Navigation questions | Navigating inside a section

Navigation questions | Navigating inside a section

by Derek Chirnside -
Number of replies: 5

This is really a design/navigation questions.  In search of a nice workflow.

I’ve just finished working on three high stakes courses.  Each has around 7 topics. Each topic has around 5 tasks.  Plus a few other admin and assessment sections.

The final version of the navigation that I have used

SECTION TO SECTION NAVIGATION: Used Course Menu Plugin - https://moodle.org/plugins/view/block_course_menu

This gives nice section to section navigation, and does have chapter options in the menu as well.


Next, I wanted great Task-Task navigation inside each section.

TASK-TASK NAVIGATION INSIDE EACH SECTION: Used One label per section with tasks in Generio tabs.  (https://moodle.org/plugins/view/filter_generico – Generico)

This gives nice task-task navigation.  Part of the reason I wanted this was because many students do not do this work linearly.  and They can get sick of scrolling. and if I use a page resource, things loose their context.


SIDE COMMENTS

  • All group interaction in one forum in section zero.  ie task responses are there, social chit chat, ideas and other conversations.
  • All individual interaction (including some assignment submissions) in a forum with groups of one. 

PLUSES

  1. Great section to section navigation
  2. Great task to task navigation; i.e. simple tab to tab navigation

MINUSES

  • It is not possible to navigate via a link directly to a specific tab.  Lets say I want to refer to a task, I can't give one link to it.
  • Editing needs care. You use a mark-up to do tabs in HTML view.


  • You cannot deploy other items (like a forum) as easily in tabbed areas

Summary

This is NOT a workflow that a busy non-tekky tutor could use easily.  However, I've had great feedback on it, so I'm looking to see if I can improve this workflow.

I know the styling could do with help.  smile  Generico can clash with the theme as well.

I have loved the stream of consciousness layout of a task.  Intersperse comment, videos, links to documents.  No other option in core Moodle seems to do this, and still have some nice navigation.

I am enjoying drag and drop.  It is nearly all there now.  smile

QUESTION: Does anyone have suggestions of other options/plugins/formats to get inside section navigation?

Ideally a comprehensive workflow would have:

  • Built in, clear, section to section navigation (Course menu does this)
  • Built in subsection navigation (this I don’t know of apart from the tab option).
  • Direct Link to sub-sections
  • Functionality NOT requiring mark-up   

Thanks

-Derek
And yes, I do know I have written on this in the past, but I could not locate the post.


Average of ratings: Useful (2)
In reply to Derek Chirnside

Re: Navigation questions | Navigating inside a section

by Colin Fraser -
Picture of Documentation writers Picture of Testers

Wow... what an achievement. I  would think that there would be very few who could improve on this Derek. I would... OMG Martin is dancing to Glenn Miller!!! But what a great approach, something that could be made better only by  developing a section plug-in I would think.  Sorry  that I  cannot  help beyond  encouraging you. Excellent work.

i am at Moodlemootau 2015 right now btw.....

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In reply to Colin Fraser

Re: Navigation questions | Navigating inside a section

by Derek Chirnside -

OK.

See if you can find an expert there and show them my post to see what they have to say.

What's the best thing you have found out at the Moot??

Glen Miller?  The mind boggles.  Glen Miller, "In the Moodle" I presume.


-Derek

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In reply to Derek Chirnside

Re: Navigation questions | Navigating inside a section

by Colin Fraser -
Picture of Documentation writers Picture of Testers
As a matter of fact you're right! surprisebig grin 
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In reply to Derek Chirnside

Re: Navigation questions | Navigating inside a section

by Gareth J Barnard -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers

Interesting idea Derek.

I can visualise a potential solution built into a theme / course format where the section is analysed for indentation.  Thus in either the 'one section per page' or 'many sections on one page' type course settings that the labels would be set at level 0 as they are now to form the task labels, then the 'resources / activities' being underneath would be indented by one indicating that they are for the task above.  Then from the user's point of view, then just use standard Moodle UI and no other faff.  However, this I anticipate is a four figure development time sum.

G

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In reply to Gareth J Barnard

Re: Navigation questions | Navigating inside a section

by Derek Chirnside -

Gareth, thanks for this comment.  I presume the four figure is British Pounds and not Drachma or Rupees.

I'm undecided how interested the average Moodle user is in this.  I'm aware that I posted this just as there was a Moodle Moot, a MOOC and a version update on the cards.  I've been asked to set up a publicly available course which I'll do next week.

  1. At the absolute basics I'm assuming there is NO way to link to individual tabs.
  2. I am curious if there are other themes or formats that have some of this in them.

More sometime.

-Derek



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