Student guide to an online unit
Introduction
In this document you will be introduced to some of the main features of your online unit:
When you select the link from the MyUnits page to an online unit you will be directed to the Home Page for
your unit.
As shown above the screen is divided into two main sections – the Course Menu (left hand side) and the Home
Page (right hand side).
To navigate around your unit click links on the Course Menu or the icons on the Home Page.
From the Course Menu you can access Course Tools and My Tools. You may find different tools within
each unit you are studying.
You can collapse/expand the Course Menu to increase/decrease the size of the area by clicking the toggle 
If there is a new item for a tool (e.g. Assignments) the  icon
will appear.
The Home Page contains links to activities and content such as:
- Files – study schedule
- Folders – containing related content items e.g. lecture materials
- Learning Modules (e.g. Unit Information, Learning Guide) where you can use the Table of Contents to
navigate through the content and activities).
To return to a list of your online units click the MyLMS link at the top right.
The Discussions Tool, which can be accessed from Course Tools, is used for communication with the Unit
Coordinator and other students in the unit. You can post messages to a public forum, also known as a Topic. You
can view all messages posted to all topics, all new messages, or all your own posts.
Ensure you read "Before you start" and any messages in the topic "Messages from Coordinator".
Please remember to follow the rules for "netiquette" – what is appropriate to say publicly online when
posting discussion messages.
To view a Topic, click its hyperlinked title. From the Topic screen you can view and reply to messages,
as well as post new messages. To quickly see all messages posted to a topic, click Expand All. Messages can be
sorted by Subject, Author, Date or Unread messages.
Clicking on the All Topics will display all the messages for all topics.
To create a new posting, click Create Message.
To view a message, click its hyperlinked title.
To respond to a message, press Reply. The subject text box is already completed but you can change it if
you like. Enter a message. If you want to use the HTML Creator, select it and then enter text. When you are finished creating
your message, click Post.
You will use the Assignments Tool to view the assignment directions, submit your work, and review instructor feedback.
Assignments can be accessed in a number of different ways, depending on how your course is organized.
Your assignment may be linked directly from the Assignments Tool, as a link on the Home Page, from the Table
of Contents within a Learning Module or Action Menu of the Learning Module. A green star appears
next to 'Assignments' in Course Tools when there is a new assignment for you or an assignment has been returned
for you to resubmit.
The Inbox contains all your incomplete assignments. For each assignment, you see the assignment name, type (group
or individual), and due date.
To select an assignment, click on its title to show you any instructions of your assignment, along with the due
date and grading criteria. If it is a group assignment, you will also see the title of your group and a listing of the
members in your group.
An assignment, which has been graded and returned to you for further work, will be listed in the Inbox. The assignment
will have a description such as "Status: Individual in Progress (Attempt #2) (Due 31 May, 2007 12:00 PM)".
See Assignment submission for instructions on submitting assignments and accessing graded
assignments.
The Assessments Tool includes: graded quizzes, self-tests, and surveys. These will only be available if set up
by the Unit Coordinator.
From the Assessments main screen, click the title of the assessment. Here you see information about the assessment,
including start date and availability, duration and attempts allowed.
Click Begin Assessment. The question text, and answers boxes or options display in the left frame. The start time,
time allowed and the time remaining are displayed in the right frame. The status of the questions is also displayed. A
yellow circle underneath a question number means the answer has not been saved. Once you have entered your answer, click Save
Answer.
Once your answer has been saved, the yellow circle changes to a check mark. Continue answering the questions and saving
the answers until you have done the assessment. When you have answered all the questions, click Finish. Click OK to
confirm your submission.
If your instructor has allowed you to view results immediately, you will see a View Attempt button. Click the
button. When you have finished viewing your attempt, click Done.
You may go back later and view previous submissions of completed assessments.
Some of the other tools that could appear in the Course Menu of your unit are:
Course Tools
- Announcements posted by the Unit Coordinator.
- Calendar where the Unit Coordinator may post relevant dates and you can also post entries for your own use.
- Search – use this tool to locate data within the online unit.
- Learning Modules – used to present information such as Unit Information or the Learning Guide topics.
There may also be links to Learning Modules on the Home Page. Navigate through pages in the Learning Module by using the
arrows in the Action Menu on top right hand corner of the frame.
- Mail can be used to communicate with other users in the unit but it cannot be used to exchange messages
over the Internet.
- Media Library – glossaries or image/sound libraries may be available here and there may be sections
where students can add their own entries. Students cannot add third-party copyright material to the Media Library.
- Web Links – list of useful web sites.
My Tools
- My Files – your personal file space.
- My Grades – displays your marks for assessment items.
- My Progress – shows you which parts of the online unit you have accessed.
- Notes – can be used to make your own notes in the unit.
Links from Home Page
The following items may be linked from the Home Page of your unit:
- Lectopia – provides audio recordings of the lectures for your unit.
- Live Classroom – is a tool that can be used for "virtual classes with real-time voice".
Students and the lecturer can converse as in a face-to-face situation. Students can view content such as PowerPoint slides
and text can also be used for communication.
- Turnitin – can be used to check an electronic version of your written work for plagiarism. You will
receive a report showing text that needs to be reviewed.
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