As we draw closer to the end of the semester, you’re probably gearing up for exams or preparing for a relaxing holiday. Before you go, read about some handy tips and reminders on how to access your marked assessments and grades in VU Collaborate. Below are some common questions that may arise about different topics relating to assessments and grades in VU Collaborate: 

Can I view feedback on my assessment through Assessment Dropbox? 

On the Assessment Dropbox Folder page, click ‘View’ in the Feedback column beside the folder containing your submission. This will show your grade, the rubric assessment (if available) and any feedback received. Please note you will only be able to view your feedback once the teacher has made it available. 

How do I view feedback given through Turnitin Feedback Studio? 

Please view this guide for an overview of viewing feedback received via Turnitin Feedback Studio. You will only be able to view your feedback once the teacher has made it available to you. 

How do I see what I have done and haven’t done (viewing user progress)? 

You are able to view your progress summary by clicking on Results and then User Progress. For information on User Progress indicators, please view this guide on the VU Collaborate Student Help site. 

How do I view my grades? 

When your grades are published, they appear on your personal Grades page in the unit. Depending on how your grades are set up, you might also be able to view comments and overall class performance statistics. You will only be able to view your grades once the teacher or lecturer has published them. For more information, view this guide. 

Where do I re-enroll for next semester? 

This can be found on MYVU Portal, click on ‘My Details’ and select ‘Online Enrolment’.  

Study hard and good luck with your exams!

~

For more information on VU Collaborate, please visit the VU Collaborate Student Help site. If you encounter any issues, please contact the ITS Service Desk by phone on (03) 9919 2777, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or self-service.

Reviewing lecture material

Reviewing your lectures is an integral part of learning in higher education. On VU Collaborate you can take notes and review your past lecture recordings on Echo360 Active Learning Platform.

Did you know you can watch recordings of your past lectures?

If you are enrolled in a unit with lectures, you can review your lecture recordings on Echo360 Active Learning Platform.
To access this tool, select your unit space and in the middle-right side of your screen click on Echo360 Active Learning Platform under the heading ‘Lecture Hub (Echo360)’. If you have never accessed the recordings for the unit before, see if there is a link in a module in the Learning Space of your unit first.

How do I navigate and find my video recordings on Echo360 ALP?

Viewing classes and presentations is as easy as clicking on the title of the appropriate class. To learn more about navigating and toggling between units and classes view this guide.

Did you know you can take notes on Echo360 ALP?

You can jot down notes and download them while reviewing a lecture. The note taking tool even records the time of the video down to the second when you were writing the note, or if viewing a presentation, it records the slide number. To learn more about this tool, please view this guide.

How do I review and edit my study notes?

You can view your notes in the Study Guide tab in Echo360 that allows you to quickly look through your classroom notes for each class and edit them. To learn more about this tool, view this guide.

How do I notify my teacher that I am confused with the lecture material?

You can click on the confusion flag located on the top middle section of the screen to notify the teacher that you are confused with the lecture material provided. You can also ask a question by first clicking on the question icon. View this guide to learn how to use the confusion flag.

For more information on Echo360 ALP in VU Collaborate, please visit the VU Collaborate Student Help site. If you encounter any issues, please contact the ITS Service Desk by phone on (03) 9919 2777, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or self-service.


Please note that the teachers may not have chosen to utilise this tool.

Campus Pack Blogs, journals, podcasts or Wiki’s can be used as assessment material. It is an exciting and creating way for you to express and share ideas as well as comment and engage with other students. The teacher will let you know if you need to submit assessments using one of the Campus Pack tools.  VU also provides access to Lynda.com for you to access extra learning resources and tutorials you may need.

What is Campus Pack?

It is a tool on VU Collaborate for students to complete blogs, journals, podcasts or wiki assessments designed by the teacher. It also allows you to post pictures, share links and post audio and video recordings.

How do I use Campus Pack tools?

To learn how to submit posts on Campus Pack read up on one of these guides on using Campus Pack Blogs, Journals, Podcasts or Wiki.

Why do I get a ‘login error’ message when I use Campus Pack?

Campus Pack runs best on Chrome and Firefox. If you are using Safari, you will get a ‘login error’ unless you enable cookies through your browser’s preferences

Can I use Campus Pack to write my own personal blog or journal?

Unfortunately, only the teacher can create Campus Pack tools. However, you can use ePortfolio as your personal portfolio tool for storing, organising, reflecting on and sharing items that represent your learning. You can include documents, graphics, audio files, videos, presentations, course work, etc. to demonstrate your improvement or mastery in a certain area. 

Can I view feedback on my posts on Campus Pack?

The teacher may choose to assess your Campus Pack submissions as a numerical grade or as written feedback. If your submission is numerically graded, check your Gradebook for a score. Alternatively, if the teacher has given you written feedback, check for a reply below your Campus Pack post. If unsure, check with the teacher.

I can’t see the Campus Pack blog, journal, podcast or wiki, what do I do?

There is a chance that you may have missed the deadline for this assessment task or the teacher may ask you to perform specific actions before you submit your assessment. Please follow up with the teacher to find out why you cannot see the Campus Pack blog, journal, podcast or wiki.

Personal and Professional development on Lynda.com

Lynda.com is a leading online learning platform that teaches new skills in creativity, business, software and technology.  It has an extensive library of courses to assist in professional and personal development in many areas. As a student of Victoria University, you have access to all of this content.

How do I access Lynda.com?

If your instructor has linked specific content into your unit space, you simply click it and it will open in Lynda.com, having automatically logged you in through your VU credentials.

