Folio Quickstart Guide

Instruction Through Content

In an asynchronous online classroom, content becomes the first voice of the instructor since it “speaks” for instructors in their absence. Instruction within a learning module typically consists of materials (assigned readings, electronic documents, multimedia presentations) and activities (assigned tasks, discussions, assignments, quizzes). Activities may be graded or ungraded.

Instruction Through Feedback

After students complete and submit evidence of engaging learning materials, online instructors engage students through guidance and feedback to encourage and elicit performance. Feedback may be automated using Folio grading rubrics and standardized quiz question feedback, but personalized responses through email, discussion, and other communication tools helps students feel the instructor is aware of their presence and personal learning paths.

While the use of the Faculty Center’s Folio Course Template is not required, web pages (HTML files) are the most practical and efficient file format to deliver content (text, images, multimedia, and web links) to online students – which is not to say you cannot use other document types (Word, PowerPoint, PDF) for your instruction as well.

Support instruction with any additional files (Word, PowerPoint, PDF) you wish to add to the module. Desire2Learn refers to content as “topics”.

• Download Tutorial: Add electronic documents (topics)
• Watch Video: Upload a Topic

Edit gradebook settings before creating assessments. You can change your settings later if you change your mind.

Download Tutorials:

• Grades Setup Wizard– Part 1 of the Gradebook Series
• Create Gradebook Categories
• Create a Gradebook Item (Column)

Watch Video: Understanding Grades

Create a quiz and link it to the gradebook.

• Download Tutorial: Quiz Essentials
• Watch Video: Create a New Quiz with Questions

Folio rubrics are quite powerful and make the grading process much more efficient. Create an analytic rubric for a discussion activity or an assignment activity.

Download Tutorial: Create an Analytic Rubric

Create a discussion assignment. Add a grading rubric (if desired) and link to the gradebook.

• Download Tutorial: Create Forums, Topic, & Threads
• Watch Video: Create a Forum

Create a Dropbox assignment. Add a grading rubric (if desired) and link to the gradebook.

• Download Tutorial: Assignment Dropbox Basics
• Watch Video: Create an Assignment

Help students navigate Folio with content links to quizzes, discussions, assignment dropboxes, and other tools assigned during your module.

• Download Tutorial: Add Existing Activities
• Watch Video: Add an Existing Activity to Content

Create a News Item describing what will happen during the learning module.

• Download Tutorial: Create a News Item
• Watch Video: Create an Announcement

Create a Calendar Event based on a planned schedule of activities in the module.

• Download Tutorial: Create Calendar Events
• Watch Video: Create Calendar Events