diff --git a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/Images/Bulk_email_history.png b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/Images/Bulk_email_history.png new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..e12c5c425e Binary files /dev/null and b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/Images/Bulk_email_history.png differ diff --git a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/Images/Bulk_email_pending.png b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/Images/Bulk_email_pending.png new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..2735991221 Binary files /dev/null and b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/Images/Bulk_email_pending.png differ diff --git a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/change_log.rst b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/change_log.rst index b366048d04..3ee7a6a4d7 100644 --- a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/change_log.rst +++ b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/change_log.rst @@ -11,14 +11,16 @@ Change Log * - Date - Change * - 04/01/14 - - Update the :ref:`Establish a Grading Policy` chapter to emphasize that grading is applied to subsections only. + - Update the :ref:`Establish a Grading Policy` chapter to emphasize that grading is applied to subsections only. + * - + - Updated the :ref:`Releasing Your Course Index` section to include :ref:`Launch`. * - 03/31/14 - Expanded the :ref:`Grades` chapter to include the new :ref:`Review_Answers` section. * - 03/27/14 - Updated the :ref:`Add Pages` section to reflect feature changes. - * - 3/27/14 + * - 03/27/14 - Updated the section on :ref:`Beta_Testing` to include the new "batch add" feature. - * - 3/19/14 + * - 03/19/14 - Updated the sections on :ref:`Beta_Testing`, :ref:`Discussions`, :ref:`Grades`, and :ref:`Student Data` with changes to the new Instructor Dashboard. * - 03/17/14 - Reorganized this document into major sections: @@ -57,7 +59,7 @@ Change Log * - 02/24/14 - Created new chapter, :ref:`Getting Started with edX`. * - - - Updated :ref:`Add a Course Video` section + - Updated :ref:`Add a Course Video` section. * - 02/21/14 - Added the :ref:`Beta_Testing` chapter. * - 02/19/14 diff --git a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/releasing_course/course_launching.rst b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/releasing_course/course_launching.rst new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..3f0d788df6 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/releasing_course/course_launching.rst @@ -0,0 +1,202 @@ +.. _Launch: + +############################## +Course Launching Activities +############################## + +To launch a course, you prepare the course itself, the staff, and the +students. This chapter includes a :ref:`Course Launch Checklist` to use as a +model for your schedule of activities. + +To help you communicate to the staff and to all course participants when you +are launching the course, and also while the course runs, you can send email +messages from the Instructor Dashboard. See :ref:`Bulk Email` and :ref:`Email +Task History Report`. + +.. _Course Launch Checklist: + +**************************** +Course Launch Checklist +**************************** + +As the start date for your course approaches, a checklist or timeline of +activities can help you make sure that your course, and your students, are +ready to begin. Suggestions for activities to complete before your course +starts follow. + +**Verify Course Settings** + +* Check the course start date and time in Studio. See :ref:`Set Important + Dates for Your Course`. +* Review the grading policy, and set a grace period for homework assignment + due dates. See :ref:`Establish a Grading Policy`. + + +**Review First Week Content** + +* Verify that all units are present and published. See :ref:`Units`. +* Check all assignments for completeness and verify their due dates. See + :ref:`Working with Problem Components`. +* Verify that videos, transcripts, and download links are in place and + working. +* Review feedback from the course team and beta testers to be sure that the + content has been thoroughly reviewed and tested. + +**Welcome Students** + +* Two months before the course start date, prepare and send a welcome email + message to currently enrolled students. See :ref:`Send_Bulk_Email`. +* Compose a welcome message and add it to the **Course Info** page. See :ref:`Add + a Course Update`. +* Verify that a syllabus and other references are available on the **Course + Handouts** page. See :ref:`Add Course Handouts`. +* One month before the course start date, prepare and send a welcome email + message to currently enrolled students. +* One week before the course start date, prepare and send a welcome email + message to currently enrolled students. +* Start an "Introduce Yourself" topic in a discussion thread. For a MOOC, you + may want to manage the size of the thread by distributing student responses + across multiple threads. For example, you can start different threads for + introductions based on geographical location, such as "Introduce Yourself: + Europe", "Introduce Yourself: North America", etc. See + :ref:`Running_discussions`. +* On the course start date, prepare and send a launch email message to + currently enrolled students. + +**Prepare Staff** + +* Define communication methods for all course contributors, including staff, + instructors, and the discussion team. For example, set up a course-specific + email address. +* Verify that all course contributors know how to record their work, report + issues, and collaborate on tasks. +* Verify that the instructors and course staff selected for your course + have the correct role assignments in the LMS. See :ref:`Course_Staffing`. +* Verify that discussion admins, discussion moderators, and community TAs have + registered and activated their user accounts, enrolled in the course, and been + assigned their roles. See :ref:`Assigning_discussion_roles`. +* Define methods for managing discussions and guidance for