Previewing our new UCL Moodle, ahead of the summer upgrade. 

Hello and welcome to the new fortnightly news release for our upcoming Moodle 4 Upgrade. 

As announced by Jason Norton, Head of Virtual Learning Environments, in the Moodle 4 Upgrade Summer 2023 blog post on 6th March 2023, the UCL main instance of Moodle will be upgraded this July from Moodle 3.11 to Moodle 4.2. 

In this series of blogs, we aim to keep you up to date with what our team is working on each Sprint (fortnight) and to highlight a new Moodle 4 feature, in more detail. 

What are we working on? 

This week we wanted to share with you our progress with the dashboard redesign for Moodle 4. 

The new dashboard aims to improve the students’ experience with course updates including a timeline of activities, featured current and future course activities, and a ‘Recently accessed by Peers’ section to keep up-to-date and provide quick access to popular activities and resources. The clear buttons and fresh page layout aim to make managing deadlines, learning and signposting of support easier for our learners. 

As well as the dashboard, the new “My courses” area introduces a central point where students can access all their available modules and courses, and allows searching and filtering of these courses in the overview section. 

What’s new in Moodle 4? 

Gradebook user experience improvements 

A better user experience (UX) has been a key focus for numerous Moodle 4 developments.  

One such change is that UX improvements have made the Gradebook easier to navigate, which allows graders to analyse the success of formative and summative assessments, and inform improvements to course design.  

In this new version of Moodle, a ‘Grades summary’ page has been added to provide a summary report of the grade averages for each course activity. This Grades summary report can be filtered by activity. 

There is now also an improved ‘User report’ with a more modern design and collapsible categories. 

The grader report has an improved search function with dropdown menus. There is also an option to open external assessment tools from the gradebook and add grade letters if needed. 

A ‘Single view report’ with improved design and a new search make it easier to review class and specific user grades. Graders can now search by user, group, or grade item. 

 

It’s now also easier to import/export gradebook elements. 

Have Questions? 

If you have questions, please do get in touch with the Digital Education team.

 

We’ll be back in a fortnight with further news and updates for you. In the meantime, happy moodling!
The Virtual Learning Environments team 

 

The UCL main instance of Moodle (moodle.ucl.ac.uk) will be upgraded this summer from Moodle 3.11 to Moodle 4.2. The upgrade will take place in mid to late July of this year (2023).

The Road to the Moodle 4 Upgrade

The image below provides a high-level overview of the activities that will be taking place over the next few months leading up to the upgrade in July.

 

• March: Continued user group engagement and a demo site with all courses will be made available to the Moodle Development User group
• April: A Moodle 4 demo site including an “in development” UCL Theme will be made available to all staff
• May: Moodle 4 Train the trainer sessions will begin, Online self pace material will begin to be made available
• June: General staff face to face training will commence, Student resource will be published
• July: Staff training continues, Moodle 4 upgrade occurs
• Post upgrade: Staff training will continue, development of the UCL Theme will continue

 

Why are we upgrading Moodle?

Moodle version 3 was released in 2018 and has now reached its end of life for support, bug fixes and security patches. To ensure our platform remains up to date and our user data is secure we need to move to the Moodle 4.

 

A More Modern User Experience and a New UCL Moodle Theme

One of the biggest changes introduced by Moodle 4 is a revamped user interface and user experience. This was Moodle HQ’s primary focus with the release of Moodle version 4.0, and they have updated the underlying technology, the layout and the navigation. This re-design means that Moodle looks more modern and significantly cleaner in its user interface.

To take advantage of these changes, UCL Moodle is moving to a new Moodle Theme. We are currently working with an external partner Titus Learning and internal and external design teams to bring a customised Moodle Theme that best supports UCL needs. This is an ongoing piece of work and one that will extend into the summer, post the release of UCL Moodle 4.2 in July.

The new theme (code name “Norse”) is currently being developed with input and comments from over a hundred and fifty staff, both tutors and course administrators as well as student focus groups. As you can see from our timeline, we aim to release an “in development” Moodle test platform to all staff that will enable you to look at a Moodle 4 environment with the new Moodle Theme applied in April.

This will enable you to see how the new theme and its interactions with course formats has impacted your course. From the review work and feedback already taken place, it is important to note that impact has been minimal.

