How to restore and backup a course on your ELearning?

I attended a sharing session today. I waited more than an hour to know about how to restore and back up a course on ELearning which was explained in less than 5 minutes. So, I googled up if I can find anything from the internet.

I found a video by UTMLEAD. (Duh… I should know better, right? Just google it!)

One of the facilitators also did a video about backup and restore but once I get the video, I will upload it later here or make another post.

There is also a step-by-step poster by UTMLEAD on your ELearning (but sometimes, we might overlook it, need to scroll down a bit the main page to find it). But as a reminder to myself, I put it here.

backup

E-Content UTM 2021

I just had a session with Dr Nurbiha about e-content. There is a difference of marking this year for video that you create and upload on Youtube (as an example of platform where you share your material) which you can get 2 marks for that. Make sure you make it “Public”.

Well, honestly I do not know what I got last year but this year, since we are only allowed to upload 5 e-content materials, so I will upload within that limit.

What are the things that I plan to upload this year? I plan to upload these 4 materials.

  1. Gamification (one of my Quizziz questions – I used for last semester’s class).
  • Just make sure that if you want to claim any Quizziz (category: Gamification), the questions that you have in one set of quiz must be at least contains 10 questions (which equivalent to 10 marks if it is one mark for each question or 5 marks if each question is equivalent to 0.5 marks). If you have 3 questions, it might not be enough. Logically, normally the quiz that we give to students might be at least 5 marks or 10 marks. It is quite rare to give students 3 marks for a quiz (unless you give 5 mini quizzes in which each carries 3 marks and only have 3 questions per quiz – but it does not sound like a normal practice, isn’t it?)

2. Video based learning (one of my Youtube videos). Any video that you create and share publicly is 2 marks.

3. Collaborative tool (my Padlet page for MPPU1024 class that I taught with my colleague).

  • For Padlet, to get better marks, make sure you have a class note (you create your own – like a PowerPoint note) and post several questions that your students can answer and generate discussion. Better yet, give a specific instruction for students to give their opinions based on other’s response/answer. You can discuss the answer through synchronous session or students can read other’s opinion asynchronously. In this way, students would interact with the materials (class note plus questions) that you put in a Padlet page and by answering the questions that you post, students have to answer the questions (this is interactive) and when you give a specific instruction to students to give opinion to other’s answer/ response, indirectly you prompt students to interact with each other.
  • Example of instruction that I give to students (pssst… you can copy paste the instruction too for your class). This is the instruction that I gave to students using Padlet.

a) Read your class note (note: make sure it is your class note that you create)
b) Answer the questions based on the given scenarios.
c) If you agree or disagree with your friend’s answer, give your own justification.  Write in the comment box.  You can either remain anonymous if you wish or can write your name.  

  • So, how many marks that I can get for this? Well, I am not the evaluator so I do not know in definite but I can assure you, it will not be 1 mark (tongue in cheek remark!).

4. Communication tool (one of my Prezi notes – just receptive, not interactive even though there was an activity that I posted within the note). This is a recycle from last semester but I added few more slides for more extra information. I was told that you can recycle the same materials provided you add new information, pictures etc. on the latest version. I am testing it this year by recycling old notes which I added new information and changed the background and layout.

There you go. Only 4 materials that I will upload this year. If I get 5 bonus marks for all four materials that I uploaded, I will share with all of you next year, In sha Allah.

Senarai semak sesi segerak

Ada orang beri cadangan untuk letak senarai semak (checklist) untuk sesi segerak (synchronous session). Senarai semak ini digunakan setiap kali sesi segerak sebagai ingatan kepada semua yang hadir. Kalau dalam kelas, sebagai sesi induksi – sebelum memulakan sesi pengajaran dan pembelajaran.

Dulu aku tidak pernah terfikir pun nak buat poster macam ni. Tapi bila dapat tips dari Cikgu Sam yang hebat, aku cuba untuk ikut apa yang diamalkan. Cikgu Sam pun ada pesan untuk tiru apa yang dianggap amalan yang baik. Jadi aku cuba la untuk buat juga. Walaupun aku mengajar di universiti, tak semestinya apa yang cikgu-cikgu guna tak boleh diamalkan dalam pengajaran aku juga kan? Learning happens when we teach. Indeed.

