Organizing Learners Using Groups
Margarita Berezyanskaya
Last Update 24 дня назад
Moodle groups allow instructors to assign learners to one or more groups. Groups can be set at the course or activity levels.
Using groups allows the instructor to:
- completely isolate groups of learners from each other;
- partially separate groups, where one group can see other groups and each groups' activity, but not interact with the other group(s);
- identify each group with an icon.
The Forced groups feature in the course settings can allow different classes and their instructors to take the same course asynchronously without creating a "new" course.
Group Levels
There are two levels of groups:
- Course level - The group mode defined at the course level is the default mode for all activities defined within that course. To use groups, a group mode must first be set up in Settings>Course administration>Edit settings.
- Activity level - Each activity that supports groups can also have its own group mode defined. If the course setting Force groups mode is set to Yes, the option to define the group mode for individual activities is not available. If it is set to No, the instructor may change the group mode.
Group Modes
There are three modes of groups:
- No groups - There are no subgroups; all learners are part of one big community.
- Separate groups - Each group can see only their own group; others are invisible.
- Visible groups - Each group works in their own group but can also see other groups. Note that the other groups' work is read-only to those outside the group.
Adding Groups to a Course
Learners and staff can be added to groups in Moodle either automatically, if large groups are needed, or manually, if only small groups need to be created.
1. Click on the Participants menu.
2. Select Groups from the Enrolled users dropdown menu
3. Scroll down and click on Create group from the Manage section.
4. Click the Create group button on the Groups Page.
5. A Groups form appears, type in the Group name.
Note: Group ID number is not necessary; leave this blank.
6. Type a Group description (optional).
Note: LINC courseware users do not need to use the group enrolment key. This key allows users into a course and automatically makes them a member of this group.
7. If you want to be able to send a message to group members from your Messaging drawer, select Yes in the Group messaging dropdown menu.
8. Click the Save changes button.
The group should now appear on the Groups page. The number in brackets after the group name displays the number of group members.
Adding Students to a Group Manually
1. Go to the Groups page. (see steps 1 to 4 in section Adding groups to a course)
2. Select the name of the group to which the learners should be added in the box under Groups.
3. Click on the Add/remove users button.
The names of course participants are displayed.
4. Click the names of the participants to be added to the group under Potential members. Use [CTRL] + click (for Windows) or [CMD] + click (for Mac) to select multiple users.
5. Click the Add button. If there are a large number of course participants, use the Search text box at the bottom to find, select and add the learner. You can search by name or email.
6. Once the task of adding people to the group is completed, click the Back to groups button or navigate elsewhere. There is no need to save.
Auto-Creating Groups with Learners Assigned Automatically
To create groups automatically with learners assigned randomly to each group:
1. Go to the Groups page. (see steps 1 to 4 in section Adding groups to a course)
2. Click the Auto-create groups button in the Groups page.
3. Enter a group Naming scheme. Group # will generate Group 1, Group 2, Group 3 etc. Group @ will generate Group A, Group B, Group C etc.
4. Set Auto create based on either the Number of groups or the number of Members per group.
5. Enter the Group/member count and choose if you want members to be able to send each other messages.
6. To determine which course roles group members will be added, choose roles from the Select members with role menu.
7. Select Randomly in the Allocate members drop-down menu to assign members of groups randomly. You can also choose the other options if needed.
8. Clicking on Prevent last small group will allocate additional members to an existing group instead of adding a new group with very few members.
Note: The Prevent last small group option is only available when the group is created via Members per group.
9. Click the Preview button to preview group allocation.
10. Review the distribution of group members. You can change the settings and click Preview again as needed.
11. Click the Submit button when the group allocation is satisfactory.
Setting the Group Mode to Change Activity Behaviour
Activities will behave differently depending on the group mode chosen. For example, using groups will allow instructors to filter assignments or restrict with whom learners work in forums and wikis.
Note: There are three ways to change the group modes.
1. Click the Group icon directly on the course page
Locate the activity or resource and click the Group icon beside its name. Choose your preferred group mode from the menu.
2. Use the More options menu
Click the Edit menu (three dots) on the activity card, hover over Group mode, and select one of the following:
No groups: All students see the same activity and work together.
Separate groups: Students only see and interact with members of their own group.
Visible groups: Students work within their own group but can view the work of other groups.
3. Edit the full activity settings
Click the Edit menu (three dots) and select Edit settings. Scroll to the Common module settings section, choose the desired Group mode, then click Save and return to course.
Adding Students to a Group in the Participants Window
1. Click on the Participants menu.
The course participants appear in a list. If there are groups established in the course a pencil appears in the Groups column in each participant’s row.
2. Click on the pencil icon next to No groups.
3. The student row expands revealing an empty drop-down menu. Click on the drop-down menu.
4. Choose a group name from the drop-down list.
Make sure to click on the Save icon to save your changes.
The student is now in the selected group.
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