The screenshots below of the new Moodle Theme should be taken as “in development”. Overall, the layout of the user interface will not change, however colour, icons, fonts, blocks, accessibility features are all still subject to change. However I hope these images give you a good idea of the new general look and feel.

 

 

 

What will courses look like after the upgrade?

The best way to see the changes coming will be to engage with the Moodle demo site that we will be making available in mid-April. This site will have the latest available version of Moodle 4 and the latest version of the new UCL Moodle Theme. From the development and testing work we have undertaken so far we are expecting impact on existing courses to be minor.

The Theme version on this platform is still in a beta state and will be updated as we work towards the upgrade in July. We expect between 2 and 4 additional updates will occur prior to the July upgrade as we refine the theme based on your feedback and complete accessibility checking and design reviews.

Moving from Moodle 3.11 to Moodle 4.2 will bring both changes and new functionality to Moodle. These changes will be detailed in a series of upcoming blogs and will also be the key focus of the training we are in the process of creating.

 

Staff Training

Staff training will be available via two distinct strands. The first will be an online self paced course that will be available on a Moodle 4.2 instance in late May. This course will walk you through the changes and additions to Moodle functionality including an initial topic on how the new Moodle navigation works. This self paced course will use Moodle activities, videos and course completion activities so that a badge or certificate will be received upon completion.

The second strand of training will be provided face to face or online in a more localised faculty/department context. We are currently working on a train the trainer programme, that will be delivered in May to the following individuals: Faculty Learning Technology Leads, Departmental Learning Technologists and Connected Learning Leads. If you would like to be part of the train the trainer programme, please discuss this with your Faculty Learning Technology Lead.

The online and face to face Moodle 4.2 training will commence from June and continue throughout the summer.

 

Student Support

A student Moodle user tour and updated student wiki guides will be made available in June.

 

Have Questions?

If you have questions please do get in touch with the Digital Education team.

 

Global Deactivation of Portico Mappings

Portico mappings on Moodle pages were globally deactivated on 27th February, 2023.

What’s on offer

ISD Digital Skills Development Team has released new dates for Term 3. Most of our sessions will be offered remotely using Microsoft Teams with some also on campus only. Scroll down for more!

See our latest schedule below.

We are offering a wide range of courses covering data analyis with SPSS, RStudio and Stata; productivity with Microsoft apps; multimedia and graphics creation; and much more.

New highlights include the following:

• DSD: Enhancing the Accessibility of your Moodle Courses
• DSD: User access and multiple instruments in REDCap
• DSD: Managing participants in REDCap
• DSD: Qualtrics tips and tricks
• DSD: Scripting Stata’s new Tables and Collections.

How to book

Please ensure you are using Desktop@UCL or the UCL VPN when booking.

Prizes to be won!

We have new monthly term-time prizes to be won by staff and students who attend and evaluate our courses.  All you have to do to be in the running to win £20 ‘Love to Shop’ Gift Voucher is complete one of our training sessions, and submit our course evaluation form. The evaluation form should take no more than 1 minute to complete. Good luck!

Find out more

For more information on how to book and join a session on the day, please visit our Practical Course Information page.

Drop-ins

We are also hosting our usual weekly drop-in sessions remotely and on campus for those who would like individual support on a specific issue. The dates and times of the sessions are available on our ISD Digital Skills Development drop-in page.

More digital skills development opportunities…

Learn online with a vast range of high-quality video-based courses from LinkedIn Learning.  These cover technical skills but also business, personal and creative skills as well.  Visit the UCL LinkedIn Learning page to find out more.

 

