Welcome back to our latest blog update on the anticipated Moodle 4 upgrade. We’ve made significant progress and are excited to share with you the transformative features of the updated dashboard. But first, let’s catch up on our recent sprint updates. 

Sprint Update and Progress 

Our dedicated team has been diligently addressing numerous significant advancements: 

1. Theme Finalisation: We’re on the brink of finalising our theme, shaping a fresh and engaging user interface. 
2. Turnitin now in the Feedback block: We’ve upgraded the Feedback block to now include Turnitin feedback for students, making it more intuitive and efficient. 
3. Testing: Extensive testing within multiple environments and PHP unit testing is ensuring a stable and secure platform. 
4. Accessibility Review: In collaboration with the Digital Accessibility team, we’re undertaking a thorough accessibility review. This vital work aims to draft an accessibility statement for Moodle 4, outlining our compliance with accessibility guidelines and a roadmap for future enhancements. 
5. STACK Installation: The latest version of STACK engine (Quiz question type) has been installed for testing – it’s not deployed yet to the Moodle 4 Demo Preview. 
6. Security Upgrade: We performed a security upgrade on Moodle 3.11 (current UCL Moodle) to ensure the security and stability of our current platform in anticipation of the Moodle 4.2 upgrade. 
7. Training: We have completed the delivery of train-the-trainer sessions to 90 nominated members of staff. We have also updated content for the Moving To Moodle 4.2 self-paced course, as the theme is evolving.

Unveiling the New Dashboard 

The dashboard has seen a significant transformation. Let’s explore what it has to offer: 

For Students 

• Alert Section: Stay informed about critical Moodle platform alerts, keeping you abreast of important updates, changes, or issues. 
• ‘Pick up where you left off’ Block: This feature highlights your recently accessed courses and activities, allowing you to seamlessly resume your work. 

• Deadlines Section: Stay on top of your tasks with this timeline of upcoming activities. Activities with a cut-off date will be prominently displayed on your timeline. 
• Feedback Block: A feature aiming to gather all of a student’s assessment feedback in Moodle in one convenient place. 
• News Block: Keep up to date with the latest UCL news with our streamlined News block. 

For Staff 

• Alert Section: Stay up to date with critical Moodle platform alerts. 
• ‘Pick up where you left off’ Block: This feature displays your recently accessed courses and activities. 
• News Block: Receive the latest UCL updates right on your dashboard. 
• ‘My Courses’ in the Navigation Bar: Access a hub containing all your courses. Hide/show courses, favourite relevant ones, and filter by past, present, and future. 

Feel free to explore these features and more in our Moodle 4 Demo Preview. 

Getting in Touch 

If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Digital Education team.   

Stay tuned for our next update in a fortnight, where we’ll share more exciting news and progress on the Moodle 4 upgrade. Until then, happy moodling! 

The Digital Learning Environments Team 

Welcome back to our fortnightly news release dedicated to the Moodle 4 upgrade. As we draw nearer to the upgrade, we’re thrilled to share the progress we’ve made and highlight the new features set to enhance your Moodle experience. 

Sprint Update and Progress 

Since its launch on 30 May, over 200 staff members have visited our Demo Preview site. We’re actively recording and addressing the feedback received. If you haven’t yet done so, it’s not too late. You can see your UCL Moodle courses in the Moodle 4.2 Demo Preview, too and report any issues to our team. 

Our ‘Train the Trainer’ workshops have been underway since the 30 May, and we’re proud to share that 47 trainers have already earned their Moodle 4.2 Trainer badges. 

In addition to our team, 79 members of staff have enrolled in the ‘Moving to Moodle 4.2’ self-paced course, with five participants already completing it and receiving their Moodle 4.2 Explorer badge. 

Introducing improved course content management 

Moodle 4.2 brings a wealth of improvements designed to simplify course content editing. Here’s a glimpse of what’s new: 

1. Edit Mode Toggle: Simplify course updates with the new Edit Mode toggle replacing the “turn editing on” button. This makes it clear when you’re editing versus viewing.  
   

   New ‘Edit mode’ toggle.

2. Add Content Anywhere: You can now add activities or resources anywhere in a section, thanks to the new PLUS icon. Click, choose your activity, and you’re set!
   
   

   Click on the image to enlarge and see the animation.

    

3. Course Settings and Menu Tabs: These course administration functions have moved from the block drawer to the top of the course page for easy access. Adjust course settings, view grades, or manage course participants, and more, all in one place.
   
