Examples of Study Area structures
Below are three commonly used methods for structuring content in online study areas and are designed to help students find materials quickly and efficiently.
A predefined structure for study areas can:
- let different instructors on a course know where to place new materials
- reflect the way in which materials are taught in face to face sessions
- give students a consistent online learning experience
- help tutors plan online learning and workloads.
There are three main methods for structuring content:
1. By Content Type
This method is:
- quick and easy to set up and maintain
- not always the best structure to find related content in
- potentially more time consuming to upload larger amounts of content.

2. By Week or Lecture
This method:
- can match the way the course/module/unit is delivered
- has a structure that is flexible enough to match different methods of delivery (such as week, lecture, topic)
- is suitable for different modes of delivery.
3. By Theme or Topic
This method can:
- accommodate students studying on different routes where common learning materials are shared
- be used where online materials do not need to replicate face to face sessions and are referenced separately or developed over time
- avoid repetition of generic learning content
- form a resource or knowledge bank.
NOTE: Which ever method you use please consider the following:
- Make sure you don’t nest too many folder resulting in too many clicks for your students to locate information.
- Make sure your students understand the structure you use.
- Make the folder structure appealing by adding visuals.