An exciting (and extremely busy) start to the 2020/21 academic year!
In the last 4 months we have delivered over 130 training workshops, to 1000+ staff and 
2400+ students, with the E-Learning Unit (ELU) providing elearning induction sessions to students for the majority of schools.
We have also seen an increase of over 100% for Helpdesk tickets typical for this busy time of the year and an unprecedented volume of inquiries. We appreciate your patience as we try to clear the backlog and apologise for any delays in assisting you.
E-Learning and Mental Health: Tools, techniques and resources to help you and your students.
The large scale, rapid transition online over the past 7 months has been a challenge for a number of staff and as with any major change it is important to take time to focus on mental health – looking at ways in which we can help staff and students. The E-Learning Unit (ELU), Disability and Dyslexia Service (DDS) and other central teams can help you and your students with minimising/negating stress and anxiety through the services and resources which we offer. Please take time to read this article which has: a number of recommendations for those delivering teaching online, ways to identify students at risk, plus resources which you can direct them to.
The E-Learning Unit video channel 
What better way to utilise our media server, QMplus Media, than by having our own E-Learning Unit video channel! We’ve been busy creating a bank of bitesize video resources to guide you through the various learning technologies in use at QMUL and we’ll be adding more shortly. Do have an explore here & get in touch if your school is interested in having a channel of it’s own.
Get Started with QMplus Quizzes training as per your convenience and availability 
Quizzes can be used to promote engagement and identify prior knowledge and skills gaps for students. We regularly run online sessions on Quizzes but if these sessions do not match your schedule then we are launching a self-directed online course on ‘Get Started with QMplus Quizzes’ which has materials including video tutorials to help you create quizzes in no time! Self-enrol and get started here.
Staff development opportunities in September
E-Learning Workshops
Running Webinars with Blackboard Collaborate
- Monday 5th of October, 15:00-16:00
- Tuesday 13th of October, 14:00-15:00
- Wednesday 21st of October, 11:00-12:00
- Tuesday 27th of October, 11:00-12:00
- Thursday 15th of October, 14:00-15:00
- Tuesday 6th of October, 14:00-15:30
- Wednesday 21st of October, 14:00-15:30
Online grading and feedback with the QMplus assignment
- Monday 12th of October, 14:00-15:00
Online Assessment using QMplus Quizzes
- Thursday 8th of October, 11:00-12:00
- Wednesday 21st of October, 10:00-11:00
Please register attendance via the CPD website.
Drop-in Sessions and Book a Learning Technologist
Drop-in sessions are still being held online every Tuesday and Thursday from 1-2pm. There’s no need to tell us you’re coming; just drop-in via the Blackboard Collaborate webinar link on our E-Learning Online Support area on QMplus.
Due to the volume of work which we are fielding at the moment, we are having to pause scheduling more Book A Learning Technologist (BALT) sessions. We shall update via our website and the newsletter when we are able to resume these.
What are people asking the Helpdesk?
The top queries in September were related to: providing access to course areas in QMplus, attendance reporting in Blackboard Collaborate and how to ensure the best internet experience when delivering/attending synchronous teaching online. Read more in our common support questions article.
