Designer Help Develop your unit Features and Tools

Features and Tools

The following features and tools are available in WebCT for designers to enhance the content and provide a wider, more interactive learning experience for students.

Pages
	Organizer Page An Organizer Page allows the designer to group together relevant single pages and URL. For example, the designer may want to organize the URL of non-required texts that are available on the Web.
	Single Page A single page of content allows the course designer to create a page of information. The single page is appropriate to present course timetables or outlines
	URL The URL tool allows the designer to link to a web page that is outside the WebCT course.
Course Content Tools
	Content Module A WebCT Content Module is a set of individual pages of course content that can be organised sequentially, rather like pages in a book. This allows for simple sequential perusal of course content and easy direct access to any page of content. The Table of Contents Editor organises the pages into a hierarchical sequence. Course content pages consist of uploaded HTML pages prepared by the course designer and an action menu which provides navigation. It is also possible to add links, glossary items and some course tools to content pages. If material is placed within content modules, then student access can be tracked.
	Glossary A searchable glossary of terms can be created by the course author. Links from the notes to the glossary entries are added automatically by WebCT (under the control of the designer). Students can reach the glossary by clicking on a highlighted word or term in the notes and the glossary entry for that word or term is displayed or by clicking on the glossary link in the action menu to generate a page that allows display of portions of the glossary and arbitrary searches of the glossary.
	Image Database (both shared and private to a course) The designer can upload images to be included in the course. WebCT provides a page that allows the association of annotations and free text with each image. Students can search for images based on these. Search results are presented in the form of a page containing thumbnail-sized versions of the matching images (the thumbnail versions are generated automatically by WebCT). Clicking on a thumbnail presents the corresponding full image. Image databases can be private to a course, or can be shared by any number of WebCT courses running on the same server.
	Index This tool allows the automatic creation of an index of course content and terms. The designer can add index entries to point to pages of content. Index entries are ordered alphabetically. Each entry can have a sub-entry to indicate some special attribute (for example, an annotation "definition of" might be added to a reference for a term for the page on which that term was defined).
Content Utilities
	Search The Search tool allows course participants to search the whole course content for a particular word.
	Compile The Compile tool allows users to condense several or all pages in a content module into one. This utility is useful when printing out the course contents.
	CD-ROM The CD-ROM Tool allows users to access specific course files from their own computer instead of downloading them from the WebCT server. If you distribute large audio and video files to your students on a CD-ROM, users avoid potentially long download times they might encounter if they had to download the files over the Internet. This tool only appears on a content module page.
Communication Tools
	Discussions The Discussions tool allows communication among all course participants (designer, markers and students). WebCT keeps track of which messages are read by each student and, by default, initially presents only unread messages. Discussions can be searched (new and old messages) for content, sender, date of sending and more. Messages can have embedded URLs which are clickable and link to pages outside WebCT. Messages can also have embedded equations and formula that are created using the Equation Editor. The Discussions can have any number of topics on specific subjects or questions related to the unit's contents.
	Mail The Electronic Mail facility allows one-to-one message transfer among course participants. Like the Discussion tool, messages can be searched based on the sender, content and the date of sending. WebCT email does not integrate completely with internet email. WebCT messages can be redirected to email addresses but internet email cannot be transferred into WebCT.
	Chat WebCT provides a Chat tool for real-time communication among course participants. The student's view shows the chat rooms, their names and a list of course participants in each room. The list of users in each chat area is available. Most of the chat rooms are exclusive to students in that course but there is also one general chat room that allows communication among students in any course on the same WebCT server. Four of the chat rooms are logged in case the designer wishes to peruse the exchanges taking place there.
	Whiteboard The Whiteboard tool allows groups of users to dynamically share a common graphical palette in real time (i.e. synchronously). It includes many of the functions found in standalone drawing tools, e.g. the ability to insert text and graphics, choose fonts and colours, move objects, modify them, etc.
	Calendar A Calendar (like a daily planner) is included in the Murdoch Template. Calendar entries include a heading, a start and end time, a summary and a link to a URL can be created. The designer can make public entries (for all course participants to view) and both designer and student can make private entries (only visible to the person who made the entry). Also, the designer can tell WebCT whether students are allowed to make public entries in the calendar. Multiple entries can be added to the Calendar using the Calendar Text File
	Student Tips A designer can write tips for students on items such as using WebCT. Tips are displayed randomly when a student goes into a unit. Students can enable/disable Student Tips.
Evaluation and Activity Tools
	Quiz/Survey A Quiz is a test for which grades are assigned and which is created and administered online. The Quiz can be fully or partly auto-marked by WebCT Multiple-Choice, paragraph, short answer and matching questions can be used in a quiz. Responses to surveys are not graded but they can be automatically tabulated and the results summarised. As responses are anonymous, surveys can be used for unit evaluation or to gather opinions on an issue raised in the unit. Questions can be added to a quiz or survey using a Quiz Text File.
	Self Test A Self-Test contains a series of multiple-choice questions which students can use to check their knowledge. After a student answers a question they receive immediate notification about whether the answer is correct and they can be given feedback on their answer.
	Assignments The WebCT Assignments tool allows students to submit assignments electronically for marking by the unit coordinator or tutor. Designers use the Assignment tool to post details about each assignment . Links to Assignment details can be placed individually on the Homepage or on a separate Organizer Page that lists all Assignments. Assignment details can include Due Date, Maximum Grade, Instructions and Assignment-Related Files. Designers can also specify a date to make the Assignment details available for students to view, a cut-off date and choose to allow late submissions.
	Student Presentations Your students are able to work on a project/assignment and present the results as a series of linked web pages in an area within the WebCT unit. The designer and other students can view the completed project.
	Student Homepages The Homepages tool allows students to create their own web pages with information about themselves, their projects and links to other websites.
	My Progress This tool, which is for student use only, shows a student the parts of the unit accessed, the number of content pages visited and the number of discussions postings read and sent.
	My Grades This tool allows each student to view his or her own marks as entered by the designer. The student also has access to minimum, maximum and average grades for each course component (at the discretion of the designer). Students also have online access to the comments and grades for each online quiz written and marked.
Tools for use within Content Module
	Goals The Goals link in a content module's Action Menu displays the learning goals for the current topic. The designer can associate learning goals with any page of course content. If such a goal is associated, the Goals link appears on the action menu for that page. If no learning goals exist for the current topic, the link will not appear in the action menu.
	Take Notes The designer can add a link to any page of content which, when clicked by a student, allows the student to make personal annotations for that page. The annotations created are private to the student and remain as long as the student has an account for the course. This might be used by a student to remind herself or himself about some insight or clarification gained.
	Audio Tool The Audio tool lists the audio files the designer has associated with the current topic. If there are none, this icon will not appear in the action menu. This tool only appears on the action menu of a content module page.
	Video Tool The Movie tool lists the video files the designer has associated with the current topic. If there are none, this icon will not appear in the action menu. This tool only appears on a content module page.

Track Students

The Unit Coordinator can monitor student progress in a course. Indicators such as date of first and last access, number of hits and number of items read and posted to discussions are available. The students can be sorted on any tracking field in order to identify students who, for example, have stopped accessing the course, or who are prolific posters to the discussions.

Track Pages

WebCT tracks the total number of accesses to each course page within a content module, and the average duration of access. This can be used to make inferences about the level of interest or difficulty of a page.

Equation Editor

The Equation Editor is available in a range of WebCT tools and can be used to create and save complex equations for use in those tools.

See Equation Editor for further details.