ explains the emotions that most people go through when change is in the offering, although the original theory was in relation to the grieving process and describes 5 stages (see image below).  In business it is now applied to any kind of change.  

Stage 1, Denial were we blame others, which is preceded by blaming ourselves, “What have I done wrong?” and “Why me?”  

Stage 2, Doubt follows quickly afterwards causing self-doubt, uncertainty and confusion, this happens normally when you’re at your lowest ebb.  

Stage 3, Acceptance, the turning point, when you start to accept the change, think more rationally about everything and can start to work to solve problems that may arise to make the change work for you and others in your team. 

Once you’re through the ‘Change Curve’ it’s only then that you can start to move on, and it soon becomes the norm.  The length of time it takes for an individual to experience the ‘Change Curve’ varies from person to person and can depend on what the change is and how much this change is going to affect the person.

The diagram explains the stages of the Kubler-Ross model

(https://www.cleverism.com/understanding-kubler-ross-change-curve/)

I bet you’re wondering what all this has to do with LinkedIn Learning?  Well I’m not talking about the change from Lynda.com to LinkedIn Learning, although that has happened (see blog post Goodbye Lynda, hello LinkedIn Learning) but about the courses that may be of benefit that provide an insight into the processes that happen when change occurs. The courses (or individual videos if you’re short on time), look at change from different angles and perspectives, giving you the techniques to help you cope with change, before it happens, while it’s happening and how to come out the other end and to keep altering and growing until the process produces the end results. 

When you have time, just type ‘change’ into the search box, you’ll see a list of over 48,000 items will appear, this can be filtered down by using the block on the left-hand side, to make it more manageable and tailor made to your requirements. Of course the university hold workshops on this subject as well, but we don’t always have the time to attend. 

In case you were interested in the courses that I looked at, here they are:
Building Resilience by Tatiana Kolovou
Embracing Change by Todd Dewett
Managing Stress for Positive Change by Heidi Hanna
Leading Change by Gary Bolles

So go on, have a go, log into LinkedIn Learning today!

 

Further Reference: https://www.cleverism.com/understanding-kubler-ross-change-curve/
https://www.definitions.net/definition/change
Image Credit: Photo by Krisztian Tabori on Unsplash

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Top Four Moodle Questions – Part 2 Students

October 21, 2019 / / 0 Comments

So here we are at the beginning of another academic year, all that work to get Moodle up and running has paid off and even if I say so myself it’s looking good! So I’ve given you the Four Top Moodle Questions for Lecturers, now I bet you’re wondering what are the top Moodle questions asked by students.

At the number 1 slot is: “I’ve logged into Moodle and I can’t see any information, where are my modules?” This question normally starts being asked as soon as the students finish enrolling at the university, which can be even before Induction week!  Hopefully, by now all the students that have Teaching Block 1 (19SEP) and Year long (19YR) modules can now see their sites on their homepage. Modules are hidden from student view so that the sites can be updated and are usually released by the lecturer in their first taught session with students. This isn’t written in stone and the lecturer can unhide them at any time once the module is ready.

In at number 2 is: “I’ve got some modules, but some are still missing, can you add them to my Moodle homepage?”  Teaching Block 2 modules are normally kept hidden until the beginning of January.  Some lecturers release these modules before January but others prefer for students to view their material in chronological order.  If you’re still missing modules in January 2020, please contact us on elearn@port.ac.uk so we can investigate the issue further.  

The 3rd most popular question is: “Where can I find my timetable in Moodle?” The answer to this question is, you won’t be able to find your timetable in Moodle.  Your timetable can be found on MyPort Information Hub.  Along the top banner you will see four titles, one of those titles is “My Timetable”.  Here you’ll find a calendar with your timetable on, you can look at it daily, weekly or monthly. Information shown is the length of the lecture, the building where your lecture is taking place, plus the room number, along with the title of the lecture.

The 4th question normally appears in January its: “I’ve been given the wrong year modules. Why do my modules end with the date of the last year?”  Most academic Undergraduate courses begin in August and end in July, so regardless of which Teaching Block it is, the module will end (for this year) with 19. It is the year that the August is in which indicates what year appears on the code and not the calendar year.  So this year you’ll see in January 2020 that your modules will end with 19JAN.

Credit Image: Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

People sitting around a desk with their laptops open laughing

Top Four Moodle Questions

September 16, 2019 / / 0 Comments

At the beginning of each new academic year Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) receive many Moodle queries from staff – here are the top four that we’re asked:

Q1) I can’t see my module(s) on my Moodle Homepage, why not?

A1) Are you a new member of staff or have you recently taken over the module? Has the module changed name/code and has it had a Moodle presence previously? These are some of the reasons you may not be able to see a module on your homepage, to help us resolve the issue for you we will require some details about the module(s) – the module title and/or the module code, the level of access that you require for the module(s), and your username. With this information we can add you to the module or create a blank module (or clone an existing one) for you to build.

Q2) My students are not attached to my module(s), why not?

A2) Students are added to modules in Moodle by mapping course codes and registration instances, or modules codes and attendance groups against Student Records. We do not manually add students as this access will not update should they change their modules of study.  Let us know if you are missing students and we will try to see if we can resolve this problem for you or bring it to the attention of your course administrators if a change needs to be made in Student Records.

Q3) I can see my students are attached to my module, but they are saying that they can’t see the module on their homepage, why not?

A3) It could be that your module is still hidden from student view.  To unhide your module, go to the module, click on the ‘Actions Menu’ (top right hand-side), click on ‘Edit settings’, click on the drop down arrow in the box alongside the ‘Course visibility’ title, click on ‘Show’ scroll down and click on ‘Save and display’.  Once your students have refreshed their Moodle page, students should be able to see the module.  If students still cannot see the module, please supply the module’s details and we will investigate to see if we can resolve this issue. 

screenshot of the words Course Visibility next to a box with a drop down arrow showing the word Show

A screenshot of the drop down box, if it says Hide click on Show.

It is also important to remember that modules ending in JAN stay hidden from student view until January (or until the module is unhidden).  So you’ll see the students, but the students won’t see the module.

Q4) My colleague needs access to my module, can I add them myself?

A4) Yes you can – on the module page click on the ‘Actions Menu’ (top right hand-side), click on ‘More’ at the bottom of the list. Click on the tab ‘Users’, then in the ‘Users’ section click on ‘Enrolled users’ (first title).  This will take you to the participants page, click on the box that says ‘Enrol users’ a box will appear, first assign the role you wish your colleague to have from the drop-down menu, then type their name in the top search box, were it says ‘Select users’. When the name you require appears click on it, so it appears above the box, then click on the ‘Enrol selected users and cohorts’ button.  

screenshot of the enrol users box showing details of where to clickA sample of the Enrol users box.

When your colleague refreshes their page or logs into Moodle the module will appear on their homepage.
With Lecturer access you can give another colleague a ‘Lecturer’, ‘non-editing Teacher’ or ‘Guest’ role, you cannot assign the ‘Student’ role.

Alternatively, complete the Moodle Request form on My Services and we’ll add new users for you. 

Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash

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