Author an eCourse

This articles provides steps on how to author an eCourse, as well as how to add assessments, links, and embedded videos to the eCourse.  

To author an eCourse, follow these steps: 

• In Strive, select Settings.
• Select Workshop Settings.
• Select Course Management.
• Select Instructor/Author.
• Select eCourses.
• Select the eCourse to edit the content.

Note: If the Course Author is different from the Instructor, the author will only see the Author button and not the Overview and Participants buttons.

Select Create a New Element in the lower-left corner to add course content. An eCourse is composed of chapters.

• A chapter is a collection of topics and assessments.
• Assessments can either be for practice or graded.

A practice assessment will allow the attendee to see the correct answers and take the test again.

However, a graded assessment will lock their answers for the instructor to review. Clicking on any chapter, topic, or assessment will allow you to edit that element as well as change the order of elements using the blue arrows on the top toolbar.

Selecting a topic will allow you to begin fleshing out or editing that topic. As you can see, there are quite a few options on the toolbar for a topic. Many of these are familiar word processing options such as bullets or alignment. There are also several options unique to the eCourse.

The properties pane is the right side bar used to change the topic's title and add media files. Any file type can be added to the topic. Participants in the eCourse can easily view these attached files by selecting the View Topic Files button at the top of a topic.  

The insert picture button will pop up another window allowing you to upload a picture and then set the spacing, border, and text position for that picture.

Adding an Assessment

The assessment feature can be used for a variety of purposes, including full tests/quizzes, quick checks, uploading assignments to a course, one-question agreements, etc.

To create an assessment, select the Create a New Element button at the bottom of the Management Tools frame.  The Add New Course Element wizard will pop up on the right side, and you will select Create Assessment.  Then select Next.

You will be asked to name your assessment, and select the chapter where you want the assessment to appear.  Then select Finish.

The assessment builder will appear, and you can use the Add Question button to begin building your assessment.

Editing an assessment is very similar to other form generations within Eduphoria tools. Assessments are essentially a series of questions created by selecting Add Question and then choosing the type of question you would like to add.

Question types include:

• Instruction Block for providing directions
• Multiple Choice (Scored by the system)
• True/False (Scored by the system)
• Text for fill-in-the-blank, short answer and essay questions
• File Upload to allow enrolled participants to upload an electronic document for the eCourse Author/Instructor to view. (Examples: presentation file, research paper, etc.)

Selecting a question will allow you to enter that question and select the correct answer. You can then use the blue arrows and the Delete Question button to rearrange and finalize your assessment.

Note: Course Instructors will only be able to view assessment results that are required for credit.  

The properties button will open the assessment properties pane. This side bar will allow you to change the title and select whether this assessment is to be Practice (not graded) or Required Test for Credit (graded). Just like in a topic, you can add in any number or file types you need. For instance, you could add in a Word document that needs to be completed and then uploaded into a question for review. Also, as in a topic, the magnifying glass icon will show you a preview of the assessment as an attendee would view it. The Delete button removes a question or the entire assessment as needed.

Once all chapters, topics, and assessments are completed, the course can be made active by the professional development administrator. Once this is done, the eCourse will be ready for registration.