Latest schedule: T2 & T3

Date	Start	End	Session name	Venue
14/03/2023 & 24/03/2023	10:00	17:00	DSD: Introduction to Matlab – 2 parts	Campus-based session
14/03/2023	10:00	11:30	DSD: OneDrive for sharing files	This session will take place via MS Teams
15/03/2023 & 16/03/2023	17:00	20:00	DSD: An Introduction to R with Rstudio (Campus-based) 2 parts	Campus-based session
16/03/2023	10:00	11:30	DSD: Creating accessible PowerPoint Presentations	This session will take place via MS Teams
15/03/2023	10:00	11:30	DSD:Vlookup in Excel – Workshop	This session will take place via MS Teams
21/03/2023	10:00	12:00	DSD: Software for success: Survey tools	This session will take place via MS Teams
22/03/2023	14:00	16:00	DSD: Intermediate statistics with Excel 2016	This session will take place via MS Teams
22/03/2023	10:00	11:45	DSD: Charting with Excel	This session will take place via MS Teams
23/03/2023	12:00	13:00	DSD: Qualtrics tips and tricks	This session will take place via MS Teams
23/03/2023	10:00	11:45	DSD: Pivot Tables in Excel – Workshop	This session will take place via MS Teams
23/03/2023	14:00	16:00	DSD: Better Tables in R	This session will take place via MS Teams

TERM 3

Start date	Start time	End time		Venue
25/04/2023	14:00	15:30	DSD: Enhancing the accessibility of your Moodle courses (Campus based)	Campus-based session
02/05/2023	10:00	11:15	DSD: Basic image editing using free tools	This session will take place via MS Teams
02/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Basic video editing using iMovie on a Mac	This session will take place via MS Teams
02/05/2023	14:00	16:00	DSD: In a Nutshell: Excel functions we should all know	This session will take place via MS Teams
03/05/2023	10:00	11:00	DSD: Best practice for video captions and transcripts	This session will take place via MS Teams
03/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Explore the potential of UCL Mediacentral	This session will take place via MS Teams
03/05/2023	11:00	13:00	DSD: Software for success: Survey tools	This session will take place via MS Teams
03/05/2023	15:00	16:00	DSD: Word tips and tricks	This session will take place via MS Teams
04/05/2023	10:00	17:00	DSD: Introduction to Matlab (Campus based) (1 of 2)	Campus-based session
04/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Introduction to Stop Motion Animation (Campus based)	Campus-based session
09/05/2023	11:00	13:00	DSD: Charting with Excel	This session will take place via MS Teams
09/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Digital book making	This session will take place via MS Teams
09/05/2023	10:00	11:00	DSD: Podcasting made easy – workshop	This session will take place via MS Teams
10/05/2023	11:00	12:00	DSD: Excel Essential Skills – WORKSHOP 1 (Campus based)	Campus-based session
10/05/2023	12:00	13:00	DSD: Introduction to REDCap for research	This session will take place via MS Teams
11/05/2023	14:00	15:15	DSD: Creating accessible PowerPoint presentations	This session will take place via MS Teams
11/05/2023	10:00	17:00	DSD: Introduction to Matlab (Campus based) (2 of 2)	Campus-based session
25/04/2023	11:00	13:00	DSD: Pivot Tables in Excel – Workshop	This session will take place via MS Teams
16/05/2023	12:00	13:00	DSD: PowerPoint for Researchers and Presenters: Words, Images and More	This session will take place via MS Teams
16/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Filming advice for a short film	This session will take place via MS Teams
18/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Creating Infographics using free web-based tools	This session will take place via MS Teams
18/05/2023	12:00	13:00	DSD: Qualtrics tips and tricks	This session will take place via MS Teams
23/05/2022	17:00	20:00	DSD: An Introduction to R with Rstudio (Campus based) 1of 2	Campus-based session
23/05/2022	14:00	15:30	DSD: Creating accessible Word documents	This session will take place via MS Teams
23/05/2023	14:00	15:30	DSD: Managing your digital profile and social media presence	This session will take place via MS Teams
23/05/2023	10:00	11:00	DSD: Mentimeter for Continuous Module Dialogue (CMD)	This session will take place via MS Teams
24/05/2023	11:00	12:00	DSD: Excel Essential Skills – WORKSHOP 2	Campus-based session
24/05/2024	14:00	15:00	DSD: Online social interaction platforms	This session will take place via MS Teams
25/05/2023	17:00	20:00	DSD: An Introduction to R with Rstudio (Campus based) 2 of 2	Campus-based session
25/05/2023	14:00	16:00	DSD: Getting Started with SPSS (Campus based) P1	Campus-based session
25/05/2023	14:00	15:30	DSD: Make a short film using your iPhone	This session will take place via MS Teams
25/05/2023	10:00	11:00	DSD: Planning a short film	This session will take place via MS Teams
30/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Design an impactful research poster using UCL templates	This session will take place via MS Teams
30/05/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: Excel tips and tricks	This session will take place via MS Teams
30/05/2023	12:00	13:00	DSD: In a Nutshell: Git version control	This session will take place via MS Teams
30/05/2023	10:00	11:00	DSD: Record a narration over your PowerPoint on a PC	This session will take place via MS Teams
31/05/2023	12:00	13:00	DSD: Managing participants in REDCap	This session will take place via MS Teams
31/05/2023	10:00	11:00	DSD: User access and multiple instruments in REDCap	This session will take place via MS Teams
01/06/2023	14:00	15:00	DSD: An introduction to free graphic design tools	This session will take place via MS Teams
01/06/2023	14:00	16:00	DSD: Getting Started with SPSS (Campus based) P2	Campus-based session
01/06/2023	10:00	12:00	DSD: Scripting Stata Graphs	This session will take place via MS Teams
06/06/2023	10:00	13:00	DSD: Dive into Git version control	This session will take place via MS Teams
07/06/2023	11:00	12:00	DSD: Excel Essential Skills – WORKSHOP 3	Campus-based session
08/06/2023	10:00	12:00	DSD: Format your Thesis (Windows)	This session will take place via MS Teams
08/06/2023	14:00	16:00	DSD: Scripting Stata’s new Tables and Collections (Campus based)	Campus-based session
07/06/2023	12:00	14:00	DSD: VLookup in Excel – workshop	This session will take place via MS Teams
12/06/2023	14:00	15:30	DSD: Enhancing the accessibility of your Moodle courses (Campus based)	Campus-based session