discussion + moderators, and distribute to the discussion team. See + :ref:`Moderating_discussions` and :ref:`Guidance for Discussion Moderators`. + +.. _Bulk Email: + +************************* +Bulk Email +************************* + +With the bulk email feature, you can send email messages to course +participants directly from the Instructor Dashboard. Messages can use HTML +styling, and can include links to videos, social media pages for the course, +and other material. All course contributors who are assigned the course staff +or instructor role can use this feature to communicate with course +participants before, during, and after the course run. + +.. note:: The bulk email feature is currently in limited release, and is enabled for new courses only. A gradual rollout of this feature is planned for 2014. + +=========================== +Message Addressing +=========================== + +When you send an email message from the Instructor Dashboard, you choose its +recipients by selecting one of these predefined groups: + +* **Myself**, to test out a message before sending it to a larger group. +* **Staff and Instructors**, to contact other members of the administrative + team. +* **All (students, staff and instructors)**, to communicate with all currently + enrolled students and the administrative team. + +When you use the bulk email feature, consider that messages **cannot be +cancelled** after they are sent. Before you send a message to all course +participants, be sure to review each draft carefully, and send the message to +yourself for thorough testing. + +.. _Send_Bulk_Email: + +====================================================== +Send Email Messages to Course Participants +====================================================== + +To send an email message to course participants: + +#. View the live version of your course. + +#. Click **Instructor** > **Try New Beta Dashboard**. + +#. Click **Email**. + +#. Select who you want to send the message to from the **Send to** dropdown + list. You can select: + + * **Myself** + * **Staff and Instructors** + * **All (students, staff and instructors)** + +5. Enter a **Subject** for the message. A subject is required. + +#. Enter the the text for the message. Messages can use HTML styling, + including text formatting and links. The email message editor offers the + same formatting options as the HTML component editor in Studio. See + :ref:`Working with HTML Components`. + +#. Click **Send Email**. The status of the message displays in the **Pending + Instructor Tasks** section of the page. + +====================================================== +Message Queueing and Delivery +====================================================== + +When you send a message, it is queued for processing as a bulk email task. +Multiple courses use the same queue to complete these tasks, so it can take +some time for your message to be delivered to its recipients. If your course +is a MOOC, consider limiting the number of messages that you send to all +course participants to no more than one per week. + +On the **Email** page, the **Pending Instructor Tasks** section shows the +status of queued messages. + +.. image:: ../Images/Bulk_email_pending.png + :width: 800 + :alt: Information about an email message, including who submitted it and when, in tabular format + +You can perform other tasks on the Instructor Dashboard or navigate to other +pages while you wait for your message to be sent. + +.. _Email Task History Report: + +******************************** +Email Task History Report +******************************** + +You can produce a report of all of the bulk email tasks sent for your course. +For each message sent, the report includes the username of the requester, the +date and time it was submitted, the duration and state of the entire +task, the task status, and the task progress. + +You can use this history to investigate questions relating to the bulk email +message that have been sent, such as: + +* How frequently students are sent course-related email messages. +* Whether a message was sent successfully. +* The number of people who were sent course-related messages over time. + +====================================== +Review the Email Task History +====================================== + +To produce the Email Task History report: + +#. View the live version of your course. + +#. Click **Instructor** > **Try New Beta Dashboard**. + +#. Click **Email**. + +#. In the **Email Task History** section of the page, click **Show Email Task + History**. A report like the following example displays on the Instructor + Dashboard. + +.. image:: ../Images/Bulk_email_history.png + :width: 800 + :alt: A tabular report with a row for each message sent and columns for requester, date and time submitted, duration, state, task status, and task progress. \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/releasing_course/index.rst b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/releasing_course/index.rst index e11900f23f..9ffd7d6a15 100644 --- a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/releasing_course/index.rst +++ b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/releasing_course/index.rst @@ -7,9 +7,10 @@ Releasing Your Course .. toctree:: :maxdepth: 2 - beta_testing view_course_content set_content_releasedates + beta_testing + course_launching staff_debug_info d diff --git a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/running_course/course_staffing.rst b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/running_course/course_staffing.rst index 9ed912b475..c5e37a494c 100644 --- a/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/running_course/course_staffing.rst +++ b/docs/en_us/course_authors/source/running_course/course_staffing.rst @@ -36,6 +36,8 @@ To provide access to features on the LMS Instructor Dashboard you assign the Cou * See course HTML errors. +* Send email messages to course participants. + **Instructors** have access to all of the same options for running the course as the course staff. They can also: * Add and remove course staff.