We update the DSK on courses as required via a mass (or very selective)
SQL query.
E.g. we can make all Current courses become past courses, then all
future become present current at the start of the academic year, and do
the more selective archive and delete flags as and when we can (often
one at a time).
We do have a very bespoke building block, but it is tied into part of a
wider tool that wouldn't be easy to share. Essentially it is not a
difficult tool to write - you need a selective enrolment loader and a
module that displays the results, plus a user interface to allow
customisatoon of the results. Have a look on the OSCELOT projects site -
I think York shared one of theirs.
HTH
Malcolm.
---
Dr Malcolm Murray
Learning Technologies Team Leader - IT Service
Honorary Fellow - School of Education
Durham University
-----Original Message-----
From: Blackboard/Courseinfo userslist
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Katie Piatt
Sent: 09 March 2011 14:45
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Seperating current courses from archived
That's elegant. Which raises more questions I'm afraid:
Do you use snapshot then in order to keep updating the DSK of areas? I
was imaging setting the DSK on the year it was created, but then
updating the portal module when the year changed so it knew to now show
2011/12 stuff etc.
Are you (Malcolm and Sandra) making your own 'My Courses' portal
modules? Would love to actually have one of yours to play with to save
me re-inventing the wheel.
Thanks
Katie
-----Original Message-----
From: Blackboard/Courseinfo userslist
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of MURRAY M.R.
Sent: 09 March 2011 14:29
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Seperating current courses from archived
We do the same thing at Durham, which has worked fine for the last 5
years, with increasing refinement.
We use a very specific DSK naming convention that is used to
differentiate between user, course, enrolment and any other DSKS.
For courses we have 5 DSKS for each department, for Goegraphy they begin
COURSES_GEOG.... for Physics COURSES_PHYS... etc. That allows us to
order/group the resulting courses by Department - handy if your module
codes (courseId Strings) are as cryptic/varied/imaginative as ours.
Then we have a four letter suffix that indicates whether the courses
are:
FUTR: to be taught in a future year
CURR: current course
PAST: taught out, but students may still want to access it e.g. a 1st
year course, where the students are now in 2nd or 3rd year
ARCH: Course with no live enrolments - ready to be archived
DEAD: course that has passed some sanity checks and will shortly be
removed using an irreversible process.
Thus we have a custom module that only shows courses where the DSK
(course, not enrolment) ends in CURR for "My Courses" another for FUTR -
"Next Year's Courses" - only visible to staff, and a third for PAST
courses.
HTH
Malcolm.
---
Dr Malcolm Murray
Learning Technologies Team Leader - IT Service Honorary Fellow - School
of Education
Durham University
-----Original Message-----
From: Blackboard/Courseinfo userslist
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Katie Piatt
Sent: 09 March 2011 14:16
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Seperating current courses from archived
Thanks for the pointer - have found your ppt and it's very useful (for
the code especially!), and I hadn't thought of using DSK as the
identifier.
I was imagining using the academic year in the identifier - so maybe
SITS10, SITS11, SITS12 etc and then I can display students their
academic profile year by year on the Archive tab.
Katie
--
Katie Piatt
Senior Learning Technologies Developer
University of Brighton
-----Original Message-----
From: Blackboard/Courseinfo userslist
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Sandra
Stevenson-Revill
Sent: 04 March 2011 12:50
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Seperating current courses from archived
We have done exactly that at Derby I presented a paper on the how to do
this at last years bb conference at Swansea, it's on the connections
site I think. I used DSK as the determining factor for the split.
Sandra
Sandra Stevenson-Revill
Information Services
University of Derby
[log in to unmask]
Ext 2368
-----Original Message-----
From: Blackboard/Courseinfo userslist
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Joseph Gliddon
Sent: 04 March 2011 11:38
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Seperating current courses from archived
Interestingly I have just been giving this very thing a bit of thought.
The other week George Kroner from blackboard visited our Uni (well worth
speaking to him if you are thinking of Blocks or other development work)
and gave a pretty inspiring demo. So when our techy guys set up a
development area and IF I get some time, im going to try experimenting
with making some blocks.
So idea is that a Blackboard course is created for each cohort every
year for each degree unit that we run (normally the content is copied
over from the previous year).
Most students are doing a 3 year course with 8 units. Currently they
only see the "live year" so this means 8 units in their "My Courses"
module.
However it would be really useful for a number of students to be able to
refer back to old units (ie 2nd year units may well build on knowledge
developed in 1st year units). So what we might do is keep the old
courses available to students as support materials (I know some Uni's
already do this).
The big problem is that this means Students will see 24 blackboard
courses in their final year (more if longer courses). So they may click
on the wrong course.
And the situation will be even worse for staff.
There are 2 solutions
1) low tech - Do a handout and video guide that explain to students (and
staff) how they can hide courses on "My Courses" and heavily publicise
this. Then rely on staff and students to keep only what they need to
see visible.
2) Building Block "This Years Courses" is put on the home page just
above the normal "My Courses"
Building Block "This Years Courses" module The block would take the "My
Courses" functions and extend them so that it contained the SQL logic
Where data_source_key = "whatever number you are using for this year"
OR
Where course_id like '%AY10_11'
Now depending on how much effort each takes the building block would
either just hard code the variable and compile it each year to make it
work for the current year OR have the variable something you could
change in the properties of the module.
So that's what I want, I think a lot of other Uni's would also like it.
I might even try to make one myself, but my coding skills are a little
rusty these days and its not a priority for my current job so I would be
doing it as a weekend project so it might never get done.
Still - someone else on the list might see this as something they want
to do.
Joseph Gliddon
--On 03 March 2011 15:58 +0000 Tyrone Knight <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> Hi Dominic
>
> I think one thing to ask here, to give a better response from us, is -
> What is it they need to see separated? e.g. content available, own
> work submitted etc.
> So what are the factors they are not likely about the current process?
>
> As I may only be speaking for myself, but a lot of colleges /
> universities have so many little different ways of doing things that
> it is difficult to picture your current methods, which could be so
> different from my own.
>
> For example, Where I am based we have cohort courses on Bb which equal
> our MIS system each year, so each year there is a new version, but
> potentially same content. As well as modules which equal more than one
> related cohort, for different reasons.
>
> I hope this is clear
> Regards
> Ty
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Blackboard/Courseinfo userslist
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Dominic Gore
> Sent: 03 March 2011 15:29
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Seperating current courses from archived
>
> Hi All,
>
> I am wondering if anyone has developed and is willing to share a
> building block that allows seperation of modules for current year and
> previous years delievered. At UCB we have had feedback from students
> suggesting that it would be good if we could have the My Courses
> module just display current years delieverd modules, and a seperate
> blackboard module for previous/archived courses.
>
> I am aware that this is a similar request to the one not so long ago
> about course console, but if anyone knows of a solution or has
> implemented this i would be very interested to hear.
>
> many thanks
>
> Dom
>
>
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----------------------
Joseph Gliddon
e-Learning Implementation Officer
Education Support Unit
University of Bristol
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