Here is the hierarchy of links you will find on the left. I will make some quick comments on each section.
Information
- Feature: I’ve got no idea how this will be used. Shouldn’t be a big deal, though.
- Announcements: These will likely be a feed or archive of Vanessa Cooper’s occasional e-mails. Good to keep yourself informed, I reckon.
- The Magazine: The link on the right indicates some kind of student contribution, but it’s simply to allow for student feedback on the portal.
- Key Contacts: This list is surprisingly useful to have around. All the major SoM contacts are here for you to use.
Work Programme
- My Learning: At this point, this section contains the .pdf files for the Module Learning Guides.
- My Timetable: This is the most relevant and important section. It has your weekly schedule, your learning resources and lecture slides, and calendar files (which you can import to iCal or GCal). Check Part 3 for some basic instructions on using these.
Learning Communities
- My PBL Group: This one contains discussion forums and a wiki for each of the cases in PBL. If you don’t know what the difference is between a wiki and Wikipedia, I suggest you read the Wikipedia article on wikis. This can be an awesome collaborative tool for learning. Seriously. No sarcasm.
- My Clinical Skills Group: Contacts and messages to your respective CC groups. Nice to arrange last-blitz practice sessions for all 7 MSK examinations.
- My Yr Discussion Group: I don’t think this will be used frequently. I have a feeling that it might not be secured at first, allowing people to spam the board with class messages. Don’t count on that feature lasting more than a week.
Resource Discovery
- Advanced Search: This is a kickass way to find and download all the resources available online. Check Part 4: Dowloading Resources to find out how to use this tool well.
- Browse Resources: A different way to dig up what you need.
So that’s pretty much what you’ll need to use. There are some other links at the bottom that lead to external sites. They, too, are great tools for learning, but I’ll cover that another time. If you’re interested, check them out.
< Back to Part 1: Finding the Portal | Forward to Part 3: PBL Triggers >
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