   

   Course administation tool, above the course, using submenus.

4. Reorganise Course Content: The Course Index feature makes reorganising content a breeze. Simply drag and drop sections and activities to reorder them.
   

   Course content management via the Course Index.

5. Group Membership Visibility: You can now control who sees the members of groups, enhancing privacy and targeted communication. 
6. Activity and Resource Icons: We have colour-coded and unique icons for different activity and resource types, providing clear guidance on the nature of each activity. 
7. Displaying Activity and Resource Types: The type of activity or resource is now visible when editing the course, helping quick identification.
   Text and Media Area: The Label resource is renamed to a more intuitive ‘Text and Media area’. 
8. Easy Item Indentation: Indenting items for better course organisation is now straightforward and accessible. Just select ‘Move right’ in the options menu.
   
   
9. Permalink to Sections: Share direct links to course sections with the new Permalink feature.
   Bulk Editing Actions: One of our favourite new features, move, duplicate, or delete multiple activities or resources simultaneously with the new Bulk Edit feature, saving time and effort.
   
   

   Click on the image to enlarge and see the animation.

To see these new features in action, visit your course(s) in our Demo Preview site.
To explore the new course management features and new bulk editing capabilities, check out the ‘Course management’ section in the ‘Moving to Moodle 4.2’ self-paced course.  

Getting in Touch 

If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Digital Education team.   

Stay tuned for our next update in a fortnight, where we’ll share more exciting news and progress on the Moodle 4 upgrade. Until then, happy moodling! 

The Virtual Learning Environments Team 

 

Welcome back to our fortnightly news update, spotlighting the eagerly awaited Moodle 4 upgrade. Each day brings us closer to this landmark development, and the anticipation continues to build. 

Sprint Update and Progress 

In the current sprint, we have made considerable progress on various elements of the new UCL Theme and its alignment with UCL’s design requirements. This means our theme will align with the UCL brand guidelines and design principles to make the UCL Moodle feel part of the UCL based web experience. 

Our technical team, including developers, analysts, and infrastructure experts, is diligently working on the Moodle software. They’re going through the code, running automated tests, resolving issues, and preparing our systems on Amazon Web Services (AWS), a cloud-based platform we use for our digital resources, for future stress tests next month. In addition, they’re assisting other team members as they add new features and improvements to Moodle 4.2. They’re also ensuring that our current Moodle 3.11 system is running smoothly. 

Our team is particularly excited about the launch of the ‘Train the Trainer’ workshops, that will be kicking off today. This three-hour online workshop is designed to equip departmental trainers with the knowledge to navigate the upgraded Moodle 4.2 and pass that knowledge on to their teams. In addition to the live online workshop, participants will have access to an array of support resources to aid them through the transition. 

Demo.Preview Moodle Instance available!! 

Today’s big news: our Demo Preview is live as of the 30th of May! Tutors and course administrators can now explore the upgraded Moodle 4.2 interface, allowing them to preview how their courses will appear post-upgrade. We urge everyone to seize this opportunity to familiarise themselves with the new layout and features in preparation for the late-July upgrade of our production environment. 

What is 4-demo.preview-moodle.ucl.ac.uk? 

This restricted-access instance of Moodle is a copy of our production environment that has been upgraded to Moodle 4.2 and has the new UCL Moodle theme applied (in development). 

This demo.preview instance of Moodle is to give you early access to:  

1. Experience Moodle 4.2 and its new navigation. 
2. Experiment the new features that we have highlighted in our previous blogs e.g., improved question bank. 
3. See how your Moodle courses will look after the late-July upgrade. 
4. Plan any changes that you may wish to make to your courses. 
5. Provide feedback on the new UCL Theme via a dedicated form that can be accessed from the bottom banner which is displayed on every page. 

Important notes about 4-demo.preview-moodle.ucl.ac.uk 

While we have made this instance available for you to experience Moodle 4.2 and the new UCL theme, there are several important caveats that users need to be aware of. 

