Building and Managing your Course Structure

Build your course structure by adding modules and placeholders to the canvas. Modules and placeholders are valuable during the initial stages of course planning, helping you plan your course before you create its content.

For example, if you haven't determined what your midterms and tests will be, you can drag quiz placeholders from the toolbox onto the course tree to plan where you might want to add them. You can add notes to module and placeholder descriptions about course content you intend to develop and learning objectives you want your students to achieve. You can also choose to add real content as you build your course by creating and adding objects to the course tree.

Note: The default name and notes supplied for each placeholder type are language terms.

Instructional designers can also leverage Course Builder's structure capabilities by building course outlines that promote instructional design best practices. These structures can be shared using Copy Course Components from one course to another for instructors to populate with appropriate content. When you copy components from another course, Course Builder captures their structure and content on the canvas. Course Builder also retains the hierarchy and associations between modules, placeholders, links, HTML files, discussions, dropboxes, quizzes, grade items and learning objectives.

  1. From the Build Structure section of the toolbox, do one of the following:
    1. Drag a module or placeholder onto the canvas in the location you want.
      Add a module demonstration
    2. Click on a module or placeholder element. From the Select a location pop-up window, click on the location you want to add your module or placeholder.
  2. Enter a Name and add Notes if you want.
  3. Set date restrictions, if applicable.
  4. Click Create.

  1. On the course tree, select the module or placeholder you want to edit.
  2. In the Selected Node Panel, click Edit Module or Edit Placeholder
    edit a module
  3. From the pop-up window, make the changes you want to its Name or Notes.
  4. Click Save.

You can copy modules and placeholders to another section in your course where you want similar structure. When you copy a module, its child modules and placeholders are also copied.

  1. Select the placeholder or structure you want to copy.
  2. In the module or placeholder's context menu, click Copy Structure or Copy Placeholder.
    Copy module
  3. In the context menu of the node or closest node to the location you want to insert your placeholder or structure, click Paste After, Paste Before, or Paste As Child.

  1. Click the Edit Course link on your course navigation bar, then click Import/Export/Copy Components.  
  2. Select Copy Components from Another Org Unit, and click Search for Offering
  3. Search for the course from which you'd like to copy a structure.
  4. Select the check box beside the components you want to copy and click Next. To copy only certain items from a component, choose Select individual items to copy. This allows you to select individual quizzes, discussions, dropbox folders, etc.
  5. Confirm your choices and click Next to begin copying.
  6. When the process is finished, click Done. When you open Course Builder, your copied structure and content should appear on the canvas.