Title: Get Ready! Earn an Explorer Badge
Course: Facilitating Learning Online - Design SEPT 2020 OER > Section: Pre-Course ORIENTATION

These are a series of tasks to encourage participants to explore the course site

Explore

It can take a little time to feel comfortable in new online learning environments.

We've opened the course site early so you can "dig in" and start "mucking about" to learn how to use some of the basic parts of the site.

If you complete the following challenges before the course starts, you can earn a fun Explorer badge that will display in your SCoPE profile. Even better, you should be more comfortable participating and developing your design project over the next four weeks.

Challenge #1

Visit Orientation Place, a forum located in the Pre-Course Orientation section. Post a new discussion topic thread with a joke or pun or funny short video. If someone has already posted, reply to their post.

Challenge #2

Find the course Schedule (Hint:  it is available on the page where we store things that are used throughout the course - not just during a particular week.)

Dig out the date of our first synchronous online meeting (the Welcome session) to be hosted in a web meeting tool (probably Zoom) that we use to share things online when we want to be able to hear and/or see each other. Record the date and time in your personal calendar or somewhere you can find it easily. Tip: if you check out your Dashboard (click on dropdown arrow beside your name, top right side of course page), you'll find a calendar you could use.

Challenge #3

Open the Course Handbook (Hint: find the Hub of the site!) and look for the page called Layout. Read the instructions for opening and closing the navigation panel. Try it - which view do you like best?

Challenge #4

Look for a list of people (participants) in the course.

Find the link to the profile of a FLO Facilitator and send a quick message using the Message button.

Challenge #5

Find the FAQs - Tech Tools (Frequently Asked Questions). Open the glossary and find the instructions "How do I add a photo to my profile?"

Follow the instructions and post an image to your profile. Ask for help in the Orientation Place forum if you get stuck.

Let us know if you are successful - tell us what else you'd like to know about the course environment by posting in the Open Forum in the Hub section. Looking forward to getting to know you all over the next weeks!