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How to bypass a Moodle Popup Window when using Respondus lockdown browser

2012/01/24 Leave a comment
  1. Problem: when starting the Moodle Lockdown browser to take an online exam, it opens with a popup window about messages. Popup window prevents access to the underlying main Moodle browser window (and exam). When closing the popup window, the entire lockdown browser closes, including main Moodle browser window. CIMG0088
  2. Cause: Moodle can be configured to show a notification window when messages have arrived since your last login. This notification window has poor compatibility with the lockdown browser.
  3. Workaround: In the popup window, click on the tab: “Settings” and uncheck (at least for this exam session) the checkbox to show the  message box as a popup when logging in. Close the popup window. CIMG0089
  4. Result: Even if this closes the main Moodle browser window once again, when you start the Moodle Lockdown browser again, the popup window will not appear again, and you can take your exam.
Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-teachers, e-learning, Glitches&Errors, lms Tags: , ,

How to enforce deadlines on your language syllabus using Moodle

2012/01/23 1 comment
  1. Experience seems to make teachers much prefer if students “try and fight with the computer over deadlines”, or rather spend their time studying instead of arguing about excuses why not study (“Dog ate my homework"- syndrome).
  2. When you create a Moodle assignment, in each assignment type you will find a fields that allow you to create a time window
    1. before
    2. and after which the assignment is not available to students.
  3. For easier remembering, assignments with deadlines
    1. automatically appear in the Moodle Calendar
    2. and can be made to automatically show in the NINERMAIL calendar
  4. Hint: provide some extra credit to ease the pain of learning how to meet deadlines which are a requirement for progression in learning a language, especially when not doing independent study, but interacting within a cohort.
    1. Suggested: “Best 3 out of 5” for first-time users, “4 out of 5” for tech-savvy.
Categories: audience-is-teachers, e-languages, lms Tags: , ,

LRC Outlook/Exchange 2010 Resource Calendaring: How to alter meeting times in OWA

2012/01/23 Leave a comment
  1. If you are the meeting organizer (you initiated the meeting request), in your NINERMAIL/OWA calendar, just click on the meeting and drag the meeting start and/or end time with your left mouse button in the desired new location (works like in Outlook), and send updates (this will not affect for the series of a recurring meeting, only the current occurence): CIMG0127
  2. If you are not the meeting organizer, the meeting organizer, when requesting a meeting with you, may have allowed you to “Request a new time”: use the corresponding button (screenshots are for Outlook):
    1. in the meeting request: outlook-meeting-request-response-propose-new-time-from-calendar-item-menu-context-menu-does-not-have-this-option.
  3. or in the calendar item context menuresponse-propose-new
Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-students, audience-is-teachers, e-infrastructure, office-software, service-is-documenting Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

How to do writing assignments in Moodle with deadlines, file and response file upload and MS-Word tracked changes

2012/01/20 Leave a comment
  1. Benefits
    1. Keep the cohort in shape and focus it on studying by enforcing deadlines.
    2. You can have students automatically receive reminders of the upcoming deadlines from their calendar (in NINERMAIL, no need to even look at the Moodle Calendar)
    3. You can save time managing the assignment.
      1. Moodle does it for you; you will save even more time once you begin recycling your assignment across terms) and rather provide more timely feedback, and improve changes that your feedback arrives during a teachable moment.
      2. Automatic email notifications,  which are available in Moodle for teachers (if you do not prefer to grade student submissions in a batch) and students to (automatic correction and grading is not ready for prime-time when it comes to essay writing; you may however consider teaching some more basic writing skills using it with close-exercises in Moodle).
    4. Costs
      1. You need to TBA:create a Moodle file upload assignment for writing (once)
      2. You need to grade a Moodle file upload assignment for writing (any time you assign; depending on your preference as submissions arrive or conveniently as a batch from the gradebook past the deadline)
        1. I prefer the MS-Word reviewing features for grading writing assignments,
        2. but other tools have other affordances, e.g. like recently described here for Adobe Acrobat Professional.
      3. Moodle does not automatically add unique usernames to student submitted files like Blackboard. It also does not afford the TBA:convenience of a shared network storage that the WebDAV-based Blackboard Content system provides. However, as long as you do not need to maintain a local archive of student submissions, you can rely on the Moodle gradebook managing the archive of assignment files (student submissions and teacher response files).
      4. How? These 4 posts guide you through the entire workflow from teacher to student back to  teacher to student:
        1. How a teacher creates a Moodle file upload assignment for writing
        2. How a student takes a Moodle file upload assignment for writing
        3. How a teacher grades a Moodle file upload assignment for writing
        4. How a student reviews a Moodle file upload assignment for writing
Categories: assignments, audience-is-teachers, e-languages, lms, office-software, Writing Tags: , , , , ,