1. The demo.preview instance will be Moodle 4.2: this will be the version of Moodle that goes live in the late-July upgrade 
2. The demo.preview instance will be WIPED and UPDATED every fortnight. This means anything you do within the preceding two weeks will be lost. The demo.preview instance should be used for testing and learning only. It should not be used as a “live” environment in any way. The team will signpost this via a banner visible on every page. 
3. As part of the fortnightly demo.preview WIPE, the Moodle teams will deploy code fixes to both Moodle and to the new UCL theme. 
4. The new UCL theme is still in active beta development with an intended change freeze to occur from the 30th of June. Prior to that date, all elements of the theme (colour, layout, etc) should be considered as beta and subject to possible change. Our development partners are actively working on feedback already received and changes will deploy as of the fortnightly WIPE. 
5. The demo.preview is running on a reduced infrastructure. We do not yet have a measure of how many users may access the site, so we will need to adjust the resources for demo.preview as we receive updated metrics. Because of this, you may experience an initial slowness to the site, but we will aim to increase resources as we monitor the load. The speed of this Moodle instance should not be used to compare to our production instance of Moodle which has significantly more resources available to it as well as auto-scaling. 

Moodle 4.2 Pre-release resource Wiki page 

The team have also created a Pre-release resource page, where you can find various resources, report issues and other relevant guidance. This resource and FAQs will grow over the next few months before transitioning to the new Moodle 4.2 resource centre. 

Self-paced course 

Moreover, we’re thrilled to announce the launch of the Moving to Moodle 4.2 training site today. This self-paced course is ideal for staff who may not be able to attend the trainer-led sessions in their respective departments. 

This course is designed to help you familiarise yourself with the new interface and features ahead of the official upgrade scheduled for the end of July. It provides the flexibility to set your own pace for learning and the convenience to revisit the materials as often as necessary.
Plus, you’ll receive a digital badge upon completion of the course as a recognition of your efforts! We believe this training will significantly improve your experience of the transition to Moodle 4.2. 

Getting in Touch 

Our Digital Education team is on hand to answer any questions or concerns you may have. Don’t hesitate to reach out to the Digital Education team. 

Stay tuned for our next update in a fortnight, where we’ll share more exciting news and progress on the Moodle 4 upgrade. Until then, happy moodling! 

The Virtual Learning Environments Team  

Welcome back to our fortnightly news release for the eagerly awaited Moodle 4 upgrade. As we draw closer to the upgrade, we’re excited to share our progress and shine a spotlight on new features that will enhance your Moodle experience.

Sprint Update and Progress

Our team has been planning and scheduling Train-The-Trainer sessions. These comprehensive 3-hour workshops are designed to equip departmental and faculty trainers with the necessary knowledge and skills to become Moodle 4 experts. The Train-The-Trainer sessions will be held between 29 May and 30 June, ensuring ample opportunities for our trainers to participate and gain the insights they need to support their respective teams.

Moreover, we’re thrilled to announce that the next version of our theme has been released to the internal test team. The feedback we collect is invaluable to us, and it helps us create a platform that is intuitive, efficient, and user-friendly.

We have also made significant strides in our development efforts. We’ve developed and tested three new blocks, which are now awaiting approval. These features promise to provide a more diverse range of functionalities, further enhancing the dashboard experience in your Moodle site.

Introducing New Navigation and Design

One of the highlights of the Moodle 4 upgrade is the redesigned navigation and aesthetic. We’ve streamlined the user interface to make it more intuitive and user-friendly.

Dashboard

The first thing you’ll notice is the revamped dashboard and its new features. Tailored to your role, the dashboard provides easy access to your courses and their respective activities, such as assignments, forums, and quizzes.

A prominent feature is the ‘Alert’ section at the top of the dashboard. This section is designed to deliver Moodle platform-related alerts, ensuring that you’re kept up-to-date with any important updates, changes, or issues affecting the platform.

Two new additions include the Feedback block, which consolidates all your assessment feedback in Moodle, and a News block that circulates important updates to keep you informed about the latest at UCL.

A standout feature is the new Deadlines section. This presents a timeline of upcoming events and activity deadlines, helping you manage your tasks and commitments with ease.

My courses

The ‘My courses’ page lists all the courses you are enrolled in, providing a summary card for each one and a progress bar indicating how much of the course you’ve completed (if the course uses completion tracking). This feature is particularly useful if you’re enrolled in multiple courses, as it offers a quick way to navigate between them.

Course index

The Course Index is a new feature that significantly improves course navigation. Providing a comprehensive overview of your course’s content and structure, it outlines all the sections and resources available at a glance.

Located on the left side of your screen within a course, the Course Index presents a collapsible format, allowing you to easily navigate between different sections of a course. This makes it simpler than ever to locate the material you need.

