Course Setup FAQs

Reusing Courses

• Can you copy the content from one semester/section to another for me?

  With over 3000 courses each semester, we don’t have the manpower to do this for Instructors.  But  there are instructions you can use in the Faculty Guides>Course Setup section.  Use the Import process for courses from AY 16/17 up to and including last semester.  For earlier courses, use the Backup and Restore procedure.  You are also welcome to come to the Technology Resource Center in KEL 2414 and one of CC support people will walk you through the process.

• Can you copy the content from another instructor's course into mine?

  Due to FIRPA restrictions  Instructors can't add other Instructors to their courses.  So, if another instructor wants to share their course content with you, they can do this by creating a backup file of the course, downloading it and sharing the file with you. You can restore this file into your course. See the Faculty Guides>course Setup>backup and restore for step by step instructions. 

• Where are my old courses from AY 15/16 or earlier?

  On the homepage of Cougar Courses, or your dashboard, scroll down to the page footer and you'll see the link to Previous courses.  Click the courses topic, and select  the link for the academic year containing the course you want.  Courses prior to Academic Year 2013/14 are no longer available.  

• I'm having trouble backing up and restoring my course(s) from AY 2013/14 or AY 14/15.

  If you are off campus, you’ll need to use CougarApps to backup/restore these courses.  You must complete the entire backup/restore process from within CougarApps.   The instructions are available when you click the Previous Courses link in Cougar Courses, but if you’re not familiar with CougarApps we recommend you wait until you’re on campus, where CougarApps isn’t required to access these courses. 

• I imported the wrong course. What do I do now?

  You can overwrite the content you mistakenly imported using the Backup and Restore instructions in the Faculty Guides>Course Setup section.     Backup the correct course and download the file. During the restore process, in Destination window change the default setting from “Merge the backup course..”  to “Delete the contents of this course and then restore” Continue with the restore process.  This will overwrite  all the content from the  wrong course with the correct course.  This process will also delete the course users (instructors and students) but the system will add them back within a few hours.  Until you are added back to the course, you won't have access.

• My old course was in the grid format. What happened to the pictures when I imported it?

  The grid format is no longer available.,  so during the import, it was converted to the topics format, but the images are still available in CC for you to use. To add one of these images to a page or topic heading:

  • select the image icon in the text toolbar

  

  • In the insert/edit image popup select Find or Upload an Image . 
  • On the left, check to see the images are available in the recent files link.  If not, select Server Files>Course Section Summaries and click on the folder with the course topic name associated with the image and select the image file.

• Can I copy just a few items from one course into another course?

  Yes, you can do this  as part of the import procedure.  See the Faculty guides>Course Setup>Import procedure. In the schema settings window, you'll be able to choose only the content you want to import.   You can also select specific items to be included in a backup & restore.

Setup Your Course

• How do I change my course from topics to dates format?

  • Turn on the editing in your course.
  • At the top right, click the Admin settings icon (gear).
  • Click Edit Settings.
  • Scroll down to the Course format section.
  • Select the desired format from the Format dropdown.
  • Click Save and Display

  The Grid and Collapsed topics formats are no longer available.

• I want to change the name of my course.

  The official course name, section number and CRN displayed at the top of the course can't be changed.  However, you can edit the first topic and add text there with a more informative name.

  • Turn the editing on in your course.
  • Click on the Edit dropdown at the top right of the first section and select Edit section.
  • Add your text and images into the summary section. Click the expand icon at top left of the text editor to display more options.
  • See the Faculty Guide>Cougar Courses Basics>Using the text editor for more information on adding images, tables, links. etc

• How can I change the name of my course topics/sections?

  Select the topic from the Table of Contents.  Locate the Edit Section icon below the topic title.    Edit the Section name and Save.

• How can I add a picture or text to a topic/section?

  To add additional text or images at the top of the topic/section:

  • Select the topic from the  course Table of Contents. 
  • Click the Edit Section icon below the topic title.   
  • Click the expand icon at top left of the text editor to display more options.

  • 

  • Select the Image icon and use the Insert/Edit image popup to navigate to your image file and select it.   In the Insert/Edit image popup, select the Appearance tab to set the alignment, dimensions, border, etc.   

  See the Faculty Guide>Cougar Courses Basics>Using the text editor for more information on adding images, tables, links. etc.  

• How do I add more sections/topics to my course ?

  At the bottom of the course Table of Contents, click on Create a New Section.  The new section will be the last section.

• How do I delete unused sections/topics from my course?

  • Click on the section/topic in the Table of Contents.
  • Click the X just below the topic title.  Confirm you wish to delete it.

  Note: Deleting a topic will delete any content within the topic as well.

• How do I reorder topics/sections of my course?

  Go to the topic you wish to move,  to display that topic. (ex. Topic A)

  Select the arrow icon just below the topic (A) name.

  In the Table of Contents, click on the target topic/section. (ex. Topic C). When topic C opens, click on "Place section "A" before section " C" . 

• How can I move individual items within my course?

  • To move an item within a topic/section, click the arrow below it, then click move here in the desired location.
  • To move an item to a different topic/section, click the arrow below the item or topic name, select the target topic title from the Table of Contents, and select the appropriate move here within that topic.

• How can I get a student's view of my course?

  In your course, click on the Admin settings icon ( gear) at the top right.  In the dropdown select the last item - "Switch role to" and select Student from the options.   Click on the gear icon again and select Return to My Normal Role when ready. 

  Note that this function does not allow you to act as an actual student in the course, for example viewing the gradebook or submitting assignments.

Blocks

• My block disappeared. How can I get it back?

  Blocks are now located on the course dashboard, available from a link below the Table of Contents.  On the dashboard you'll see an Edit Blocks button at the top of the blocks. Once you click that, you'll see the Add a block dropdown at the bottom right of the dashboard page. 

  Note: If you switched your view to the student view, you will not see some blocks that are only visible to the Instructor. 

• Can I reorder my blocks?

  Yes, on the course dashboard, click the Edit Blocks button.  You can drag blocks up, down, right or left  using the 4-way arrow to the right of the block name.  You can't drag them above the Edit Blocks button.