This is a presentation given by myself at ALT-C 2012 which talks about the development of a tool to enhance online teaching materials.

1. The development of a tool
to enhance online
teaching materials
Acronyms to watch out for...
MOPE (My Online Page Editor)
MOLE (My Online Learning Environment,
aka Bb Learn) By Luke Miller
VLE (Virtual Learning Environment)
DL (Distance Learning) ScHARR
UoS (University of Sheffield) (School of Health and Related Research)

2. Background
• Current state of affairs!
• Higher Education Institutions turning to online learning ( + border
agency rules)
• Students wanting to learn more flexibly
• ScHARR developing 3 new online programmes:
• IHTAPR (International Health Technology Assessment, Pricing and
Reimbursement)
• Masters of Public Health (Distance Learning)
• MSc in Advanced Emergency Care
• Largely based on face-to-face modules
• Hence, lots of content to convert to online
• Developed with ‘competitive’ timescale
• A solution was needed!

3. Approach
• My Online Page Editor (MOPE) was born
• Why MOPE? – we like acronyms (MUSE, MOLE etc.)
• Model of a Learning Technologist putting all content in our VLE was not
favoured:
• A bottleneck
• Staff should be trained / self-sufficient
• MOPE developed organically working with academic staff
• What is it?
• Content page builder with a pedagogical focus
• Easy to use – allows staff to build pages of content based on page ‘elements’
• Spits out disposable HTML code which can be pasted into the UoS’s VLE as pages in a
Learning Module
• Pages can be previewed
• Also pages can be saved to your computer

4. Approach
• MOPE written in-house, by me, over period of 16 months, using Visual
Studio
• Links to style sheets (.css files) stored centrally in VLE’s Content Collection
•Runs on any PC connected to shared network drive – not on Macs  (yet)

5. Results
What can MOPE pages include?
• Text
• Images (attributed)
• Videos / screencasts *
• Weblinks
• Glossary terms
• References
• Approximate study time
• Tables
• Quotation boxes
• MCQs *
• Reveal boxes *
• Tasks / activities *
• “Tutor says...” boxes *
• Etc.

6. Results
And what do MOPE pages look like?
Here is an example. This one
includes:
• Suggested study time
• Friendly video welcome from
tutor
• Defined session objectives
• Introduction
• A ‘tutor says’ box prompting
self-reflection

7. Results
What is so special about MOPE?
• Pedagogical merits (3 elements)
• Activity boxes, tutor says & reveal boxes

8. Conclusion
Staff evaluation: Student Evaluation:
• 14 staff ‘trained’ to use MOPE • What students think? What did
• Includes academic, administrative they ‘like about the modules’?
and 2 Learning Technologists
“The availability of the content and
method of delivery was excellent, a
“most staff are able to use MOPE good mix of approaches and easy to
because it is so intuitive and use/read”
straightforward.”
"Information was presented in a very
“the MOPE tool has proved essential. logical and clear format”
Any member of staff can quickly
and easily create highly functional “I really enjoyed the course, the content
pages with clearly-defined, was excellent, the instructions were
interactive content” really clear, and the teaching was
fantastic”

9. Conclusion
The future of MOPE
• Growing organically (based on student, staff feedback)
• Where I’m wanting to take it (educating staff more esp creative commons)
• Expanding into other departments / schools
• An online version is being developed
• Can use from anywhere, any browser across any platform
• Support website under redesign – launches in Jan 2013
Does anybody want to have a trial?
If so, express an interest via:
http:/tinyurl.com/
/ usemope