Course Sections vs. Group Set
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All,
I am preparing a graduate level, online course with a larger enrollment (40+ students) and am considering options to split them into 2 sections/groups within the same course shell. Ideally, having all students in one shell seems to be most efficient in terms of course management/administration (eg, releasing announcements and making course updates), but having 40 students in an online course feels large and so I am exploring if there are options to make it a smaller course feel.
In the past, I've used the "group set" featured under "people" to break students into smaller groups for discussions. Designed this way, all students receive the same content and announcements (which is fine for this course), but are likely aware that there are more people in the course than they interact with in their discussion groups.
I am also aware of the "course sections" feature under "settings," but I'm not sure how this feature functions. How is using "course sections" different than "group set" and is one preferred in terms of course management/administration (eg, one makes things more efficient and streamlined)?
Thanks for any insight!
~Alison
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The bottom line is this: "groups" are for collaborative work while "sections" are for differentiated work. Think of "groups" as "teams."
I teach at a community college, but I often see K-12 students set up "sections" for their IEP students. The students in these sections don't see the other students in them, but the instructor can utilize "sections" in order to easily set up different dates or even assignments for these students.
In terms of your instruction, I imagine that you'll want to continue with "groups." If you want your students to see all 40 classmates, then enable "People" in your Course Settings. If you don't want them to see the entire roster, then disable "People" and continue using "groups" for discussions and other assignments.
