LabArchives ELN for Education is purpose-built for teaching lab courses using LabArchives ELN with course management tools. In LabArchives ELN for Education, the instructor will create a course notebook and all students receive a copy of that course content. The instructor uses the LabArchives Course Manager to invite students, grade student work, and manage the course.
Enterprise License for LabArchives ELN for Education
If your institution has an enterprise license for LabArchives ELN for Education, you will have access to the course manager as soon as you create your account. You can find the Course Manager by clicking the triple-dot menu on the top right, selecting Utilities, and then clicking Course Manager.
Institution Paid License for LabArchives ELN for Education
At the start of each semester, please fill out the Education Order linked below so we know your expected number of students and the course drop date.
LabArchives Education Order Form
If this is your first semester teaching LabArchives, your account will be moved to a different edition that has access to the course manager. If you still see "Free Edition" on the top left when you login, contact LabArchives Support.
The cost for LabArchives ELN for Education is $25/student/course/term. There is no upfront or associated cost for the institution, department, professor or teaching assistant. After the course drop date, the instructor or institution will be emailed an invoice to pay for the course. If someone else will handle the billing, please include their information in the “Order Notes” of the Education Order Form.
Set Up your Course Notebook
Each student in the course will receive a copy of the notebook created by their instructor. Your Instructor Notebook can be organized into a system of folders, pages, and entries to guide your students’ work. Some instructors create a highly structured notebook with text, images, videos, and other course content. Other instructors may create a sparse notebook with blank pages or entries. instruct their students directly on how to complete their work.
To learn more about creating a notebook and adding content to that notebook, click here.
Instructor Course Notebook Tips:
- When naming your Instructor Course Notebook, we recommend including the course name, the semester, and the word “Instructor” in the title. This will make it easier to find this notebook.
- You do not need to create your entire Instructor course notebook before your course begins. With LabArchives, you can update student notebooks with new content throughout the course. We recommend changing or editing your notebook ahead of your students’ progress in your course.
Add Assignment Entries
Assignment Entries are added to pages that will be submitted by the students and graded by the instructor. To create a new Assignment entry, click +New, then choose Assignment from the add entry menu.
Note: It's recommended to have just one assignment entry per page. To learn more about how students submit assignments, Click Here.
The Assignment entry contains the following fields:
Assignment # – This field requires a unique value. This number correlates to the column location in the Grade Report.
Name – This will be the title of the assignment in the Grade Report.
Description – Here you can provide more information about the assignment like instructions for students.
Total Points – This field allows you the option to include the total point value of the assignment.
Group Assignment – Check this box if you would like your students to collaborate in groups on this assignment. If selected, students can select which students they worked with and where the work is located. If students will work independently on this assignment, deselect the group assignment checkbox.
Create your Course in the Course Manager
Once you've built out the course notebook that you want your students to use, you'll need to create the course in the LabArchives course manager. To access the course manager, click the triple dot menu on the top right, select "Utilities" and select "Course Manager." Once you create a course, the course manager can be opened at the course manager icon on the top menu. The Course Manager will open in a new tab.
There are 5 steps to create a new course. You will set up the course information, sections, Teaching Assistants, and invite students. To proceed to the next step, click "Next." To save your progress, click "Save Course and Exit."
Step 1: Course Information
In Course Information, you can adjust settings for your course.
Course Title and Description: It's recommended to add a clear course title so students know they are working in the right notebook
Base student notebooks on: This allows you to select a notebook that you own. Students will receive a full copy of all pages, entries, and folders in this notebook. If you have many notebooks, be sure to select the correct notebook.
- Allow students to share their notebooks with other students: If enabled, students will be able to share their notebook with other students in the course. This is typically used for group work.
- Allow students to sign pages in their notebooks: Page signing is used to permanently freeze a page. If enabled, this option will not allow anyone, including the instructor, to edit a signed page.
- Allow teaching assistants to add or delete sections: If enabled, teaching assistants can update section information.
- Restrict teaching assistant access to their section(s) only: This option limits each teaching assistant to access student information and grades for only their section. If enabled, ensure teaching assistants and students are assigned to the correct section.
- Lock assignment page when assignment is submitted: If enabled, the entire page will lock when the assignment entry is submitted. Once the instructor or teaching assistant grades the page, the page will unlock. To learn more about how students work in their notebook, Click Here.
- Show comments automatically for students and teaching assistants: Often, comments are used to communicate with students or teaching staff. If enabled, the comments will be visible without needing to click the comments button. To learn more about comments, Click Here.
Note: If you integrate your course to Canvas Blackboard or Moodle, you'll see a prompt to enable the integration for that course. Students will be added to the course through the learning management system, so that step will be skipped. To learn more about Canvas, Blackboard or Moodle, Click Here.
Step 2: Sections
For large courses, you may want to add students and teaching assistants to specific sections. To create a section, input a section name and description and click "Add"
Step 3: Teaching Assistants
Any additional grading staff will be invited as a Teaching Assistant. To invite teaching assistants, input their email address, select the sections they will be part of, and click "Add." The teaching assistants will receive an email with an activation link.
Step 4: Sign-up URLs
Students can be invited to a course using a sign up URL, using the learning management system, or by invitation. The URL's on step 4 can be sent in email or posted to a learning management system. Students will click on the link to register for the course and receive their copy of the course notebook.
Step 5: Students
Most instructors prefer to invite students to the course by email invitation. On Step 5, input the students email address, select the section, and click "Add." Students will receive an email inviting them to the course with a link to activate their account. Once students login, they'll be enrolled in the course and have a copy of the course notebook.
Once finished click "Save Course and Exit."
To learn more about using the course manager and grading students work, Click Here.