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Professional Development: Schoology Mini-Workshops: Courses vs Groups

Courses vs Groups



Schoology uses both “courses” and “groups” but there often is some confusion between the two. Use this page to learn how each function differently.

Courses

Schoology courses are the hub of learning in building a classroom community. This is where your instructional materials, assignments, notes, and quizzes/tests are housed, viewed, and completed by students..Forums allow students to interact with one another through discussion boards. External apps are easily integrated into your course. Teachers have full control on how courses are structured and which materials are shared with students. Click here for a reference guide on Schoology courses.
Your courses will be set up for you in Tyler. Whether you’re using Schoology or not, your students can see your course. This is because Schoology is synced with Tyler. If you gain new students throughout the year, they automatically get added to your course. If students withdraw, they are removed from the course. In addition, grades from Schoology can be uploaded into Tyler.

Course features: : 

  • Add materials documents, websites, videos, links, textbooks, MackinVia ebooks, research databases, etc.
  • Add updates and reminders for students and parents
  • Assign, collect, and grade assignments which are uploaded to your Schoology gradebook. You will be able to upload grades in Schoology into Tyler with one simple click.
  • Encourage student discussions
  • Create and award badges

Groups

Unlike courses, groups are NOT synced with Tyler. Therefore, they are NOT created automatically for you. Groups are best used for athletic teams, academic teams, and extracurricular clubs and activities. You can add students manually to your group or provide them with a code. Click here for a reference guide on Schoology groups.

Group features:

  • Add events to a calendar
  • Hold student discussion forums
  • Create photo albums
  • Add resources such as links, videos, MackinVia ebooks, database articles, etc.
  • Provide updates related to team/club information
  • Create polls for students to vote on team stuff. Last year, this is how we chose our team theme, chant, and other spirit day events.
  • Foster student discussion about the all non-academic stuff.(activities, officer elections, fundraisers, field trips, etc.)

*Note that within groups you will not be able to create assignments/assessments nor create/award badges.