Organizing Content as a Repository for Traditional In-Person Delivery

ID&D KB How-to Guide

Working together to enhance teaching & learning. If you need additional assistance, please reach out to the ID&D team.

MyClasses can be used to organize the flow of traditional in-person course delivery by serving as a repository for information that you normally distribute during your course period, or that you may email to students. For example:

Lecture notes, PPT presentations
Handouts and file sharing
Assignment submissions
Grades

When using MyClasses to support an in-person course the course environment should be straight-forward and simple in design and convey essential information as depicted below:

Sample Home Page for Repository

You can click on the images in this article to see them larger and with more detail.

Announcements: Allows you to remind students of upcoming assignments and keep them engaged when not in the classroom. This only appears in the navigation menu when an announcement has been posted.
Assignments: Allows you to set due dates, collect assignments and complete grading in an electronic manner.
Files: Allows you to distribute information electronically to students rather than in printed format.
People: Allows students to know who is in the course and interact with each other outside of class.
Grades: Allows you to post grades for students to keep them informed of progress and performance.

Open your MyClasses Course
Scroll down and select the Settings link at the bottom of the Navigation Menu
Select Navigation from the tabs at the top of the page

Remove items from the Navigation Bar
Disable any items that will not be used by either:
1. Selecting the disable option from the options (three-dot kebab icon)
2. Drag the item down the page and drop it into the disabled list
  
  Disable via Option or Drag and Drop
When you have disabled all items you do not want students to access, scroll to the bottom of the page and Save the changes

Save Changes

Two additional links in the navigation menu are required for all courses: SU Course Policies and Procedures and VitalSource Course Materials. Do not disable these when setting up your navigation settings!

Home Page:

The home page for your course should also be simplified but purposeful in its design.

The essential information and navigation a home page supports, as depicted above, should include:

Navigation buttons to assignments, course materials (handouts and files), and the syllabus or schedule
Vital instructor information (Name, contact information)
Essential course information: Course ID/Title in banner, Link to syllabus (downloadable document), class meeting times/location

Using a template design helps establish a continuity within a program, department or school, and is highly recommended. These templates are available through Canvas Commons or can be designed by you or your ID&D Instructional Designer.

ID&D has several examples of home pages available for your use. Contact your ID&D liaison for help in determining which one fits your needs!

Content Organization:

When using MyClasses as a repository of information, you are using built-in features of the MyClasses LMS to make information available.

Assignments: Using the Assignment tool within MyClasses allows you to set due dates, collect assignments and complete grading in an electronic manner. You create a separate Assignment page for each assignment. It is important that a description of the assignment and clear instructions are made available in the individual assignment set up. It is recommended that this area is available both from the Navigation Menu and a button or link on the home page.
Files: The Files feature in MyClasses allows you to store files and assignments within your course environment in a variety of file formats. These documents can include lecture slides, notes, or any form of electronic format. You can upload one or multiple files, view all details about your files, preview files, publish and unpublish files, set usage rights, and restrict access to files. It is recommended that you organize the information for students in folders that are clearly labeled.

To create a new folder,
1. Click on Files in the left Navigation Menu
2. Click the +Folder button in the upper right part of the window
  
  Create folders to organize information
3. In the pop-up window enter a name for the folder that clearly describes its purpose or content
4. Click the red Create Folder button
  
  Clearly label folder
5. The folder will be added to the list of folders in your course space and be published
  
  Folder is accessible to students when published
To load information into a folder, click the folder name on the list where you will place the documents to share

Select the folder
If the folder is empty, you can
1. drag and drop your files into the folder from the page, or
2. click Choose Files and select the file(s) you want to upload, clicking Open to move the file
  
  Select files to upload
3. The file will appear in the list within the folder. An icon will identify the file type andthe document is set as published by default. This makes the file available to students for download.
  
  Files are listed in folder
To add additional files to the same folder,
1. click the +Upload button in the upper right corner
2. Drag and drop or select files as described above. Multiple files can be uploaded at one time.
  
  Upload additional files

It is important NOT to upload video (.mp4) or audio (.mp3) files directly into the course files folders, as this affects your storage limit as well as system performance. Use Panopto to provide access to these multimedia resources.

Syllabus/ Schedule: In this approach, the Syllabus or course schedule is provided to students as a file (Word or PDF) which can be downloaded. In this format, the file can be uploaded to the Files section of the course, linked to from a navigation button on the main page or downloaded from a link on the main page. Consult with your ID&D Liaison if you need help creating these links.

Organizing Content as a Repository for Traditional In-Person Delivery

ID&D KB How-to Guide

Navigation Menu:

Home Page:

Content Organization:

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