Introduction to D2L – Spring 2016
This workshop provides a general orientation and overview of the core tools within the Desire2Learn (D2L) course
management system. Specific hands-on instruction will be provided for the Content tool with a focus on creating assessable
content. Participants will learn to create accessible content using Microsoft Word as a scratch pad and will learn to access
accessible content templates that are built into the D2L system. Email and Attendance: Participants will learn to set up their
D2L mail accounts so that they can tell if students have read their messages. They will also set up a daily attendance register
for taking attendance and learn how to subscribe to discussion board submissions and set up other notifications.
Getting Started
Question:
When I log into my D2L course through Pipeline and take my tests, a screen keeps coming up every 15 minutes telling
me that I will be logged out. Dealing with this timeout times away from answering questions in my test and if I forget
to take care of the timeout my screen sometimes freezes and I have to log back into my test. Does this happen to
everyone? Can this be fixed?
How to Log Into D2L
Use this address to log in, http://elearn.mtsu.edu. It is best not to log in through Pipeline because you lose some of the menu
bars and when D2L logs out your screen could freeze.
Activities: Important Links
1. Faculty Instructional Technology Center Telephone Number – 904-8189
2. D2L Workshops – http://www.mtsu.edu/itd - click on Workshops and Training on the left.
a. Workshop descriptions
3. D2L Support Website – http://www.mtsu.edu/d2lsupport - click faculty on the left.
4. Download handouts - http://mtweb.mtsu.edu/fitc/d2l.html
5. Log into D2L – http://elearn.mtsu.edu
6. University College Resources for Online Course Developers http://www.mtsu.edu/universitycollege/distance/faculty.php
7. Choose a course to work in.
My Home
My Home is the first page you see when you log into D2L. My Home contains your course list and important news that MTSU
D2L administrators need to tell faculty and students. Every time you want to return to this page click the My Home link (#1 in
the image below) in the Minibar at the top left hand side of your browser window.
Questions:
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How do faculty and students find out when there are problems with D2L?
When I send email to students through D2L do they also receive a copy in regular MTSU email?
How can I determine if a student has read an email I sent?
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Activities
1. My Home vs. Course Home
2. News Section
a. Don’t close the News Tool – Dismiss items your have read.
b. How to access dismissed news items
c. Watching Training Videos
3. Mini-bar
4. Navigation Bar (Can be edited – contact the Faculty Instructional Technology Center)
5. Email (Send, Read, Determine if students have read)
News Tool
Instructors and Students: It is important that you do not collapse the news section on your My Home page. If you collapse this
section the D2L administrators will not be able to quickly notify you about various D2L problems or solutions. INSTEAD - click
the X on the right side of the news item to dismiss the news item after you have read it. Dismissing the News Item does not
delete it. You may always reread the News Item by opening the news tool from the dropdown menu.
D2L Training Videos for Faculty
A D2L Training Videos course has been created in D2L. The URL for the D2L Training Videos is provided in the News section of
the My Home page. If you have dismissed the News Item open the News Tool to find it again.
D2L Documentation for Students
The link to the student D2L documentation can also be found in the My Home News Tool.
Minibar
The Minibar remains constant on all D2L screens. It contains a link to My Home, the Course Selector, Alerts, and the Personal
Menu.
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My Home #1: Clicking My Home returns users to the D2L home screen.
Course Selector #2: Courses are listed in the Course Selector. You can sort courses by name and by date last
accessed. Courses you access most often can be pinned to the top of the list.
Alerts #3: Users will see unread alerts for pages, email or discussion posts in the Alerts area. A red dot will appear
next to the appropriate alert icon.
o
Email alerts -
,
2
o
Update alerts for new and updated news posts, upcoming dropbox end dates; released and updated
grades; and upcoming quiz end dates and finally
o
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Chatter alerts , new discussion posts in forums, topics, and specific message threads to which you have
subscribed.
Personal Menu #4: The personal menu contains links to your profile, notification settings, account settings, and log
out options. Click you name on the minibar to open the personal menu.
Navbar
The Navigation bar on the MTSU home page will contain general links that are not course specific. The Navigation bar in a
course will contain course specific links.