COVID-19: 2nd dose of vaccine

Unlike the first dose, I experienced more severe effect. I got my second vaccine on 30 August 2021 (Friday) around 1130am. I didn’t feel any immediate effects few hours after that. My body was aching all over after maghrib. It was getting worst around midnight. I had fever. I had taken Panadol before I went to sleep. But it didn’t help much to curb the feverish feeling that I experienced around midnight and early morning.

So, I ended up having trouble to sleep on the first night that I got vaccinated. The next day (Saturday) after Subuh prayer, I felt worst. My body aching did not go away. My body was aching when I was lying on my bed and it didn’t go away when I tried to sit. I felt light-headed when I was walking.

There was a session at 2pm (Saturday 20 August 2021) that I wanted to attend. I just could not miss this session. I ended up lying on my bed with my laptop on my stomach to attend the session and write a note using this blog.

I decided to take a leave on Sunday (21 August 2021). Even though there was a panel meeting on Sunday, I decided to skip it. I just needed a rest. I just ignore whatever messages that came in that day. But somebody called and asked me about something which is needed for auditing purposes even though the course is not audited yet (it is just offered last two semesters – a new course). I felt much better after Asar so I tried to prepare the needed document. Just do it for once and for all as I have deadlines for other that I need to do.

Based on my experience dealing with the side effects of vaccination, it gives me a time to think about my life as I was lying down on my bed, looking at the ceiling – doing nothing. All of this while, I realise that I take things for granted. Small things matter and I should not ignore when my body starts to show certain symptoms. I should not be guilty to take a rest or take a break. I deserve it. Indeed.

Getting 5 marks for e-content materials

It is a bit cliché to say that “Just do your best to create teaching materials for your class”. Well, everybody aims that but the real thing is, how far we are engaging students in learning process with the materials that we give or with the instruction that we give?

I never get full marks. That is the fact. But I never aim to get full marks when I create or craft my teaching materials for my students. It is just that when people ask me about “how to get 5 marks” for ELPPT bonus, I feel sad because I could not help them much in this thing.

But nevertheless, even though it is stated that the materials should be interactive yada yada yada, I do not know what it means. I am a bit slow in this but for this semester, one of the experiments that I do to improve my teaching is to use Padlet as a platform for students to showcase their presentation as well as discuss about the topic of presentation using asynchronous mode since some of them have to share devices and there are many of them have internet accessibility issues.

This is the example from one of my classes – CLICK. This is not considered as e-content.

Why does it not being considered as e-content?

ONE: Padlet is only used as a platform to collect and share students’ assignment. There is no interaction UNLESS we give an EXTRA instruction in which they have to give feedback on each assignment which is showcased in the Padlet. I did not do that. So, it is not considered as e-content.

TWO: The instruction given is too generic. You have to be more detail in giving the instruction. How to do this? First, think about “What is the thing that you want to accomplish – Is it students’ interaction? Is it just sharing information? Second, use simple, compact and concise wording. This is the most challenging part, for me personally. I am struggling with this. What I normally do is, I will brainstorm with another colleague how to rephrase the instruction. Sometimes, to have another person to brainstorm ideas is better than doing it alone. I am blessed to have such colleagues around me even though there are just a handful of them. Well, they are the best. It is most important. Quality. Not quantity.

E-content: Why is it confusing?

*sigh* There is amendment (betterment??) for the e-content.

Previously, I was told that Padlet which is interactive/active can get 3 marks. But, now, it is 2 marks. What the _________ (fill in the blank of your preferred word).

The rules of the game has changed this year (2021). To whom it will benefit? How does it use to assess me as an instructor? Does it mean that if I able to produce materials whatever that I use in my class, I am a good instructor? What if I am so fed-up with this game and decide that I just could not be bothered by it anymore and do not upload any materials even though I have it, in this case, am I no longer considered as a good instructor?

I will stop asking existential questions. I rest my case.