Proposals/Plans

The plans functionality in Mahara is going to be expanded quite a lot thanks to a contribution from the University of Bremen in Germany. The developer is Alexander Del Ponte, with pedagogical input from Prof. Dr. Karsten Wolf.

Summary

ArtefactType Plan

Plans are now available as private (as before) and group plans. So we have "private" plans which can be reached through the main menu, and we have group plans, which can be reached via the tab "Plans" when viewing a group.

Plan templates

Private plans can be created also as "template plans". This is a functionality for potential group admins (teachers). In their private area they create a plan with selectable tasks as a template plan and later as a group admin they have the possibility to create a group plan just by importing this template plan into the group. Once imported the group itself is the owner of the plan (cause it's a plan created in the context of this group), and it is completely independent from its "parent" template plan. The latter can be edited, deleted or extended while not affecting any group plans based on it.

Of course also the new group plans can be edited, extended or deleted while not affecting their parent plans.

The template plan sits in the private plans area so that it can be used across multiple groups. For example, a teacher could create a template that they then import into 5 different groups as basis and only make minor adjustments. That way, a "master" copy of the plan can be kept by the teacher and they can place copies into several groups that can then be adjusted.

There are no template plans in groups because both normal and assignment plans can be created directly within them.

Group plans

Inside a group, plans can be created (or imported from a private template of the creator as mentioned above) as "normal" plans or as "assignment plans".

A "normal" group plan works like a private plan as we are used to it from previous Mahara versions.

Selection plans

An assignment plan can only be set up as a template in a personal account and then imported into a group or set up in a group.

The following conditions must be met in the group settings:

• Content - Create and edit: Everyone except ordinary members (or Admins only)
• Allow submissions: Yes

If you set a start or end date in the "Editability" section in the group, these dates will be used as default start and completion dates for any plans imported from a template.

Selection plans provide the following functionality:

• Group admins and tutors can edit any plans in the groups.
• Normal group members see the plan and its tasks in a read-only view and can select every task by clicking the switch next to it. Once a task has been selected, the plan with only those tasks is added to their personal plans area and any associated portfolios are added to the personal portfolio area as well. These portfolios are only visible once the button for them has been clicked in a plan.
• The "task portfolio", i.e. the portfolio containing the assignment instructions, is not copied into the private portfolio area but stays in the group area allowing a teacher to make changes to it at any point in time.
• Once chosen, the normal group members (students) can view the assigned task page (with more detailed and deeper informations and additional material referring to the task), edit their assigned outcome portfolio and submit this outcome portfolio into the group - all from one single point: The task.
• As they now also have a copy of the plan and their chosen tasks in their private area, students have the possibility to set their inherited plans and tasks settings individually, e.g. a reminder of 14 days before the completion date was set as default in the group task, but if the student wants to be reminded earlier, they can change this setting in their private area because this is their own private plan with their own assigned outcome portfolio after choosing a task from an assignment plan.

When a students submits the portfolio from the actual portfolio page, only the group is displayed in which the task was given to prevent accidental submission to the wrong group.

Benefits of the assignment plans

Students

Assignment plans make it much easier for students to handle plans, associated tasks and referenced portfolios.

Students choose the task or tasks in the group in the group and and get any template portfolio copied automatically into their account if a template portfolio was set up. The plan is also created automatically with just the tasks that they need.

Students can manage their engagement with their assignment portfolios directly from their personal plans area.

When students set reminders, they are notified the specified time period before the completion date to complete their tasks.

Teachers

Teachers can ensure that students have easy and quick access to the assignment tasks as well as any related portfolio template that helps them complete the assignment.

They also make it easier for the students to know that they are submitting their portfolio to the correct group.

Teachers can update tasks without needing to ask students to copy the task portfolio again into their area or only provide a link to it. Instead they can update the task portfolio centrally allowing students access to the most up to date information.

By creating templates, teachers can set up master copies of plans that they can reuse in multiple specific groups and only need to make minor changes.

Fields of the ArtefactType Plan

Template (Only available on the creation of a new private plan)

If set, this plan and its tasks are and will ever be (for much more easier technical handling) a template for importing into groups.

Assignment plan

These are only available when creating a template or when setting up a plan in a group.

If set, a group plan is an assignment plan, which means that normal group members will have the possibility to select tasks they want (or have to ;-)) do.

ArtefactType Task

Tasks are extended with some more fields.

Startdate

Currently only an information field, which doesn't trigger actions. These can be added at a later stage.

If implemented, a group task will only be available and possible assigned group views and collections only visible to the students if the startdate is reached.

With this functionality a teacher can set up group plans and assigned portfolios "in the background" while a group already is started and visited by students without having the normal group members seeing his efforts to design cool and interesting portfolios assigned to the respective tasks... ;-)

Also if there are several time points for the submission of portfolios referring to different tasks, the students aren't possibly confused by seeing a large list of tasks from the beginning of the course (group).

Reminder

If set, the student receives a reminder notification related to the set reminder time period in relation to the completion date.

Taskview (page)

Here the teacher can assign a page to the task in which the task can be described more detailed and some material could be provided.

Outcome (page or collection)

Here the student or teacher can assign a porfolio to a task. The biggest advantage of this feature is the assignment of an outcome portfolio to an assignment task. The student (normal group member) can choose the task (and make a private copy of the outcome portfolio), edit the portfolio (which also can be reached from the group plans) and submit his final outcome to the group without having to create a portfolio and on submission the user can be sure, that it's submitted into the right group.

So the student has a central "cockpit" to work on tasks which are provided from a teacher inside a group - The Plans tab, from which they can 1. Have a closer look at a possible detailed task view 2. Edit their portfolio for every task 3. Submit their portfolio assigned to the task

Of course, they will find all the tasks also in their private plans area.

Workflows

The workflow for the teacher depends on which functionality they want to benefit from. If a teacher doesn't want to use the template functionality, they can start with step 3 and creates the plans, tasks and assigned portfolios directly in the group. They also don't need to assign whether a task view nor an outcome portfolio to the tasks if they want their students to do the latter by themselves. (Of course students can also assign or replace a portfolio as outcome by themselves to a private plan and it's tasks "inherited" from a group selection plan.)

Teacher

1. Create a plan template and tasks in their private area
2. Create pages with detailed information and assign them to the corresponding task
3. Go to a desired group in which they have the role "admin" or "tutor" and the group should have the settings mentioned above under "important" (Content - Create and edit: Everyone except ordinary members, Allow submissions: Yes)
4. In the Plans tab click "create new plan", then "from template" in the edit window
5. Make sure that the selection plan option is set and save.

Student

1. Visit the group and the plans tab
2. View the desired plan and select desired tasks (eventually after previewing the assigned detailed task view)
3. Visit all outcome portfolios (which ate after choosing the task his private ones) by clicking the related button located at the respective tasks
4. Submit the outcomes by clicking the related button located at the respective tasks

Future:

Teacher

Use the functionality of the new submissions plugin, which will be described later but is relatively self explaining.