Email
Email in D2L is not course specific. Email your students from the Classlist. Read your email from the Email Tool.
Checking to see if students have read your email
1. Click the Email link in the blue banner.
2. Click Settings on the left.
3. Place checks in the following boxes.
a. Track activity for messages sent to internal email addresses
b. Save a copy of each outgoing message to the Sent Mail folder
4. In addition, you may also want to check these boxes
a. Include original message in email replies
b. Mark messages as read when viewed in the Message Preview pane.
5. To determine if a student has read an email
a. Click the Sent Mail folder
b. Click to open the email message for which you want to view a list of students who have read it.
c. Locate the View Recipient Activity link under the date in the body of the message.
d. A window will pop up listing the usernames of the students who have read the message.
Notifications
Notifications is especially good for students to set up but instructors may want to set it up to track activity on discussion
boards. The Notifications enables you to:
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Receive instant notifications about course activity, such as grades, new discussion posts, upcoming quizzes,
dropboxes, and news items. You can also choose to receive instant notifications about ePortfolio feedback and
subscription activity.
Subscribe to a summary of activity for each course and receive a daily email.
Specify your preferred email address and mobile number or instant notifications. You can choose a different email
address than your system email address.
Accessing Notifications
To access notifications do one of the following:
 Click Notifications from your personal menu on the minibar
 Click Notifications in the News widget menu.
 Click Notifications in the My Settings widget.
To set up or change alerts set up the following areas with your preferences.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Enable email notifications
Register your mobile phone so that it can receive text notifications.
Specify how often you want to receive notifications.
Choose what types of notifications you want to receive. Tracking discussion board activity would be the most valuable
to instructors.
5. Choose whether you want post, future, or inactive courses to send you notifications.
6. Choose to exclude some courses.
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Course Home - First Introduction
Course Home is the page students and instructors see when they click on the name of a course in My Home. We will come
back to this page later in this workshop.
Content: Interface and Navigation
The course content area is the page that contains all course materials that students need to access including links to readings,
websites, discussion boards, dropboxes, and quizzes. Modules are used to organize course content by topic and/or week or
day. It is important to list the topic being covered if you choose to add the week or day in the module name.
Note: Dragging and dropping a file from your computer to a module is not supported in Internet Explorer. However, you can
rearrange links and modules in the content area by dragging and dropping in Internet Explorer. Both options should be
available using Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
Questions:
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What is a quick way to notify students of upcoming important dates?
How can I simplify student access to course content and activities?
Last semester I uploaded several videos to my course and now my course times out when I try to copy the content
to another semester. What should I do?
How do I make sure my course content is accessible?
I want the course content of my courses to be hidden from students until they pass the syllabus quiz. How can I
accomplish this?
Activities
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Overview – Add a message or description and add an attachment such as syllabus or course schedule. If you don’t
create a course overview it won’t appear to students. If you do create a course overview it will automatically pop up
the first time the student enters the content area but will not pop up after that. The student can click on the course
overview to display it after the initial entry.
Bookmarks – Quick way to go to a topic
Upcoming Events – Quick link to Calendar Tool
Table of Contents – Actual content of the course
o The Content area is made up of two components, modules and topics.
 Modules serve as headings or categories.
 Topics are links to actual course content or tools. (Course files, dropboxes, discussion boards,
quizzes, etc.)
o Create modules and topics
 Add a module first
 Add topics under a module
 New – Create new files, upload new files, create new dropboxes, quizzes, discussion boards,
etc.
 Add Existing Activities - Add a link to a Dropbox, Quiz, etc. from within a D2L course.
 Bulk Edit - Lets you change restrictions, add descriptions and set each item as Published or
Draft for all topics.
 Draft vs. Published
 Adding media files via Insert Stuff and the MTmedia server
 Release Conditions – available in most tools.
o Accessible Templates (Optional: See directions in appendix)
 Download and install
 Make content pages using the template files.
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
How do I make sure the media in my course is accessible?
More about Adding Topics Course Content Files
You can create a topic by dragging a file to the module (doesn’t work with Internet Explorer)
 The file will be saved in the Collection Root of Manage Files if you don’t specify a location. The Manage Files area
works like a hard drive. It is important that you organize your course files in folders.
