ATutor Features for Learners

The following is a relatively detailed list of the standard features in ATutor. Also see the Modules Section for additional features and third party add-on software.

Learners

• Accessibility: ATutor was designed with accessibility as a priority. A wide range of features ensure assistive technology users can participate fully in learner, instructor, and administrative activities. DIV based themes are available for added accessibility. ATutor conforms with international accessibility standards. New in 1.6.2! IMS/ISO AccessForAll support allows learners to configure the environment and content to their specific needs.
• Security: Login passwords are encrypted. Forgotten passwords must be reset, rather than retrieved by email, removing the possibility they might be intercepted when being sent over the Internet.
• My Courses : Instructors and students can manage the ATutor courses they teach and/or are enrolled in. New in 1.6.1! When a student registers they are automatically logged into My Courses.
• Inbox/Messaging : All users on an ATutor system have an Inbox, through which they can send and receive private messages from other users. Messages sent are saved to Sent Messages, which remain for a set period before being deleted. Messages can be exported and saved externally.
• Student Profile : Students can add personal information about themselves for other to see, and include a profile picture, which is also displayed with forum posts.
• Adaptive Navigation: Learners can move through ATutor content using global, hierarchical, or sequential navigation tools. Navigation elements can be displayed as text, icons, or both text and icons, and they can be hidden to simplify the environment.
• Work Groups: Learners can collaborate with others on course projects, communicate as a group through the forums share resources using the File Storage, and work together authoring project documents. Exercises or assignments can submitted to the group leader, or course instructor. This replaces much of the functionality found in the ACollab module, though it is still possible to use along with ATutor work groups.
• File Storage: All user on an ATutor system have their own file storage utility. File storage areas can also be shared across groups, or an entire course. Version control can be enabled to keep track of drafts or changes to documents.
• Group Blog: Each group has access to their own blog, to which they can post public messages, available to all course member, or private messages, available only to group members and instructors. Add Latex formatted mathematical notation and multimedia objects to blog postings
• Feedback: Following an action (such as saving preference settings, or posting a message), feedback is given on the status of the operation. This could be a success message, warnings to consider, or errors to fix.
• Preference Settings: Learners can control ATutor features and the theme ATutor is presented in. New in 1.6.1! A theme with the Fluid libraries integrated, allows users to move the menu from side-to-side to suit their preference. New in 1.6.2! Students can control visual display settings, content adaption settings, navigation controls and learning tools settings.
• Communication Tools: Learners can communicate with others using ATutor's private mail, the discussion forums, the chat rooms, or the "User's Online" tool. Threads and messages can be sorted in a variety of ways. Students can communicate with those in other courses through shared forum, or a community forum. Subscribe to forums or topic threads to have forum messages sent by email. Students can edit their forum posts for a specifed number of minutes.New in 1.6.2!Students can search through forum messages in the current course, enrolled courses, or all available courses.
• Content Package Viewer: Learners can export content from ATutor as Content Packages that can be viewed offline in the accompanying viewer.
• Content Tracker: Learners can keep track of the content pages they have visited.
  Test Manager: Learners can take tests, review test results, and keep track of their scores. Course Guests can take practice tests.New in 1.6.1! Students can return to a test previous started but not completed, and begin where they left off.
• Glossary: Words and phrases added to the glossary by the instructor, can be accessed from terms embedded within content pages, or viewed alphabetically in their entirety using the Glossary tool.
• Links Database: Each course, and groups within courses, has a tool for collecting links to Web-based information. Both students and instructors can add links. Instructors can manage course links, and students can manage group links.
  Course Search: A search engine allows learners to search course content. Search for courses in the course catalogue.
• TILE Repository Search: Learners can search the TILE learning objects repository for content related to the topics they are studying, and download content packages for viewing offline.