Moodle is the University's virtual learning environment (VLE) hosting course learning materials and activities.
Moodle is available 24-hours a day, 7-days a week. You can access your course and module learning materials from Moodle via smartphone, laptop or desktop computer. You’ll only have access to Moodle once you register on your course.
On Moodle, you can access:
- module information
- course information
- links to online resources and reading lists
- learning activities
- recorded videos of teaching sessions
- news, announcements and discussion forums
- assessment information
Using Moodle
Visit Moodle and log in with your normal network password and username. On the dashboard, you'll see a list of the course and modules you're enrolled on. Select the link to the module you want to use and you're ready to get started.
Accessibility tool
You can make Moodle work for you using the built-in accessibility tool – configure screen colours and font styles that work best for you.
Notifications
You can disable and enable different notifications by clicking on your name in the top right-hand corner of Moodle and choosing 'Preferences'. Moodle offers notifications by web or email, and you can choose what notifications you get in both instances.
Logging in
You'll need your University account username and password to login to Moodle. Your username isn't case-sensitive, but your password is.
Your username will be in either of the following formats:
- upxxxxxx where x is a number (e.g. up123456)
- abcxxxxx where abc are letters and x are numbers (e.g. shl12345)
Please note, your username does not end in @myport.ac.uk.
Access after graduation
When you graduate, your access to Moodle, along with other university services such as the library, will remain active for 5 months after your official course end date. We'd recommend that you download and save any content or assignments before you leave. Find out more about what happens when you finish university and your IT and Library access.
After this time, while you will be able to contact your department and request copies of particular assignments, you will be unable to access the Moodle platform yourself.
Accessing modules
Your courses and modules are all available on your Moodle dashboard. To access Moodle in first year, you’ll need to register on your course. In following years, you’ll need to re-register on your course.
You can choose to view your courses and modules in a grid, list or summary view using the drop down in the top-right corner of the module view. You can also star courses that you want easy access to later, and filter your modules by those in progress, future modules or past modules.
Module pages
At the top of each Moodle page are a number of helpful tabs that enable quick navigation.
The Course tab contains the learning materials and activities of the module. Module Info is where your Module Overview and Learning Outcomes can be found. Your assignments can be found under the 'Assignments' tab at the top of your module pages. Each one will include deadline information so you know when to submit your work. If there is a Reading List attached to your Module, then it can be found underneath the relevant heading.
Finally Grades gives you an overview of your assignments on Moodle however it should be noted that for official marks, you should check your Student View as not every assignment, exam or assessment is housed on Moodle.
The main part of the module page will be split into teaching weeks, where you'll find tasks you need to complete each week such as:
- learning activities
- recommended or required reading
- recorded classes
Seminar activities you need to complete will be highlighted under the 'Seminar Activities' heading. You'll also find extra reading or knowledge check activities under the heading 'Further reading/extension activity'.
Module coordinator
If you need to contact your module coordinator, you'll find their details on the right-hand side of the module page.
Academic advice
You'll find additional advice in the 'Academic Advice' block in the right-hand side of the module page. This could include:
- Online submission procedure
- Absence form
- Referencing guide
Online assessments and assignments
You'll be required to complete online assessments and assignments through Moodle to achieve the required credits for each module and move onto your next year of study.
Types of online assessment:
- Written coursework, assignments, reports and presentations to be submitted via Turnitin or Moodle Assignment
- Weekly/fortnightly quizzes
- Other Moodle activities such as engaging in forum discussions may contribute towards your marks on some modules
Submission tools
Use the submission tools to submit your work directly through Moodle – you don't need to install any additional software.
- Turnitin – you can submit your written assignments to Turnitin
- Moodle submission drop-box – use this tool to submit digital files including Word documents, spreadsheets and images as well as typing directly into the text editor
- Wiseflow - This is the new end to end assessment platform that is being rolled out across the university. You may have an assessment on this platform depending on your module/course but as with other submission tools, access is through Moodle. Assessment types include reflective portfolios, essays, large file and multiple file submissions and essays.
Moodle on mobile
We recommend you access Moodle on a computer or laptop for the best experience. But the learning environment is responsive – so you can access it on mobile if you need to by simply accessing moodle.port.ac.uk. Mobile access to Moodle is designed to supplement your experience rather than replace it, for full functionality you will require a standard computer or laptop.