 

 

The Sharing Cart is a new Moodle block that increases the ease and speed of duplicating content between Moodle courses. It is viewable only to course administrators and tutors.

It works by creating a Sharing Cart block on Moodle that works a bit like the shopping cart you find on most e-commerce websites.  Staff can copy content into their own Sharing Cart, storing it there, and then they can copy the content from their Sharing Cart into any Moodle course. Copying content takes just four clicks!

To copy content into the Sharing Cart block, turn on editing and look for the Sharing Cart icon next to your Moodle sections, activities and resources.

Content copies without user data—similar to the “Import” function on Moodle.  In addition, items can be collected and saved in the Sharing Cart, serving as a personal library of frequently used content ready for duplication.

Please note that Sharing Cart should not be used to share Quiz activities, as copying a quiz can copy the entire Question bank. If you need to copy Moodle Quizzes between courses please speak to IT services.

To learn more see the Sharing Cart Staff guide.

 

Please note that the survey tool Opinio will be decommissioned at UCL on 31^st July 2023. We are transitioning to an existing platform Qualtrics XM, which offers a wider variety of features such as offline design and video submissions. Qualtrics XM will be available to all staff and students without the need for an account to be created, whereas Opinio was only available to staff and authorised postgraduate students.

What do I need to do?

We encourage you to familiarise yourself with Qualtrics XM and other survey tools on our dedicated Sharepoint site: https://liveuclac.sharepoint.com/sites/ISDResearchSurveyTools

Please do not create any new surveys on Opinio that go beyond 31^st July, or you will need to end them early and recreate the surveys on an alternative platform. In preparation for the decommissioning, we strongly urge all users to download their survey data as soon as possible and store it locally or on a departmental shared drive. It will not be possible to transfer surveys from Opinio to Qualtrics XM or other platforms, so new surveys need to be created from scratch.

Our annual Opinio usage survey is now closed, but we will not be removing non-respondents before the platform is decommissioned on 31^st July. No new Opinio accounts will be created in the meantime.

For training sessions on Microsoft Forms, REDCap and Qualtrics XM please see below:

DSD: Microsoft Forms Demo (being discontinued: last one is on 23 February)

Microsoft Forms Essential Training

Microsoft Forms Quick Tips

DSD: Introduction to REDCap for research

New! DSD: Managing participants in REDCap

New! DSD: User Access and Multiple Instruments in REDCap

New! DSD: Qualtrics tips and tricks

More information will follow on this announcement, in the meantime please contact us at digi-ed@ucl.ac.uk if you have any concerns about the Opinio decommission. For questions about the Qualtrics XM platform, please contact qualtrics@ucl.ac.uk.