Instructional Design
ANGEL FAQs
Why can’t edit my text in the HTML editor?
Why do I get a “token” error when I try to edit the settings for content - I can’t edit my content.
Why do I have new student discussion posts in my What’s New tab under the subheading Submissions?
Why can’t my students access their reading from the library links I provided?
Where is my Learning Object Repository (LOR)?
Where did the grades I completed for the discussion forum go?
Should I use the Tasks pane option?
Can I forward my ANGEL Course Mail to a different email address?
Why don’t my pages look the same as they did in Lotus Notes?
Why can’t my students post to the discussion, they get a “you don’t have permission” message?
I usually lecture to the class and they take notes, so now what do I do?
Can I have an icon like the Ask A Professor for each mini-lecture?
Can a student make a survey (as part of assignment)?
How can I make quiz questions that are bonus points?
What is the difference between IM, Live Chat, and Live Office Hours?
Why can’t I edit my text in the HTML editor? To edit your text you must first type any character, then backspace to delete it. You will then be able to edit. (This quirk is fixed in the next version of ANGEL).
Why do I get a “token” error when I try to edit the settings for content - I can’t edit my content? If you are using Teams in your course, go to the Manage tab. Click on Teams. Review your list of teams for any teams without a team name. It can be hard to spot; look for a team that has a double row of team information. If you have an unnamed team, click on settings for it. Create a name for the team.
Why do I have new student discussion posts in my What’s New tab under the subheading Submissions? When you grade a student discussion post, ANGEL logs this as a submission and displays it in the What’s New tab as a (grade) Submission. The timestamp is the date/time when you graded the item.
Why can’t my students access their reading from the library links I provided? First check that your links have been updated as follows:
All URLs from the library linking to documents MUST be prefaced with the new ez proxy code: https://ezproxy.sunyit.edu/login?url= (FOLLOWED BY DATABASE URL).
Example: https://ezproxy.sunyit.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=79596604&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=12687&RQT=309&VName=PQD
Second, check the browser settings as described below:
The browser (Firefox or IE) needs to be set to accept cookies.
For IE:
Students should select these menu options in this sequence to arrive at options for allowing cookies from "suny.edu" domain.
- Tools
- Internet options
- Privacy
- Advanced
In the Advanced Privacy Settings window, set the options as follows:
- Check Override automatic cookie handling
- Click Accept for First Party Cookies
- Click Prompt for Third Party Cookies
- Check Always allow session cookies
For Firefox:
- Tools
- Options
- Privacy
- Cookies (dialog, not a tab)
- Click on Exceptions button
- Add "suny.edu"
- Click Allow
- Click OK at bottom
Where is my Learning Object Repository (LOR)? To access your LORs for the first time and display it on your home page, click on the LOR button on the toolbar (Power Strip) on the left side. (the icon looks like a folder).
Where did the grades I completed for the discussion forum go? ANGEL provides a two-step process for reviewing and grading the discussion forums. As you read each post, you may rate the post using the Rating box in the lower left corner. These ratings facilitate moving through the discussion quickly. When you are ready to create a grade, you can review the ratings to establish the grade without having to reread every post. To grade the discussion: click on Utilities. Select Grade Forum. Complete the blank grade box and write comments as needed. Scroll to the bottom of this page and select Submit. Submit will send the grades (not the ratings) to the gradebook.
Should I use the Tasks pane option? Some content items let you check a box to display the item in your Tasks pane on the left side. For example, if you check this option for a discussion forum, all new posts will display in the Tasks pane. BUT, there is evidence that this slows the system. SLN recommends not using this option.
Can I forward my ANGEL Course Mail to a different email address? Yes, you can, but this option is disabled for students to ensure the integrity of the course content and allow tracking of student communication.
Why don’t my pages look the same as they did in Lotus Notes? If you converted your course from Lotus Notes some content will not look “pretty” in ANGEL. Lotus Notes uses a proprietary formatting for tables. Many of you used these tables to improve your course content’s appearance. This takes a little bit of work to fix once the document is in ANGEL.
Why can’t my students post to the discussion, they get a “you don’t have permission” message? If you set your discussion forum as “Required Post” (use the content Wizard to do this), students cannot read/view the discussion board until they post an initial response to the question. To post, the students must click on “New Post” in the upper right corner.