 File options: You may upload and link many file types. Word, PowerPoint, pdf’s, plain text, image, etc. Most common
files will work in D2L.
 Linking to the same file twice in your content area: You may choose to link to the same file more than once in your
course content area. It is important to label the links to the files in the same way or otherwise make a note to yourself
that the links are to the same file. If you update the file via one link and then click on the other link you will find that
the other link will also display the changed file content.
 Deleting Files: When you delete a link to a file in the content area of your course you will be presented with two
options 1) the first choice, deletes just the link to the file but not the file itself, and 2) choosing the second choices
deletes the link to the file and the file itself. Choose the second choice whenever possible because it also removes old
files from the manage files area. However, if you have linked to the same file in two different places in your content
area you may want to choose the first choice or you will also delete the file associated with the second link.
Sample Content Modules
Getting Started Module
Task or Section
Syllabus: Use the MTSU Syllabus template
Welcome Message (Customize) (Draft)
Instructor Contact Information (Customize) (Draft)
Review Course Expectations
Read the Syllabus
Course Information
Course Description
Course Objectives
Prerequisites and Co-requisites
Course Topics
Specific Course Requirements
Textbooks, Supplementary Materials, Hardware
and Software Requirements
Required Textbooks
Supplementary Materials
Hardware Requirements
Software Requirements
Web Resources
Instructor Information
Participation, Assessments and Grading
Testing Procedures
Grading Procedure
Approved
Comments
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Grading Scale
Assignments and Projects
Class Participation
Late Policy
Course Ground Rules
Standards of Conduct
Academic Integrity/Academic Honesty
Other Course Rules
Guidelines for Communications
Email
Discussions
Library
Students with Disabilities
Syllabus Changes
Technical Support
Introduction Discussion
Review the RODP Student Success Guidelines
Get Help (ADA, etc)
How to Check your Progress
Connect Homework Site URL – Register Here (Draft
Mode)
Register for Connect Instructions
Connect 21-Day Free Trial
Testing Information
Final Grade Calculation
Instructor Only Files
Task or Section
Course Developer (How to Contact)
Approved
Comments
Resources
Task or Section
Course Resources
Connect Resources
Approved
Comments
Module 1: Topic
Help for designing objectives - http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Instructional_design/Learning_objectives
Task or Section
Materials
Overview
Module Learning Objectives
Key Words and Concepts
Additional Resources (Optional)
Summary/Reflections
Content (Sub Module)
Assessments (Sub Module)
Checklists (Optional)
Approved
Comments
-
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Course Content Design Suggestions
Task or Section
General Notes
Approved
Abbreviations
Primarily New File Text Pages
Consistent Look and Feel
Text Formatting - Heading 1, Heading 2, and Paragraph
Acronyms introduced and accompanied by full spelling
Content supports learning objectives
Variety of Content Provided
Publisher Content Included
External content accessible by Section 508 federal standards
Usability
Linking
Descriptive Link Titles
Quick links that open in new window - marked in title bar that
they open in a new window.
Images
Comments
Not evaluated
Working with other D2L Tools
Grades
Task or Section
Grade column titles match syllabus graded items
Each syllabus graded item has its own grade
column
Uses categories
No abbreviations in title field
Short name abbreviations Used for instructor
Approved
Comments
Discussions
Task or Section
A Variety of Assessments Used
All assessments aligned to learning
objectives
Titles match those listed on the
syllabus under graded items
No abbreviated words were used.
Dates set and added to calendar
All items linked to grade tool
All Discussions linked from content
Approved
Comments
Quizzes/Exams
Task or Section
A Variety of Assessments Used
All assessments aligned to learning objectives
Self Quizzes and/or practice assignments provided.
Approved
Comments
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Titles match those listed on the syllabus under graded
items
No abbreviated words were used in titles
Dates set and added to calendar
All items linked to grade tool
All items set to automatically submit to grades unless essay
test.
Timed assessments set to Auto-Submit Attempt with
Enforced settings.
All quizzes linked from Content
Dropbox
Task or Section
All assessments aligned to learning objectives
Titles match those listed on the syllabus under
graded items
No abbreviated words were used in titles
Dates Set
All items linked to grade tool
All Dropboxes linked from Content
Approved
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
N
Comments
Link to drop boxes in modules according to how they
fall in the course timeline.
