How to Use the OpenLab

Getting Started

To get started on the OpenLab, you’ll need to sign up for an account first. You’ll need a City Tech email address to do so, as we need to make sure you’re a part of the City Tech community. Start the process by clicking “Sign Up” on the homepage or up above in the right hand corner. If you have any trouble doing so, consult our Help section on signing up. When you’ve activated your account, take a look at your profile by clicking on “My OpenLab” in the upper left hand corner. Your profile will save all the courses, projects, and clubs you will become a part of as an OpenLab user.

Now that you have an account, explore the site and find some Courses, Projects, or Clubs that interest you. Join the OpenLab’s in-house sites to start:

• Learn about what people are doing on the OpenLab and sign up for a workshop on the Open Road.
• Think about how you might use the OpenLab to expand your pedagogy and learn about faculty-driven events on Open Pedagogy.  
• See what our student blogger team is up to at The Buzz.
• Take a look through some open courses in the courses directory; use the filter on the right hand side of the page to narrow down your options.   

Create a Course

Once you’ve seen what’s possible, go ahead and create your own course. The process is very simple. You can follow along with our help documentation before you start or jump right in.  

When you create a course, the end result is a profile and site, two different areas with different functionalities. The profile is where students and other interested parties will join the course, and it’s also where you can do some basic work like use a discussion board, collectively edit documents, or just post static files.

The site, however, is where the dynamic and customizable work can happen. For some introductions of what you can do with your site, take a look at our robust help documentation focused on building out your site.  If you get confused or frustrated, however, don’t hesitate to contact the Openlabfor basic help by email, come in for an office hour, or attend a workshop. You can always see the schedule for those and RSVP for the workshops on the Open Road.

Now that you’ve had some time to look around and start using the OpenLab. Move along to the third portion of this module: Best Practices.