The Course Index also interacts with the course completion tracking feature. If completion tracking is enabled, each activity is marked with a small circle. An empty circle indicates an incomplete activity, while a filled green circle signals that the activity is completed. This provides a visual representation of your progress through the course.

Other design changes

A key change to note is the renaming of the “Label” resource to “Text and media area”. This shift in terminology more accurately reflects the resource’s functionality, making it easier for users to understand and utilise it.

In addition, we’ve given Moodle’s icons a fresh, modern look, while maintaining their familiarity to help users easily identify functions and features.

Getting in Touch

We’re always here to support you. If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Digital Education team.

Stay tuned for our next update in a fortnight, where we’ll share more exciting news and progress on the Moodle 4 upgrade. Until then, happy moodling!

The Virtual Learning Environments Team

Welcome back to our fortnightly news release for the highly anticipated Moodle 4 upgrade. As we count down to the upgrade, we strive to keep you informed and updated on our progress. 

In our previous blog post, we delved into the new assessment features of Moodle 4, including quiz and question bank enhancements, as well as timed assignments. Today, we’ll be focusing on the current state of our preparations for the upgrade, scheduled for the end of July. 

Progress Update 

During last week’s planning session (TI planning), our team identified and prioritised the tasks necessary to ensure a successful Moodle 4 release within the last two weeks of July.
Despite our initial projection of a test Moodle 4 instance release to all staff and students in April, we’ve had to adjust the timeline. We now anticipate launching this test platform at the end of May. 

We want to share the reasons for this delay. Earlier this month, we released the Moodle 4 test site for our focus group and have been diligently working on the feedback received. Our focus group indicated that the platform isn’t quite ready for a general release, highlighting some areas that require further refinement, which we are now prioritising. Additionally, we’re working to resolve infrastructure issues to guarantee optimal performance of the Moodle 4 test site for all UCL staff and students upon its release at the end of May. 

Here is the updated timeline for our summer upgrade: 

We’re committed to delivering an exceptional learning experience, and we expect to launch the Train-The-Trainer sessions to faculty and departments late May, as well as the self-paced Moodle 4 course for all staff who cannot attend trainer-led sessions, by the end of May. 

Getting in Touch 

Should you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Digital Education team.

We’ll be back in a fortnight with more news and updates on the Moodle 4 upgrade. Until then, happy moodling! 

The Virtual Learning Environments team

Welcome back to the fortnightly news release for our upcoming Moodle 4 Upgrade. 

In our previous blog post, we discussed the latest developments in Moodle 4, focusing on the enhancements that are set to improve the learner experience. In this post, with Moodle 4 just around the corner, we will be exploring the latest updates in assessment improvements, specifically the enhancements made to the quiz and question banks, as well as the introduction of timed assignments. 

Sprint Update 

This last fortnight has been quieter due to the break, but we wanted to update you on the work we did complete in this last Sprint: 

• we are releasing a version of the Moodle Theme with UCL data to our focus groups,
• we are in the final stages of QA for the 1.2 version of the Theme (1.4 is the expected go live version). 

What’s new in Moodle 4? 

Quiz and Question Bank Enhancements 

Moodle 4 sees a lot of changes to the quiz question activity. The new features will allow for more efficient and effective quiz creation, management, and grading, making it easier for educators to create engaging and challenging assessments for their learners. 

This screen shows the improved question bank’s question status, question versions, question comments and question usage.

 

The quiz question statistics are also more visible, now, through the handy ‘responses’ drop-down menu. Question statistics like facility index or discriminative efficiency are now easier to find. 

These updates include the ability to tag questions, allowing educators to search for and categorise questions. Furthermore, tutors can now preview and edit questions directly from the question bank with a pen icon, and see when the questions were last modified and by whom (see screen capture above), to easily co-write assessment, streamlining the process of creating and managing questions. 

Timed Assignments: a New Feature 

Perhaps the most significant update around assessment in Moodle 4 is the introduction of timed assignments. This new feature allows tutors to set a time limit for completion on assignments, providing a more structured and focused approach to assessment. Timed assignments are particularly useful for assessors who want to simulate real-world conditions, such as exams or other time-limited tasks. 

 

Overall, the assessment improvements in Moodle 4 represent a major step forward for our platform, with significant updates to the quiz and question bank modules, as well as the introduction of timed assignments. These updates will undoubtedly enhance the learner experience, making it easier for tutors to create engaging and challenging assessments that promote learning. 

Getting in Touch 

If you have questions, please do get in touch with 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