Course Home – Activities
We introduced the Course Home previously when we briefly accessed it as we moved to working in the course content area.
We will now learn about the tools available to instructors on the Course Home page.
Questions:
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I created a course in D2L last semester and I also want to use these materials in the same course this semester.
What is the easiest method for moving my course materials over to the new semester?
I have copied my course materials over from a previous semester’s course. Is there a quick way to reset the start
and end dates in my course?
How do I view my course as a student sees it?
Activities
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Navigation and Themes
Dropdown Menus
News Tool
Role Switch
Manage Dates - http://mtweb.mtsu.edu/fitc/d2l/managedates/managedates.html
Import/Export/Copy Components
Navigation and Themes
Use the Navigation and Themes link to access the course navigation, the blue banner at the top of the page. Editing the course
navigation is very similar to editing in 9.4 except that the visual display is somewhat different.
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Dropdown Menus
Check out all of the dropdown menus on each your pages as you get to know D2L 10.3. Dropdown menus are typically
indicated by down pointing arrows or triangles.
News
Use the News Tool in your course to identify the course and provide instructor contact information. News items should also be
used to quickly provide new course information to students as they enter your course. Dates can be set on news items to
specify when they should appear and disappear. News items can also be created that will only be visible to groups of users
you specify.
News Items
Task or Section
Course Information News Item
Welcome
Welcoming message
Welcome Not Personalized
Connection to program (prerequisites)
Discipline noted
Main learning objective
Course Description
How This Course Works
What to do first and how to find it
Describe generally how to proceed
through course materials
Define how many assessments and how
many modules of content there are.
Due Dates
Approved
Comments
Role Switch
Instructors can switch to student view of their course from their personal menu at the top right side of the mini-bar.
Manage Dates
The Manage Dates tool enables you to view a list of objects in your course and edit their date availability
values. What this means is that you can take a course that you copied from a previous semester and edit all of
the dates for discussions, dropboxes, quizzes, and content modules. It can save you a lot of time at the
beginning of each semester. Manage Dates directions can be found at
http://mtweb.mtsu.edu/fitc/d2l/managedates/managedates.html.
Attendance Tool
Attendance Schemes
MTSU has created a default scheme that tracks present, absent, and tardy. You are welcome to copy this scheme and add
another tracking option such as excused.
Attendance Registers
Create an attendance register and enter names for each class period for which you want to track attendance. Typically
instructors will add dates. If a class meets once a week instructors may only week numbers.
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Taking Attendance
Click on the attendance register name to open it. Click the pencil of the session for which you want to take attendance. Since
most students are typically in attendance you may want to set the attendance for all students as present and then call roll.
You will then only change the status of students who are not in attendance.
Import/Export/Copy Components
The Import/Export/Copy Components tool allows you to copy components from a previous semester course into a current
semester course. It is important to remember that you need to start the import process from the course that needs to receive
the course content. Search for the course that has the content by typing in the semester code. Example: 201410 = year 2014,
semester/month = 1 for January, the zero is just a place holder. 201450 = summer semester and 201480 = fall semester. When
you locate the course that contains the contain you want to copy use the first button to copy all the contents from the
previous course or use the second button to choose specific content you want to move.
Note: It is easier to copy all of the content and delete what you don’t want to use in the new course than it is to move content
in parts.
To Copy a Course from a Previous Semester
1. Open the course that needs to receive the course content.
2. Locate the link “Import/Export/Copy Components” on the left side of the page.
3. Click on Search for Offering and locate the course that contains the content you want to copy.
4. Search for the course that contains the content, select it, and then click the Add Selected button at the lower left
hand corner of the page. Note: You can type in the semester code – fall 2013 is “201380” and spring 2013 is
“201310” and summer 2013 is “201350” and spring 2014 is 201410 and all of the courses you taught in that semester
will display. Note, you may also need to search for a development course. Copy the name of the development course
and paste that in the search box.
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5. Click the Copy All Components button if you want to copy the entire course. This is typically what you want to do. You
can also select specific components.
