Summer Workshops Announced
Instructional Innovation and the Instructional Media Lab will be hosting a number of workshops and training sessions, including Building a New Moodle Course. For a full list of workshops, check out the Innovate Events page.
Online Storage Options
UDrive, the university’s legacy online file storage we retired as of July 2nd, 2018.
UMass has 2 online storage options that replace UDrive and have additional features to enhance usability and add collaboration tools.
- Apps at UMass Amherst is a customized version of Google’s popular suite of online productivity and collaboration tools designed especially for educational institutions. You can take advantage of the features of the Google platform like live editing, version history, and sharing, all with unlimited storage.
- Secure Online Storage at UMass Amherst is provided by Box. This service provides a simple, more secure way to share and store files and folders online. Box consolidates your content in a single location, easily accessible from anywhere, on any device. You can create files and folders, share them using a direct link, invite others to collaborate, and continue to revise and review your content.
To learn more about these options and how to use them in facilitating collaboration, check out our workshop Getting Started with Group Work Online. You can also contact the Instructional Media Lab (instruct@umass.edu | 413-545-2823) to make a 1-on-1 consultation appointment.
Moodle Tip of the Month: Importing Content from Previous Semesters
Did you know that Instructors can important content from previous semesters? You can perform an import from any course you have recently taught, or if you have created a backup file, you can send that file to the Instructional Media Lab and request that it be restored to a new semester.
What’s new in Moodle?
We’re Continuing with Moodle 3.1 for 2018-19
UMass Amherst IT is planning to keep Moodle at UMass Amherst and Open UMass on Moodle version 3.1 for the 2018-19 academic year.
We may periodically add features and will perform security updates during our regularly scheduled update window (Thursday mornings), but no major upgrade is planned at this time.
Request Moodle and Echo360 Courses for Summer & Fall in SPIRE
Moodle and Echo360 course request is open in SPIRE for summer and fall 2018. Instructors must request a Moodle course each term they wish to use Moodle for a course. Once your new, empty course is created, you’ll have the option to import previously used content.
For details see:
Summer Session Two Begins; Summer Session One Grades Due
Summer Session Two begins on Monday, July 9th. Moodle courses will automatically open to students on July 6th. You can choose to manually open or close your Moodle course to students.
Summer Session One grades are due on Wednesday, July 11th. You can import grades from Moodle to SPIRE. During the upload process, you can enter Incompletes. You can also assign the Student with Incomplete role for students who will need access to a course to complete work.
Moodle Help and Resources for Instructors
To learn more about Moodle or to get help, you can:
- Review our Moodle Support Articles.
- Contact the Instructional Media Lab (instruct@umass.edu | 413-545-2823) with a question, or to set up a time for a one-on-one consultation.