You can also download the Moodle app to your Android, iOs or Windows phone. Just search for it in your phone's app store. You'll need an active WiFi or data signal to connect. Limited cached content may be available when using the Mobile app if the content has previously been accessed.
Troubleshooting
Help with common issues
If you're having trouble logging in, you may need to reset your password.
If your services have previously been suspended (but are now restored) please contact cadi-digital@port.ac.uk to ensure the restriction has been lifted. Please note it may take 24 hours for your full services to be restored.
If you can access other websites but not Moodle, the service might be unavailable for planned maintenance (which will have been publicised) or because of an unexpected outage. In either case, please refer to the IS Service Status page for the latest updates.
Occasionally you may not meet the criteria set for subscribing to a Moodle forum. Such criteria may or may not be correct, so please check with your lecturer as to whether you should be able to access the forum.
If you should be able to access, but are unable to, please contact Technology Enhanced Learning who can check the forum configuration settings. You will need to supply:
- your username,
- the Moodle site on which the forum is located, and
- the name and location of the forum.
Email: cadi-digital@port.ac.uk
Tel: Servicedesk +44(0)23 9284 7777
Moodle retrieves your details from the Student and Course Management database. If your name is spelt incorrectly please contact your Student and Academic Administrator to have the information corrected on the Student and course Management database.
Once your details have been corrected they should update on Moodle automatically – although this may take up to 24 hours. If your details have not updated after this time and your Student and Academic Administrator has updated the Student and Course Management database, please contact the Technology Enhanced Learning team with your username and correct spelling of your name.
Email: cadi-digital@port.ac.uk
Tel: Servicedesk +44(0)23 9284 7777
If you're unable to see modules that your classmates can access, your course lecturer can make it available to you. If you can't see your modules and attendance group on your timetable (it will look something like this: M12345-20SC-SEP), contact your Student and Academic Administrators who can correct this for you.
Have you registered for this academic year?
Students are attached to a module on Moodle based upon their registration with the Student and Course Management database, which is updated by Student and Academic Administrators.
If you have not registered for the current academic year (1st August to 31st July) then you should complete online registration or seek advice from your Student and Academic Administrator. After registration your Moodle modules should be available within 48 hours.
Has your course curriculum been set?
This will be done by your Student and Academic Administrator. As well as attaching a module to your curriculum on the Student and Course Management database, they should also enter an attendance group. Your module and attendance group should be displayed on your timetable and will look something like U12345-20SC-SEP
If you cannot see this information on your timetable please contact your Student and Academic Administrators to check that it has been correctly set up. After this has been done there may be a delay of up to 24 hours.
Does a module exist on Moodle and is it visible?
Can any of your fellow students see the Moodle module? If not, it might be worth asking your lecturer if you should have access to a Moodle module and check that they have unhidden the module from when they were developing it.
Your Spring teaching block modules may not have been unhidden by your lecturer yet, so please check with them. Note that the year contained in the title of some modules reflects the academic year (August to July) rather than the calendar year.
If you are looking for Moodle modules(s) from previous academic years, they may be within the "Past" view on your My Modules & Courses tab. This is automated based on the end date set on the Moodle. For any further queries about this please contact cadi-digital@port.ac.uk
Sometimes content from other modules may be of interest to you in your studies, for example when undertaking a dissertation with a cross-over into a topic that you have not previously studied but is taught at the University.
You can find available modules on the University of Portsmouth’s Course and Module Catalogue
If you identify a topic that is of interest to you please contact:
- your own Course Leader to discuss the suitability of the module, and
- the Module Coordinator for the module you wish to take (for interest only).
If the module is deemed suitable then you should contact your Student and Academic Administrator to have the module attached to your Curriculum on the Student and course Management system for ‘interest only’.
If a less formal arrangement is agreed (for example just to access Moodle content for a few weeks whilst writing up part of your dissertation) then the Module Coordinator may contact Technology Enhanced Learning (cadi-digital@port.ac.uk) to request this access for you.
If you encounter any display issues when using a mobile device via a web browser (i.e. not using the app) please report them to cadi-digital@port.ac.uk so that we can try to fix them. When reporting a display issue please let us know what make/model of phone/tablet you are using and what content you were trying to access at the time, if possible a screenshot of the issue would be helpful.