6. Continue through the Wizard until it finishes.
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Appendixes
Creating Accessible Course Documents
Universities are being sued for having course content in courses that is not accessible to students with disabilities on the first
day of class (see Penn State University and National Federation of the Blind settlement). It is not enough to make content
accessible after you realize that you have a student with disabilities in your class. All students need to have equal access to
course content at the same time. Trying to make course content accessible after the course has started will make students
who need to access that content behind from the beginning of the semester. These students will not likely catch up and if they
do their work may be of less quality that it could have been if they had more time to complete each assignment.
Copying from Word to
Non-Compliant Software
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Prezi
Old versions of SoftChalk Lessons - can be converted with new version in the FITC.
Software Under Review
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iSpring - HTML Version, "should" be accessible but it has not been verified. (Flash version will not be accessible)
Livescribe Pencasts
Creating Accessible Word Documents
Universities are being sued for having course content in courses that is not accessible to students with disabilities on the first
day of class (see Penn State University and National Federation of the Blind settlement). It is not enough to make content
accessible after you realize that you have a student with disabilities in your class. All students need to have equal access to
course content at the same time. Trying to make course content accessible after the course has started will make students
who need to access that content behind from the beginning of the semester. These students will not likely catch up and if they
do their work may be of less quality that it could have been if they had more time to complete each assignment.
Accessibility Checklist
It is located in the ROCC Faculty Resources course and all TBR schools are welcome to use it.
 No longer okay to be working on accessibility. Schools are being sued anyway!
 Students need to independently access course materials. (Not rely on a helper)
 Students need to access the course content In the same time frame as the other class members
 Students need to have the same services
 Students need to access content with an equivalent ease of use as the other students experience. *
http://w3.org/tr/wcag - Web Content Accessibility Guidelines for W3.
 Tactile graphics can be used with blind students. How do we make these?
General Considerations for all File Formats
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Color and Contrast
o Contrast or Luminosity/Brightness
o Color Issues
Text
o Fonts and Text Layout
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o
o
o
Links
o
Text Reading Order
Foreign Languages and Accessibility
Math, Science and Technical Content
Use hyperlink text that is meaningful
Making Word Accessible
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Run the Microsoft Accessibility Checker
Images
o Add alternative text to images and objects
o Complex Images - Pen State
o Avoid image watermarks
Headings
o Page or Document Title – Pen State (Heading 1 or Title Heading for Word)
o Use heading styles in long documents
o Use short titles in headings
o Headings and Subheadings – Pen State
o Ensure all heading styles are in the correct order
Tables
o Specify column header rows in tables
o Table Headers and Captions – Pen State
o Use simple table structure
o Avoid using blank cells for formatting
o Structure layout tables for easy navigation
Avoid using repeated blank characters
Avoid using floating objects
Include closed captions for any audio
Color and Contrast
o Contrast or Luminosity/Brightness
o Color Issues
Accessible HTML Templates
See additional handout
Resources
Microsoft Word Accessibility Website
Word Accessibility Page: Word Accessibility Page - http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word-help/creating-accessible-worddocuments-HA101999993.aspx
Using Office 365 Portal: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/office365-suite-help/accessibility-in-office-365HA102817204.aspx?CTT=1
Settlement between Penn State University and National Federation of the Blind
 Main Accessibility Page: Main Accessibility Page - http://accessibility.psu.edu/nfbpsusettlement
 What to Fix: What to Fix - http://accessibility.psu.edu/whattofix
D2L and Accessibility
Resources
D2L's Accessibility Plan - http://www.d2l.com/legal/accessibility-plan/
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Organizing Your Course for Accessibility - https://documentation.desire2learn.com/en/organizing-your-course-accessibly
Web Content Accessibility Standards - https://documentation.desire2learn.com/en/meeting-web-content-accessibility-standards
Setting Release Conditions to Support Students with Special Needs - https://documentation.desire2learn.com/en/setting-releaseconditions-special-access
Referring Students to Accessibility Resources - https://documentation.desire2learn.com/en/referring-students-to-accessibilityresources - includes contrast.
Screen Reader Accessibility Features - https://documentation.desire2learn.com/en/screen-reader-accessibility-features
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