We’re pleased to announce improvements coming to OHM on December 20, 2017:
- Course Browser (new feature)
- Graded Items in Hidden Blocks (change to existing feature)
Both updates will be active throughout OHM from their release date forward. No user action is required to activate these changes.
Course Browser
When creating a new course or copying existing content into a course, the course selection tool has been replaced by the Course Browser. This change makes it easy to view helpful information about existing courses you may draw from when building courses. The Course Browser includes a course description as well as filters by course level, primary text, and modality (online, face-to-face, etc). You can also use the Course Browser to filter by course contents (videos, worksheets, powerpoints, etc).
This new feature was developed by David Lippman, the creator of iMathAS and MyOpenMath. We’re excited to implement it within OHM.
Figure: Course Browser
Who does this impact?
Instructors and course builders bringing in content from template courses are most impacted by this change. Instead of a simple tree or dropdown menu listing only the course names, the Course Browser summarizes more detailed information about each course. You no longer have to click all the way into an existing course to see what it includes.
How can this feature benefit you?
As you’re browsing materials to decide what to use, you can use the helpful details in course summaries to identify content that fits your needs. The Course Browser also makes it simpler to search for supplemental resources, like videos or worksheets, to remix from other template courses.
Graded Items in Hidden Blocks
For graded items located in a hidden block, OHM will no longer create an item in the gradebook. If the graded item is later moved out of a hidden block, OHM will then create an item in the grade book. Previously, OHM automatically created a corresponding column in the gradebook for all graded items, whether or not they were located in a hidden block. By making this change to how graded items work in hidden blocks, it avoids confusion for students and faculty when assessments that are hidden from student view appear in the gradebook.
Who does this impact?
This change impacts instructors who use have graded items in hidden blocks. For example, some instructors use hidden blocks to hide individual graded forum links and instead point students to the general “Forums” link at the top of course navigation. From December 20, 2017 forward, we recommend grouping links to graded forums in an unhidden block. If you don’t take this action, grades for forums in hidden blocks will disappear from your gradebook after this update takes effect.
How can this feature benefit you?
For graded items that are not ready for students to use (such as extra credit, exam practice, items that are not finished), an instructor can conveniently place those items in a hidden block to prevent them from appearing in the gradebook. Once the item is ready for student use, the instructor can move the item out of the hidden block (or set the block to be visible). This will trigger OHM to automatically create an associated item in the gradebook.
Released 2017-12-20