Calendar
Chat
Feedback
Forum
Scheduler
Quickmail

Calendar

The calendar tool allows you to display events that can be seen by individual users, course users and entire site users. The calendar displays information from other tools in SOL such as quiz deadlines, assessment due dates, chat times etc.

See docs.moodle.org - Calendar for more information >>

Chat

The chat tool is synchronous and the conversation happens live. It allows to you to have an instant chat with students online on a set date and time. This can be a great way to communicate with students whilst at your desk and the chat sessions can involve as many students as you want. There is the option to save past chat sessions so you can review any important points/questions that were asked.

See docs.moodle.org - Chat for more information >>

Feedback

The feedback tool is used for creating and conducting surveys to collect information. This could be used for evaluation purposes or for informal student assessment. The ability to set the forms as 'anonymous' also means that sensitive issues can be surveyed without students worrying who might see their responses.

See docs.moodle.org - Feedback for more information >>

Forum

The Forum is a very powerful tool that promotes engagement and interactivity. A forum can contribute significantly to successful communication and community building in SOL. You can use forums for many innovative purposes in educational settings, but teaching forums and student forums are arguably the two more significant distinctions.

There are two forums already available for use under the 'Learning Community' tab. One called 'Unit Announcements' which provides direct contact to the participants on the unit and a 'Frequently Asked Questions' forum for class discussions.

See docs.moodle.org - Forum for more information >>

Scheduler

The Scheduler helps you to schedule one-to-one appointments with your students. You specify the periods during which you are available and the length of each appointment. The students then book themselves into one of the available time slots.

See docs.moodle.org - Scheduler for more information >>

Quickmail

The Quickmail block adds a link to a tool that has a checkbox list of all participants on the unit, and a place to compose an email. This enhances the existing communications systems of messaging (one user) and subscribed forums (all subscribers) by allowing tutors to select a specific subset of students.

See docs.moodle.org - Quickmail for more information >>