User:Vtaylor/Moodle in teaching and learning

Getting started

 * try it - anything. Almost anything is better than nothing. Learning to use Moodle for teaching and learning won't come all at once. Your brain will hurt and your students won't understand. Pick one small thing - a single discussion, for example. Give points for simply participating. It is best if the topic is easy to relate to - introductions, favorite web site.

Discussions

 * assigning a grade for discussion participation based on the number of posts to a discussion form - use the Report function to summarize the number of post by each student in the specific discussion forum. Add an offline assignment to report the grade, and assign each student a grade based on participation. For example for a small group discussion, 1 point per post up to a maximum of 5 points. I check first to make sure that the posts are substantive - not just "I agree."


 * assignment / discussion - rather than having students submit an assignment that nobody sees but the instructor and the student, students post their assignment response into a discussion with instructor rating enabled and hidden from all but poster view. This works well for assignments where students search for a web site that addresses a specific issue (searching, evaluation)and describe why they selected the site (critical thinking). Students see the postings of other students, expanding their information base. Good students usually post first, modeling the activity for others.

Grades

 * students like to see their grades. Record grades in Moodle so students can see their point score anytime. Let Moodle do the math - automatically total all the points to date.

Other functions and application

 * metacourses
 * reports

Other Moodle Resources

 * Moodle in the Commonwealth