How a student reviews a Moodle MS-Word file upload assignment for writing

2012/01/18 1 comment
  1. The student can see the submitted grade in her user report:qw6-view-grading-as-permitted-student
  2. She can view the assignment: corrected-assignment-with-response-file-as-permitted-student
  3. from where she can open the corrected MS-word file w7-open-file-as-permitted-student
  4. for more detailed corrective feedback: w2
  5.  
Categories: Arabic, audience-is-students, documentation, e-languages, English, Farsi, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Mandarin, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Writing, Yoruba Tags: , ,

Students get an error when trying to open links from MS-Word file

2012/01/18 Leave a comment
  1. Error reads: “”this operation has been cancelled due to restrictions in effect on this computer”.
  2. Immediate workaround:
    1. right-click on the link, choose copy, open a web browser window CIMG0001and paste the link into the address bar, browse to it from there.
    2. File / Save as / Web page. From where you saved the web page, double click to open it in the your web browser, click the links form within there. CIMG0002
    3. Have you tried saving your MS-Word files to the new SkyDrive.live.com (login with your NINERNET password) yet? Students can choose to open MS-Word documents in either MS-Word or their web browser which should also bypass the problem.
  3. Solution: Investigating. Seems related to no “default browser set” in XP Control Panel / Internet options. If you cannot live with the workaround, do ask your System Administrator. Or stay tuned
Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-students, audience-is-teachers, e-infrastructure, Glitches&Errors, Listening-Stations, office-software, Student-Computers Tags: , ,

Sanako comparative recording exercises using Moodle

2012/01/13 Leave a comment
  1. Comparative recordings are one of the best-established practices in SLA with technology. We can implement them here using:
    1. The Sanako Study 1200 language lab software installed in LRCRoomCoed434 facilitates comparative recordings by students, based on a teacher-provided model audio, with its student dual track recorder software.
    2. Moodle’s Simple file upload assignment aids in managing the workflow,
      1. from delivering the audio file with the model recording to the student
      2. to  organizing, assessing and grading the student input.
  2. For the teacher
    1. to create such an exercise, she
      1. creates an audio recording that serves as a model for the student pronunciation – a special application of our Audacity recording introduction. It is advised, however, to insert clear cues for the student to start his repetition.
      2. creates a Moodle’s Simple file upload assignment to which she attaches the audio recording
    2. continue with How a teacher grades a Moodle simple file upload assignment

  3. For the students to take such an exercise:

      1. How a student takes a Moodle Simple file upload assignment
      2. TBA: Sanako Student Recorder
Categories: Absolute-Beginner, Arabic, audience-is-teachers, Beginner, documentation, e-languages, English, Farsi, French, German, Greek (modern), Intermediate, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, software, Spanish, Speaking, Student-Computers, Yoruba Tags: , ,

How a student takes a Moodle Single file upload assignment

2012/01/13 2 comments
  1. Find your assignment: 1
  2. read the assignment text: 3
  3. Create the file locally, according to the assignment text
  4. Click the browse box and upload your file from your hard drive:  4
  5. Once the upload finishes, click: “ Continue”  10
  6. You are done:  11
  7. Now wait for your grade.
Categories: assignments, audience-is-students, e-learning, lms Tags: ,