What do I do with students whose postings are filled with errors (grammar, lack of citations, spelling)? This is a personal decision for faculty. Many choose to state writing expectations in the course content documents. Developing a grading rubric is very valuable and helps students improve their writing.
I usually lecture to the class and they take notes, so now what do I do? Online teaching necessitates a shift in your teaching strategies.
How can I track/ensure that students make the initial post to a discussion within a specified timeframe (will it show in tasks)?
Can I have an icon like the Ask A Professor for each mini-lecture? It is possible, but requires customization.
Can a student make a survey (as part of assignment)? No.
How can I have all my assignments in 1 category weighted equally, but still allow each to be worth different points (Assignment 1 40 pts., Assignment 2 75 pts. But weighted the same)?
How can I make quiz questions that are bonus points? Use the formula….
Can you prepopulate an assignment with 0 points to make the course average more accurate view of course standing? Yes, but you should remind students that this reflects their work "to date" + "work yet to be completed". It will of course suggest to students that their course standing is quite low.
What is the difference between IM, Live Chat, and Live Office Hours?
IM, Instant Messaging, allows you to chat via text online one-to-one with a student.
Live Chat enables a chat room type environment. Any of your students can join the online text conversation.
Live Office Hours provides a one-to-one chat session via text, various tools such as whiteboard, desktop sharing, operates during specific timeframe, and queues students who want to meet with professor.
Why can’t my students see the discussion posts they submitted? Check the Discussion Forum Settings on the Content tab. The Moderation option should be disabled.
How can a student make multiple submissions to a dropbox (ex. revisions)? Set the number of submissions possible to more than one on the Submission tab under Settings.
How can an entire team review a dropbox assignment and receive grades?
How can faculty automate the export process?
How can I waive an assignment for a student?
Can I open fully functioning MS Office documents in ANGEL? Students can view MS Office documents in ANGEL, but these must be opened in the appropriate program to edit them. Google Docs might work better in these instances.
What is the difference between Categories and Assignments in the Gradebook? Categories organize the types of content/interaction within the course (i.e. Homework, Tests). Assignments are the individual tasks students must complete (i.e. Test #1, Writing Assignment #5). You can assign an overall weight to the category with a percentage, and then differentiate the value of the assignments within each category with points on each different assignment.
When students email me, can I send a standard, auto reply stating my communication schedule/policy?
When creating a link for a document or website, what is the Target option? The Target setting determines which window or tab will open with the requested document or website.
Same Window: Content will open and display within your course. The left-hand and top navigation panels will be visible still.
New Window: Content will open in a new browser window and the course will remain open.
Parent Window: Content force the browser to the new link and the course page will be closed.
Top Window: Parent Window: Content force the browser to the new link and the course page will be closed.
Which file extensions are okay to upload? In general you can upload .doc, .rtf, .gif, .jpg, .xls,
If I don’t use the gradebook, can I still manually type grades into the assignment dropbox grade sheet (and can student see this)? Yes, you can still type in the grades in the gradesheet under the dropbox's Utilities menu. However, students will ONLY see the score if they click on the dropbox. Using the Reports option will NOT work. In addition, unless you setup the Gradebook, they will only see the score or grade you type in.
What do the different access categories mean?
Everyoneallows the content item to be accessed by anyone on the World Wide Web regardless of whether they are affiliated with your institution and regardless of whether they have a valid account on the ANGEL system.
Authenticated Guest allows any authenticated ANGEL user to access the content item. This includes both users who are on the course roster and those who are not.
Students restricts access to the content item only to those users on the course roster who have course rights of student or higher.
Team Leaders restricts access to the content item only to those users on the course roster who have course rights of team leader or higher.
Course Mentors restricts access to the content item only to those users on the course roster who have course rights of course mentor or higher.
Course Assistants restricts access to the content item only to those on the course roster who have course rights of course assistants or higher.
Course Editors restricts access to the content item only to those users on the course roster who have course rights of course editor.
How do I cancel Live Office Hours?
How can I add keywords to my quiz pool questions?
What, if any, are my file size limits?
How can students/faculty upload streaming media? This is not available right now. You might consider YouTube with the privacy settings or Screencast.com.
How can I add a news feature (RSS feed)?
What is the best practice (way to manage class)? Use the Tasks option in the Course Guide. Click the little gray, oval button above the round icons on the left to open the guide. Select the Tasks option from the list at the bottom. All unread mail, posts, and homework will be listed and you can jump to any item by clicking on it.