Delphinium Tutorials - Brief Descriptions of Components

Brief Description of Delphinium Components

Delphinium components are data visualizations used to display course information to students. Most Delphinium components pull data from Canvas and display it in motivating and engaging ways. Some components also add meta data like tags, bonus/penalty points, and module relationships to improve upon Canvas functionality. Finally, some Delphinium components display text stored in Delphinium layouts. Detailed tutorials are available for each component. Brief descriptions of each category of component is described below.

Content

Content components like Module Map, Iris, and Outcome Tracker are used to organize and display Canvas assignments and other content like links and pages in motivating and engaging ways. In addition to simply listing content, content components also show students their progress on assignments and helps them understand where they are in the course, what they have completed, and what is coming up. Choosing the best content component for your course will depend on your course design (e.g., linear, branching, or cafeteria-style). The Layout Coach can help you select a content component that will work best for your class.

Progress

Progress components like Current Grade, Milestone Tracker, Tag Tracker, and Grade Tracker are used to inform students about their progress in the class. Progress can be tracked by grade, milestone, or assignment categories. Choosing the best progress components for your course will depend on your course design (e.g., 0-based vs %-based grading, assignment due dates vs. milestone due dates). The Layout Coach can help you select progress components that will work best for your class.

Dashboard

Dashboard components like Countdown Timer, Assignment Progress, and Stats provide information that students can use to gauge their progress in the class like time remaining, percent of assignments complete, and quality of work done. These components are often optional and teachers can decide whether adding them to their course will be useful given their course design.

Game Elements

Game element components like Leaderboard, Prize Boxes, and Avatar are designed to improve course engagement and motivation. They create a fun environment in your class that focuses on principles like celebrating student's success, competition, comparison, social presence, and achievement.

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