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A Quick Tour of Moodle for Students

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This page provides a quick introduction to Moodle in the Cloud, a Learning Management System (LMS) at UMass Amherst used to deliver course content and host online learning activities.

Log In and Log Out of Moodle

  1. In your web browser, navigate to Moodle: 
  2. In the Login block, click Log in with NetID. (The login button is at the top-right corner of a large screen, but on your phone, you may have to scroll down to find it.) The UMass Amherst Web Login page opens. 
    Note: Do not bookmark the Web Login page. To bookmark Moodle, use umass.moonami.com.
  3. Enter your NetID and password and select the arrow ( login arrow) or press enter/return on your keyboard. You should see your name and Moodle avatar in the user menu at the top-right corner of the page. 
    Note: Links to help with passwords are on the Web Login page. Students and TAs who cannot log in to Moodle should contact the IT Help Center.
  4. In the user menu at the top-right corner of the page, click Log out to log out of Moodle.
    Note: Be sure to quit your browser after you log out, especially if you are using a public or shared computer. This ensures that no one else can access your Moodle account.

Find Your Courses

Once you have logged in, look in the Navigation tray under My Courses for links to the courses in which you are enrolled. If the Navigation tray is not open,  the hamburger menu (, top left) toggles the tray open and closed.

screenshot of Moodle home page (click to enlarge)

The Navigation tray is available throughout Moodle. Alternatively, on the Moodle Home page, the My courses block (on the right on a computer, or toward the bottom of the page on a smaller device) shows links to your current courses. You can also link to your courses from your Dashboard; in the Navigation tray, select Dashboard.

If you log in and do not find a link to your course:

  • The course may not yet be open to students, so be sure to check again after the first day of class, or ask your instructor.
  • Not all classes use Moodle. Check your course schedule in SPIRE, and click the "LMS" icon ( SPIRE LMS icon ), if available, to go to the correct Learning Management System.

If you are still having problems, contact the IT Help Center and notify your instructor so that we can help you and keep track of Moodle issues.

Dashboard

From the Navigation tray, select  Dashboard to go to a personal homepage for all your courses. Select any course title to open the course. This page also allows you to quickly navigate to new assignments.

You can customize your Dashboard and add additional Blocks, such as the Moodle Calendar, to help you stay organized. Click Customize this page (top right) to add or hide blocks on your Dashboard.

Course Layouts

On a Computer

On a laptop or desktop computer, as the Navigation tray expands or collapses, the course page resizes to accomidate the tray.

The Sections in the center column is where your instructor posts information about the course, and provides links to resources and activities such as assignments you'll be doing in Moodle. This main course content may be organized by week or by topic. Depending on how your instructor set up the course, Sections may expand and collapse when you select the Section name, or Sections may always stay open.

Blocks appear on the right side when there is adequate screen space., or on a narrow screen, Blocks move below the column of Sections. You can use Blocks to navigate within your course, see upcoming assignments, see a calendar, link to library resources, and more, depending on what your instructor has added to the course.

On a Tablet or Mobile Device

On smaller screens, when the Navigation tray is open it covers the course content. To view your course, toggle the Navigtion tray closed (hamburger menu , top left). 

Scroll down below the main course content to find the Blocks on smaller screens.

Tips on Submitting Work

  • Submit assignments on time. It is possible for instructors to close assignments at deadlines. Consult the course syllabus for your instructor's policy on submitting late assignments.
  • Look for a confirmation screen to make sure your assignment is submitted. (This might look different depending on the kind of assignment.)
  • Know which file formats your instructor will accept (.pdf and .doc are usually preferred).

View Grades

View GradesFrom the User menu, you can access grades once activities have been graded and released to students. Click the name of the course you wish to view grades for. For more information, see View Grades and Track Your Progress in Moodle.

Some activities, such as Assignments, also display released grades on the activity page.

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