If you would like to access it separately, visit the website here and click Sign In, then enter vu.edu.au as your institution. This will take you to the portal and request your VU credentials. You can also access the video content on your phone or device through the Lynda.com app.

For more information on using Campus Pack in VU Collaborate, please visit the VU Collaborate Student Help site. If you encounter any issues, please contact the ITS Service Desk by phone on (03) 9919 2777, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or self-service.

Please note that teachers may not have chosen to utilise these tools.

A great way to communicate with your peers and teachers is by using Discussions in VU Collaborate. Online discussions could be part of your course as a formal assessment or as an area for general discussion. Discussions provide you with an area to post, read and reply to messages on different topics, share thoughts about course materials, ask questions, share files or work with your peers on assessments. Alternatively, formal assessments could be submitted using an Assessment Dropbox. It is a repository for your assessment documents and it eliminates the need to mail or email your submission to the teacher. 

How do I post a comment in the Discussion forums?

If teachers have created Discussion Forums in your space, start a new thread and get to know your peers. To access Discussions, click Communication and Discussions on the navbar. Click ‘Start a New Thread’ to write a message or ‘Reply to Thread’ to respond to someone else’s message. You cannot edit or delete messages that have already been submitted in the Discussion forum. If you have difficulties using this tool, please contact the teacher for assistance as they may have certain restrictions in place.

Can I receive notifications from specific Discussion forums?

You can receive notifications to specific Discussion forums or topics by clicking on the dropdown arrow next to the title and selecting Subscribe. You can also select how you receive these notifications.

Why can’t I see any Discussion forums or topics?

It is at the discretion of the teacher or lecturer to utilise the tools available in VU Collaborate, and they may have decided not to utilise the Discussions tool. If you have any concerns regarding this, please speak to the teacher or lecturer.

How do I submit assignments into my Assessment Dropbox?
To submit an assignment, simply enter your unit space then click on Assessments and Assessment Dropbox. Pick the appropriate Assessment Dropbox corresponding to the right assignment task. If you are unsure please contact the lecturer. To learn more about submitting assignments into an Assessment Dropbox please view this guide.

How do I check if I have submitted my assignment?

You can review your Assessment Dropbox folder submission history on the Submission History page. This can be found beneath the Assessment Dropbox Title on the Assessment Dropbox page.

For more information on discussions in VU Collaborate, please visit the VU Collaborate Student Help site. If you encounter any issues, please contact the ITS Service Desk by phone on (03) 9919 2777, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or self-service.

Please note that the teacher may not have chosen to utilise this tool. 

By now you’ve been able to access your spaces for the units you’re studying this semester, view some content and know when your assessments are due. With VU Collaborate, you can communicate with your peers and teachers seamlessly, view your lecture recordings online, participate in discussion forums, use virtual classrooms and monitor your progress using checklists.

How can I communicate instantly with my peers and teachers?

You can access Discussions or Email to communicate with your peers and teachers. Alternatively, use instant messaging to speak with other students and teachers in real time. Please note: The teachers may not have chosen to utilise these tools.

How do I view e-mails that I’ve sent in VU Collaborate?

By default, e-mails that you send within VU Collaborate are not saved to the Sent Mail folder. To change this, click on your name in the top right-hand corner of VU Collaborate and select Account Settings. Click on the E-mail tab and select the “Save a copy of each outgoing message to the Sent Mail folder” checkbox. To find sent e-mails, click on the messages icon that’s next to your name in the top right-hand corner and select “Go to Email”. Select the Sent Mail button.

How do I post a comment in Discussion forums?

If the teachers have created Discussion forums in your space, start a new thread and get to know your peers. Click Communication and Discussions on the navbar to access Discussions. Click on a topic to participate and ‘Start a new thread’ to write a message or read someone else’s message and then click on ‘Reply to thread’ to respond. You cannot delete messages that you have posted. If you have difficulties, please contact the teacher for assistance as they may have certain restrictions in place.

Why can’t I see any Discussion forums or topics?

It is at the discretion of the teacher or lecturer to utilise the tools available through VU Collaborate, and they may have decided not to utilise the Discussions tool. If you have any concerns regarding this, please speak to the teacher or lecturer.

What is Echo360 Active Learning Platform?

You may have seen the widget for this on the front page of your unit space.  This is the platform that is used at VU for lecture recordings and other videos that your teacher deems helpful for your learning.  The widget on the front page of your unit space will take you directly to the Echo360 Active Learning Platform (ALP) and teachers may also connect certain lectures to content areas of the unit space such as Week 1 lecture in the content for Week 1.  There is also an app available for download at Google Play, Apple and Microsoft Windows that you can use to check and upload videos and presentations (make sure you use the email ending with @students.vu.edu.au when logging into it for the first time).  Check the Student Help site guides for more information.

I've been told to use Virtual Classrooms this semester, how do I access the room?
Virtual classrooms are accessed in the relevant unit under the Communication tab.  View the Participating in a WebEx Virtual Classroom for steps on how to successfully participate in a Virtual Classroom session.

There is a checklist in my unit, how do I use it?
Easily use the checklist by ticking on the box next to the allocated task. It is recommended that you use the checklist to monitor your learning progress and the completion of your assessments.

For more information on VU Collaborate, please visit the VU Collaborate Student Help site. If you encounter any issues, please contact the ITS Service Desk by phone on (03) 9919 2777, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or self-service.

Please note that teachers may not have chosen to utilise all of these tools.