If you're teaching multiple sections of a single course, Moodle offers the "combined shells" feature that can help streamline your Moodle use. Below, we'll outline how combined shells work, and how to choose the best way to use them for your teaching workflow.
By default, Moodle creates a shell for each class you teach in a semester; for example:
If you're teaching two sections of a single course, Moodle will create a shell for each section. Additionally, it will also create a shell that is associated with both sections:
The numbers in parentheses indicate the section(s) with which the shell is associated. In the below example, the section numbers are highlighted in red. The first two Moodle shells are associated with Section 01 and Section 02 of MDL 101, respectively. We call these individual shells. The third Moodle shell is associated with both Section 01 and Section 02, so we call this a combined shell.
- MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (01) [26S]
- MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (02) [26S]
- MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (01,02) [26S]
Students enrolled in a class in Banner will also be students in the associated shell on Moodle. Moodle checks rosters in Banner once a day and updates students' access. For example, a student enrolled in Section 01 of MDL 101 on Banner will be a student in the "MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (01) [26S]" shell.
When a class has individual and combined shells, students in an individual shell also be included in the combined shell. For example, the student above, who is enrolled in Section 01 of MDL 101, will be included in both the "MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (01,02) [26S]" shell as well as the "MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (01) [26S]" shell.
So, if Section 01 and Section 02 of MDL 101 each have three students enrolled, then the combined shell will contain six students:
| (01) | (02) | (01,02) |
|---|---|---|
| Alice | Brad | Alice |
| Cheryl | Dan | Brad |
| Earl | Felicity | Cheryl |
| Dan | ||
| Earl | ||
| Felicity |
The names of Moodle shells do not automatically change to reflect new sections, or changes in section numbers. However, the enrollment will be updated. For example, suppose you're teaching Sections 01 and 02 of MDL 101, so you see a MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (01,02) [26S] shell when you log in. If a third section (Section 03) is added, the students in that section will be added to the (01, 02) shell but the name of the shell will not be changed to MDL 101 Introduction to Moodle (01,02,03) [26S].
One option: Make individual shells visible, and keep combined shell hidden
When teaching multiple sections of a single course, the most straightforward way of using Moodle is to treat them as discrete classes, and make each section's individual shell visible. After setting up one shell, you can import the content into the other individual shell(s). In this option, the combined shell is not used and so it is kept hidden.
Keeping the sections' shells separated offers several advantages:
- The timing for quizzes and due dates for assignments can be easily customized for each section
- Each section has its own Announcements forum, so you can make announcements to an individual section. This can be especially handy if the sections progress at different speeds, or if you need to cancel one section's class meeting while keeping the others in place
- You can easily grade assignments one section at a time
However, this option may be inconvenient in some cases. At the beginning of the semester, you can set up one of the individual shells and then import the content to others. However, if you make changes to one shell, and want those changes to be populated to the other shells, the process becomes more complicated. Individual items (e.g., assignments, files, quizzes) can be copied using the Sharing Cart. Larger numbers of items can be copied using the advanced options for importing. Neither of these, however, are as streamlined as simple importing. Also, when using individual shells instead of combined shells, there is no easy way to make a single announcement to all students. Instead, you'd need to make an announcement for each section.
Another option: Make combined shell visible, and keep individual shells hidden
Another option is to put all of your content into the combined shell, and keep the individual shells hidden. The advantages of this option are:
- All your content is in a single shell, so all of your students see the same thing.
- You can easily make announcements to all of your students
The primary disadvantage of this option is that the timing of quizzes and due dates for assignments will be the same for all students by default. This may be problematic because each section meets at a different time, so you may want each section to take a quiz at a different time, or to have an assignment due at a different day for each section.
There is a workaround to have different sections have different times/dates on a quiz or assignment, but it can be difficult in practice: make a group for each section, and create a group override to set different times/dates for each section. Unfortunately, the instructor needs to set the override(s) for every quiz or assignment with a different time/date, and also needs to ensure that any students who add the course late are put into the correct group.
Which option to choose?
Each option has its advantages and disadvantages. Which to choose depends on your class and your workflow for teaching it.
Using the individual shells, and keeping the combined shell hidden, may be the best option if either of these apply:
- You have all of your content ready at the beginning of the semester, and plan to make minimal changes over the course of the semester
- Your sections meet on the same day, so it's easier to have assignments for all sections due at the same time; e.g., 11:59 pm on Friday.
Using the combined shell, and keeping the individual shells hidden, may be best best option if either of these apply:
- You will be making edits to course content throughout the semester
- Your sections meet throughout the week, or on days spaced far apart from one another, so assignments should be due at different times for different sections to ensure all students have the same amount of time to work on the assignments
Why not make all shells visible?
Consider a student who is enrolled in Section 02 of MDL 101. If all shells are made visible, then that student's dashboard will display two entries for MDL 101: the individual shell (for Section 02) and the combined shell. This can confuse students. In cases like this, reported problems include:
- Students contacting the Registrar or ITS to complain that they are enrolled in more than one MDL 101 class
- Instructors telling students that an assignment, file, or announcement is on Moodle, and students claim that the content wasn't actually uploaded, or that they can't find it. In fact the students were looking in the individual shell when the content was in the combined shell (or vice versa)
- Students misunderstanding the gradebook because it contains entries for both shells
Some instructors choose to keep all shells visible, but doing so requires careful planning. If you do you this, be sure to explain your plans to the students and point out that there are no real issues with their enrollment or grades.