Instructors and full proxy users can create new courses using the web interface. In addition to supplying basic course information, instructors can choose to restrict access to courses and reserve items to registered students only by requiring a password or using Student IDs.
- Click on the Create a New Course link. The Create a Course form opens.
- Complete the necessary information on the Create a Course form. Add a password or Student IDs if you want to restrict access to the course and reserve items.
- Click the Create Course button. If all information is complete and there are no errors, the Course Details form opens showing course information and the message, "Your course has been added to Ares."
- Instructors can now add Reserve Items to the course.
The Create a Course Form Fields
Course Information
- Course Name - The Course Name is a required field.
- Course Number - The Course Number is a required field.
- Section Number/Course Number - This field is optional by default.
- Instructor - The instructor field is pre-populated with the instructor's name. If the user is a proxy user for someone else, a drop-down box will appear allowing them to choose the actual course instructor.
- Department - The Department is pre-selected based on the information supplied by the user. A drop-down box allows them to choose a different department if this is not correct.
- Course Semester - A pre-selected semester appears in the drop-down box and can be changed if not correct. The course will be active according to the semester start and stop dates unless that is overridden in the client.
- Course URL - The user can enter a URL link to a website that the instructor will use for the course. This field is optional by default.
- Course Enrollment - This field can be used by Ares to help calculate copyright costs. This field is optional by default.
- Course Description - A description of the course can also be entered. This field is optional by default.
Course Authentication
Course Authentication restricts access to the course based on a password or Student ID.
- Course Password: If the Instructor is concerned about copyright issues, privacy, material sensitivity, etc, the course can be restricted by a password that the instructor will share with the course (either by email or verbally). The password will be needed by a student user to add the course to their Ares account.
- Student IDs: Instead of (or in addition to) passwords, the user can enter a list of Student IDs on the course so that when those student users log on to Ares, they will see the course automatically on their Main Menu. This list can be edited any time to include access to new students or revoke access to others (after Add/Drop for example).
Default Pickup Location
A Default Pickup Location drop-down field will appear on the form if Pickup Locations have been set up in Ares.
The instructor will choose the Pickup/Dropoff location they will use to deposit materials for students to access if they cannot be made available electronically through Ares.
Course Creation History
There are three fields in the Courses table that allow you to track the circumstances of each course's creation:
- CreatedBy: The username of the Ares user or Staff user that created this course.
- CreatedVia: How the course was created. Valid values are Client, Web, Web Service, and Legacy Web Service.
- CreationDate: The date when the course was created.
These fields are viewable in the course search results grid. Any courses created before upgrading to Ares 4.3 will not have information in these fields.
Courses created via the Client or on the web will show the username of the user that actually created the course. For example, if a proxy creates a course for an instructor, the Created By field will show the proxy username. For courses created via a Course Management System plugin (such as Blackboard or Moodle), Legacy Web Service will display in the Created Via field. Courses created with an LTI connection to their CMS will display Web Service in the Created Via field. These courses, created via Web Service or Legacy Web Service, will always display the course's instructor in the Created By field.