{"id":5683,"date":"2017-01-24T09:30:42","date_gmt":"2017-01-24T09:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/?p=5683"},"modified":"2017-02-02T10:03:43","modified_gmt":"2017-02-02T10:03:43","slug":"3-ways-develop-rich-resources-study-direct-moodle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/2017\/01\/24\/3-ways-develop-rich-resources-study-direct-moodle\/","title":{"rendered":"3 ways to develop rich resources on Study Direct (Moodle)"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Treasure 013-1”<\/a> flickr photo by leigh49137<\/a> shared under a Creative Commons (BY-ND) license<\/p><\/div>\n

Most people start using the Sussex University VLE (Study Direct) to upload resources – usually slides from lectures. That is a great start, but there is much more that can be done to provide interesting and engaging resources for students.\u00a0<\/p>\n

1.Give it personality<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Connecting with students, especially on modules with large student numbers, can be difficult. A Study Direct site can be used to develop relationships by sharing video and\/or audio recordings by lecturers or tutors.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lecture recordings<\/span><\/a> are a great learning resource but <\/span>other forms of media can also be added<\/span><\/a>. You might like to try recording short introductions to yourself, the module or specific concepts. These can be easily made using <\/span>a range of recording and screencasting tools<\/span><\/a>. A personal introduction to a module from the lecturer can be a great way to begin building relationships with students.<\/span><\/p>\n

2.Add context and relevance<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A collection of resources, however interesting, can easily seem just a list of links or files. <\/span><\/p>\n

To engage students with the materials it is important to make the context and relevance clear. For example, use \u2018displayed content\u2019 or \u2018click-to-reveal content\u2019 to add information about the resources and direct students to what is most relevant to them. <\/span><\/p>\n

This sort of contextualising also gives you, as the tutor, another opportunity to add your voice to the site as resources now appear as personal recommendations or suggestions rather than just a set of links.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

3. Bring the outside world into the VLE<\/strong><\/h3>\n

One of the main criticisms of VLEs such as Study Direct is that they are \u2018walled gardens\u2019 cut off from the dynamic online world outside. Of course there are very good reasons why a module site should be restricted to registered students (not least issues of <\/span>copyright<\/span><\/a>) but there are ways to bring the outside world into your site. This can encourage student engagement by highlighting real world applications for ideas discussed in a module.<\/span><\/p>\n