What is the Course Outline Portal?
McMaster is currently providing a new portal for undergraduate course outlines, called “Simple Syllabus”, to better enable students to find course information. It can be found at https://mcmaster.simplesyllabusca.com/en-US/.
What is the benefit of the Course Outline Portal?
- Provide students with a single place to find course outlines from across campus.
- Provide students with an AODA compliant portal to access course outlines online.
- Automatically include the latest policy statements and provide optional guidelines.
- Facilitate alignment with course management policies
- Provide instructors more control over the visibility of course outlines to the public, the campus community, or to enrolled students.
- Facilitate archiving of course outlines.
- Coordinate and support resources for instructors and staff.
How was the Course Outline Portal selected?
The selection of Simple Syllabus as the vendor for the Student Course Outline Portal was conducted in alignment with McMaster University’s commitment to privacy, information security, and legal compliance. Thorough IT security, privacy, and legal assessments were conducted throughout the procurement process. McMaster University remains dedicated to continuous monitoring and evaluation to ensure the preservation of privacy and security standards.
What if I don’t see a course I’m teaching on my dashboard?
All of our information comes from Mosaic. If you are missing a course from your dashboard, you may not yet be attached to it in Mosaic. Speak to your department to find out.
I’m a new instructor and do not yet have a MacID. Can I still build outlines in the Course Outline Portal?
You need a MacID in order to log into the system. If you don’t currently have one, we suggest reaching out to the department manager or chair. We can temporarily give them editing permission. Provide them with the content you want included in your outline and they can post it. Then, once you have your MacID and are attached to the course as an instructor in Mosaic, you will be able to edit. we’ll switch it back so that you are the editor.
I have multiple sections. Do I need to complete an outline for each?
Yes, but you don’t need to fill them all in. Once you have completed an outline for one section, you can go to every other section and copy the content over. We have a guide for how to do that here. Additionally, you do not need to complete outlines for labs and tutorials, even though you may see them on your dashboard. These will be filtered out in the future.
How can I print/export my outlines?
For any outlines where you need PDFs, please do the following:
1) Go to the Course Outline Library and search for the outline you need. When you find it, click on “View.” This should open the outline in a new tab.
2) In the top middle of the screen, you should see a little printer icon next to the word “Print.” It is in between the course code and the “Last Updated” date. Click on that.
3) In the top right corner of the print screen, you should see an arrow pointing down. You can click on that to down it as a PDF.
If an outline has been set to “Private” by the instructor, you will have to reach out to the instructor for a copy. The only people who can see/print/download a “Private” outline are those currently enrolled in the course.
Additionally, if any of these outlines are to be shared with students please emphasize that they still do not meet accessibility standards and that if someone needs an accessible version they should use the website.
What support is available for people using the Course Outline Portal?
- Tutorials and FAQs are available via the support website Course Outline Portal Knowledge Base.
- Email course@mcmaster.ca anytime for any questions or additional support.