Course Organization

This article outlines how you can navigate the course management dashboard for a course in the building stage, as well as after it has been reviewed and published.

Navigating the Course Management Dashboard for Courses in the Creation Process

The course management dashboard acts as a step-by-step guide, which walks you through the course creation and publishing process. Tips and information are posted on each page so you have the right information for each stage. As you complete and save each section, you’ll see those items checked off on the left hand side.

Once you have completed each section and course requirement, you will be able to submit your course for review. 

Navigating the Course Management Dashboard of Published Courses

Once your course has been published you can manage the course via the course management dashboard. To see how the course management dashboard is organized for published courses, and what sections are located where, please refer to the table below.

We’ve outlined the navigation options and the features available in each. For additional information regarding each subsection, please click on the subsection title, and you will be directed to a relevant support article.

If you have any other questions regarding the course management dashboard, please contact our support team.

Creating a well-written, optimized course description is one of the most important tools for converting new students into your course.

Adding a Course Description

1. Navigate to the course page (steps on how to can be viewed here).
2. On the left-hand-side, select Course Landing Page
3. Write a course description (follow these writing guidelines) to increase your conversion
4. Scroll to the top of the page and click Save

Maintaining an updated course is an important part of teaching online. Sometimes, a single lecture needs to be updated, but the lecture details can stay the same. Instead of deleting a whole lecture only to create a new one, the lecture content can be replaced.

Uploading New Content to an Existing Lecture

Updated content must match the existing lecture type. In other words, if the lecture was originally a video lecture, the new content must also be video. If you would like to create new lecture type, delete the lecture and create a new one.

To update the content of an existing lecture, please follow the steps below:

1. On the left side of the Course Management page, click Curriculum

2. Scroll to the lecture that you wish to edit

3. Click the black dropdown arrow on the right to view the lecture details

4. Click Edit Content 

4. Select the new content

5. The content will finish processing automatically

When you create your course, the descriptions you add in the Target Student page, will help students determine if the course is right for them. In addition, the information you provide can be an effective way to capture a student's interest, and is critical for creating a rewarding student experience.

On the Target Student page, you will be asked the following questions:

• What knowledge & tools are required?
• Who should take this course?
• What will students achieve or be able to do after taking your course?

How to Add Answers

To add answers to the questions above, on the Target Student page, please follow the steps below:

• Navigate to the course page (steps on how to can be viewed here).
• On the left-hand side of the page, click Target Student.
• Enter the necessary information.
• If required, click Add an Answer and a new line will appear.
• When you're finished adding answers to each question, click Save.

Moving an Answer

If you need to move an answer, after you've created it, simply click on the triple bar icon on the right-hand side, and drag the goal into a new position.

Please note that the answer can only be moved within the section of the question it was originally created for.

Deleting an Answer

If you need to delete a course goal you've entered, please follow these steps:

• Navigate to the Target Student page.
• Move your cursor to the right of the answer you wish to delete.
• Click the trash bin icon that appears.

Viewing Answers on the Landing Page

Once you've added your answers on the Target Student page, they will appear in the details of the course landing page. Interested students will be able to review the information before enrolling in your course. 

For more information on how to effectively target students, please refer to this article here.

Adding resources improves the value of your course. Resources must be free, related to your lecture topic, and in no way promotional.

Types of Resources

Downloadable Resources

These resources can be any filetype like .JPG, .PDF, .ZIP, .XLS, .MOV, .MP3, etc. Unfortunately, source code like .HTML, .JS, etc., cannot be uploaded directly, but these files can be uploaded in a .ZIP file. The maximum upload size for any individual file is 1 GB, but there is not a limit to the number of files you can upload. Files can be uploaded to your course directly, or added from your library using the Bulk File Uploader. 

External Resources

Theses resources are hyperlinks to free websites.

Source Code

For development courses, only Python and Ruby files can be uploaded at this time. 

Adding Resources to a Lecture

In order to add a resource to a lecture, you will need to create the lecture first, and add content to it. For information on how to do this, please click here. Once you're ready to add resources, then follow these steps:

1) Navigate to the course curriculum page

2) Click the dropdown arrow on the right hand side of the lecture

3) Click Add Resources

4) Select whether the resource is a Downloadable File, a Source Code or if it's being added from your library. Then, click Select File. If you're adding an External Resource, then enter the resource's title and URL.

If you want to upload multiple resources, upload a .ZIP file for your students to download. 

As an instructor, you may wish to preview your course so that you can see how published lectures and resources will appear to your students. Or, you may need to download videos or resources that you’ve added to your course.

This article outlines how you can do so by previewing your course as a student, or in an instructor’s capacity.

Preview Your Course as a Student

By previewing your course as a student you can see what students will see as they progress through your course. Please note that since students cannot access unpublished lectures, only published lectures are visible when you preview your course as a student.

To preview your course as a student follow the steps below:

1. Navigate to the course management page (more information can be viewed here).
2. On the left-hand side of the page click Curriculum.
3. Click the arrow icon on the lecture you wish to preview, and then select as a Student from the Preview menu.
4. You will be directed to that lecture in the course player, and you can also navigate through the course lectures and materials. Please note: The URL in the address bar is a temporary URL, and not the public course URL.

Preview Your Course as an Instructor

By previewing a course as an instructor, you can preview unpublished lectures (as well as published lectures) to see how they will appear to students. To preview your course as an instructor, please follow the steps below:

1. After navigating to the course, click Curriculum on the left-hand side.
2. Click on Preview at the top right of the page and then Course Content on the course dashboard.
3. Select the lecture you wish to review.

You can also preview a course as an instructor by following the steps to preview the course as a student, but select as Instructor instead.

How to Download Your Content

By previewing your course as an Instructor you download all the content for your course, including the course videos, regardless of whether you’ve enabled them for download by students.

To download your course content, please follow the steps below:

1. Preview your course as an Instructor by following the steps outlined above.
2. Click the gear icon at the bottom of the right of the course player to access the Download lecture option.

To download other resources you've added to the course, click on the resource folder icons that appear in the course player. 

Lectures can be edited and deleted at any time. Please remember, however, that students have lifetime access to courses. As a result, lectures should not be deleted, unless they're replaced with new and improved content.

How to Delete a Lecture

If you need to delete a lecture from your course, please follow the steps below:

1. On the Curriculum page, hover your cursor to the right of the lecture title 

2. A trashcan icon will appear to the right

3. Click the trashcan

4. Confirm that you wish to continue with deleting the lecture

Please note that the lecture and its content cannot be restored once the lecture has been deleted.

For steps on how to edit and update an existing lecture, please refer to our Updating Content for an Existing Lecture article.