Setting up your course
How to set up your course and add learners.
1 Finding your way around
How you navigate around Moodle depends partly on the theme and your administrator's chosen settings, but you can usually expect to see a Navigation block and a Administration block present on every page you visit. You can learn more about these two blocks in the Book resource 'Learning on the Side' in this week's section.
There is a user menu at the top right when you are logged in and this has quick links to useful areas of Moodle. You can edit your profile from there or read messages.
My home, either in the user menu or the Navigation block, takes you to a customisable dashboard with links to your courses and activities needing attention.
You can also navigate around using Moodle's navigation bar (which others call a breadcrumb trail) at the top of your screen.
Once inside a course, you will notice your course sections visible in the Navigation block.
Documentation links
(All links open in a new window.)
Video tutorial
(Best watched full screen HD.)
2 Your personal dashboard 'My home'
Every user in Moodle has their own personal "dashboard" or customisable page called My home.
The administrator may have set default items to be present on the page and you can expect to see an overview of your courses and anything needing attention such as forum posts or assignments. You can also click the 'customise this page' button to add elements (blocks) of your own choice.You can also move side blocks into the centre if you want them to be larger and more prominent. The My latest badges block for example.
Documentation links
(All links open in a new window.)
Video tutorial
(Best watched full screen HD.)
3 What is a course?
A Moodle 'course' is a space on a Moodle site into which you can add resources or activities for your learners. It can be a simple page with documents for one teacher and one class, or a complex page with many different activities shared by teachers and several classes. It can be always available or have start and end dates, and learners can access it in a number of ways, such as enrolling themselves, being enrolled by their teacher or the Moodle administrator.
A course can display its materials in a number of ways or 'formats' for example in weekly sections or (named) topic sections. You can show all the sections at once or just reveal one at a time.
You can also add elements known as 'blocks' to the right, left or both sides of your central learning area (depending on your theme).
Documentation links
(All links open in a new window.)
Video tutorial
(Best watched full screen HD.)
4 How to lay out your course
As a teacher you have some control over the appearance and layout of your course. For example, (if your institution allows it) you can change the full name or short name of the course and you can change the layout of the main learning area.
Changes are made by going to the Administration block and clicking in Course administration > Edit settings. This is where, amongst other changes, you can set your course up in weekly sections or numbered topic sections (which you can rename) You can also choose the default number of sections and whether to display all sections at once or one at a time. If your course involves mainly discussion you can use the social format. If you use SCORM packages for your course instead of Moodle activities you can select the single activity course format.
If you prefer to call your students by a different name (such as 'learner') or you would rather be a 'facilitator' instead of a teacher then these can be changed in the course settings also.
You can always go back and change any settings if needed.
Documentation links
(All links open in a new window.)
Video tutorial
(Best watched full screen HD.)
5 How to personalise your course sections
If you have chosen weekly sections or topic sections for your course layout then you can rename these if you wish. You can also move sections up or down and quickly add or remove sections.
To rename a section, turn on the editing from the button top right or the link in the Administration block. Click the configuration icon underneath the section title you wish to rename. If you untick the default name box and type your new section name in there, then it will appear in the Navigation block too.
Sections may be moved by dragging and dropping (if your browser and Moodle admin settings allow it) Sections may be added or removed by clicking the - or + icons underneath your final course section.
Documentation links
(All links open in a new window.)
Video tutorial on YouTube
(Best watched full screen HD.)
6 Understanding all the editing icons
To make any changes to your course you need to turn on the editing. This is done by clicking the button top right or by clicking the link 'Turn editing on' in the Administration block.
When editing is turned on, you will see a number of icons next to each resource and block. The icons vary according to your Moodle theme so yours might not be the same as on the Learn Moodle site. The icons are in the same position, however and allow you to add, edit, duplicate, delete and hide elements of your course page. You can also move items by clicking the 'move' icon. Usually this will look like a crosshair and allow you to move by dragging and dropping, but if you are unable to do this, ask your Moodle administrator to check your browser settings and the Moodle site settings.
Documentation links
(All links open in a new window.)
Video tutorial on YouTube
(Best watched full screen HD)
7 How learners access your course
How learners access your course will often depend on the policies of your institution and Moodle administrator. Some institutions might require students to create accounts and then find and enrol themselves into their chosen courses whereas others might automatically enrol all your learners into your course for you. Some might allow guest access; others not.
As a course teacher you can see which methods of enrolment are available by going to the Administration block and looking a Course administration>Users>Enrolment methods. You can see who is already in your course and you can manually enrol learners into your course by going to Course administration>Users>Enrolled users
(Note that manual enrolment is not available on the Learn Moodle site. If you wish other participants to view your course, you can enable self-enrolment.)
A teacher cannot normally enrol another teacher into their course however. You will have to ask your administrator if you wish to share a course with another teaching colleague.
Documentation links
(All links open in a new window)
Video tutorial on YouTube
(Best watched full screen HD.)