Tag Archives: Moodle

Moodle Upgrade

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The Simmons Moodle platform is scheduled for an upgrade before the Spring 2024 semester commences. To ensure a smooth transition to the enhanced user experience, we will be sharing updates and sneak peeks of the upcoming features during the Fall semester. If you’re interested in getting acquainted with the fresh offerings, which encompass streamlined navigation, an upgraded course page, and a revitalized dashboard, kindly explore the resources available on Moodle’s New for Teachers and New for Students pages, or refer to their dedicated YouTube playlist.

LMS Transition to Moodle

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After two years of pivot, campus-based undergraduate coursework has transitioned back to Simmons Moodle.  Faculty and Students login with their Simmons credentials and no longer use a separate password to access their coursework.  Simmons Moodle is very similar to the Learning Management System of previous years and the transition from one to the other should be smooth.  

If you need technical support, please reach out to [email protected].  All support is now provided by Simmons Staff.  The Center for Faculty Excellence (CFE) provides instructional design assistance for faculty and can be reached at [email protected].

We’re also excited to introduce Gradescope, a cloud-based grading tool.  Gradescope allows faculty to save time grading and provides analytics on how students are doing in class.  Gradescope can be used to grade a variety of assignments: quizzes, bubble sheets, exams, worksheets, projects, problem sets, projects, and programs.  Integrated with Moodle, Gradescope works with Gradebook to manage students’ grades.

On-the-Ground UG Courses Move to Moodle

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Beginning with the upcoming Summer semester, on-the-ground Undergraduate courses will transition back to Simmons Moodle Learning Management System from the Digital Campus supported by 2U that was utilized during the past two years.  Courses will be made available by faculty just prior to the first meeting of the class.  

Students may contact instructors about accessing courses in Moodle.  Additional information about navigating the platform is available at Moodle for Students.  For technical difficulties or issues accessing your account, please contact the Simmons Technology Service Desk.

The Move to Moodle Gathers Steam

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The Spring 2013 phase of migrating courses from eLearning to Moodle is now complete! The School of Management, The Graduate School of Library and Information Science, The School of Nursing and Health Sciences, and several departments in The College of Arts and Sciences are now using Moodle. All together, this Spring we migrated about 60 courses from eLearning to Moodle; 160 new Moodle courses were built from the ground up.

Getting Up to Speed on Moodle
Since July, faculty have attended over 140 hours of dedicated Moodle training. In addition, we’ve been busy hosting drop-in sessions, in which faculty can stop by without an appointment for immediate one-on-one support, and staffing Moodle informational tables around campus. We’ll continue to have tables outside the library where students and faculty can have their questions answered. Finally, improved, searchable Moodle documentation is poised to be integrated with Technology Support’s FAQ database later this month. Keep an eye out!

What’s New in Moodle
This December saw a big update to Moodle that brought with it a number of improvements. Moodle’s new drag-and-drop feature allows instructors to drag multiple files from their computer directly into their Moodle course with a flick of the wrist. Moodle Assignments have been streamlined and made more flexible. In response to faculty requests for a tool that would let students sign up for Groups, we’ve added the new “Group Choice” activity.

Hook into Educational Tools through Moodle
Moodle facilitates integration with educational tools to enhance your course. Access the Library’s Course Reserves system directly from Moodle. There’s no need for students to log in again, and instructors no longer have to establish special passwords for their courses. More faculty are also trying out Tegrity, our Moodle-integrated content capture solution, to record videos of lectures and course content. Tools like these make it easier for faculty to flip the classroom and spend more face-to-face time on interactive work and discussion.