MyCourses course space default setting change

MyCourses service top navigation and headed image with text My Courses.

Dear Teacher,

You may have already noticed that the default settings for MyCourses course spaces have changed. Starting this semester, the “Guest access” enrollment method is disabled by default in new course spaces. However, the settings for course spaces starting before August 2024 remain unchanged.

In practice, this means that guest users (those not logged in) cannot access course spaces as freely as they did before. As a teacher, you have the ability to change this setting; therefore, if you want to enable guest access to your course space, it is still possible.

Please note that a “Guest” refers to a user who is not logged into the system. Users who are logged in but are not officially enrolled in the course can still access the course content. There are still situations where you might want or need to restrict certain materials to course students only.

MyCourses remains an open system and provides tools for teachers to keep their materials as accessible as possible. However, as many things evolve, we constantly evaluate and modify our systems to ensure that we offer a secure and usable platform.

Does my course space have Guest access enabled?

You can check the status of Guest access by navigating to the course main page and looking for a green globe icon by the red MyTeaching support button. If you see the green globe, it means that Guest access is enabled. If the green globe is not visible, it means Guest access is disabled.

1. Green Globe button on course space

How can teacher change the Guest access status?

The teacher can change the status by opening the Participants page and selecting Enrollment Methods from the dropdown menu. On this page, you can choose which methods are available and in use. Simply click the eye icon to enable or disable the Guest access method.

2. Navigate to Enrolment methods in course space.

3. Enable and disable Enrolment methods for the course space using eye icon.

More instructions and tips in MyCourses help and remember you can Book a session with our specialist if you need help with MyCourses or other system you are using in teaching. Find information in https://www.aalto.fi/en/teaching