Glossary
A reference glossary of product-specific terms used in OpenOlat. These are terms that have specific meaning within the OpenOlat LMS context.
Absence management
Module for tracking and managing participant absences from lectures.
Absence manager
Can manage attendance tracking and absence records across the system.
Access code
A password-based booking method restricting course enrolment to code holders.
Access control
Booking and offer management for learning resources.
Access for coach
Key figure label in the Course widget for courses with the publication status "Access for coach".
Active member (certification program)
Membership status in a certification program: the person holds a certificate in this program and is therefore an active, certified member.
Administration
The system administration area for configuring modules, managing users, and system settings.
Administrator
Has full system administration rights.
Adobe Connect
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
AI feature
An AI-powered area of use in OpenOlat (e.g. MC Question Generator, Image Description Generator) to which an AI provider and a model are assigned in the AI module.
AI module
Integration of AI capabilities for content generation and assistance.
AI provider
The service provider whose AI models are used for the AI-powered features in OpenOlat. Multiple providers can be configured in parallel in the AI module (OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, generic OpenAI-compatible services).
All correct answers
Scoring method for multiple-choice, hotspot, hottext, drag&drop, matrix, and gap questions (text, numerical, mixed, with dropdown): the full score is only achieved if all correct answers are selected, otherwise the final score is 0.
Animation
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Appointment scheduling
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Appointments widget
Widget on the Dashboard showing upcoming appointments from the Lectures and Absences module.
Assessment
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Assessment inspection
Supervised review of completed assessments.
Assessment management
Central overview and management of assessments.
Assessment mode
Controlled exam environment with restricted browser access.
Assessment tool
Central interface for coaches and owners to evaluate, grade, and manage learner assessments.
Assignment of dates
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Audio
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Audio/Video recording
Recording capabilities for audio and video content.
Author
Can create and manage learning resources.
Authoring
The area where authors create and manage learning resources.
Badges
Digital badges awarded for achievements.
BigBlueButton
Web conferencing integration for virtual classrooms.
BigBlueButton
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Blog
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Blog
A type of learning resource for blog content.
Blog entry
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Booking order
A record created when a user books or enrolls in a course through the catalog.
Bulk assessment
Feature allowing coaches to assess multiple participants simultaneously.
Calendar
Personal and course calendar for scheduling and event management.
Calendar
A course element for embedding a course calendar with events and deadlines.
Candidate (certification program)
Membership status in a certification program: the person participates in an implementation linked to the program but does not yet hold a certificate in this program. Membership can thus begin before the first certification.
card2brain
card2brain flashcard learning integration.
card2brain
A course element for flashcard-based learning via card2brain.
Catalog
Structured catalog for publishing and finding learning resources.
Catalog widget
Widget on the Dashboard showing catalog offers from a Course Planner implementation.
Certificates
Automatic or manual PDF certificate generation.
Certification program
A structured certification path with recertification requirements.
Check list
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Check list (old)
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Coach
Tutors/coaches participants in a course or group.
Coach folder
A dedicated file area visible only to coaches within a course.
Coaching
Cross-course overview for coaches to monitor learners. See also: Coaching Tool.
Coaching Tool
The name used in OpenOlat for the tool in which coaches view learners, test corrections, and assessments across courses. See also: Coaching.
Competence
Skill or competence assigned to users via taxonomy.
Contact tracing
Location-based contact tracing system.
Content editor
WYSIWYG editor for creating rich content, used in the Page course element, the Form learning resource and the portfolio.
Conventional course
Traditional course design with menu-based navigation (non-learning-path).
Corrector
A person assigned to manually grade test submissions within a correction workflow.
Course
The main learning resource type for structured online courses.
Course content widget
Widget on the Dashboard showing course contents of a Course Planner implementation.
Course editor
Tool used to build and modify course structure and course elements.
Course element
A building block that can be added to a course structure in the course editor.
Course lifecycle
The automated process by which a course transitions through statuses based on its execution end date.
Course planner
Can manage curricula and products in the Course Planner module.
Course Planner
Manage curricula, implementations, and educational structures (formerly "Curriculum").
Course reminders
Automated email reminders based on course conditions.
Course template
A course template in the Course Planner that can be instantiated as a course for a curriculum implementation at a later date. See also: Template course.
Course widget
Widget on the Dashboard of the Coaching tool, showing the courses coached by the current coach.
Courses
The main area where users find and access their enrolled courses.
CP learning content
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
CP learning content
A type of learning resource for IMS Content Packages.
Credit points
System for awarding and tracking academic credit points for course completion.
Curriculum element
A node in the curriculum tree representing a module, semester, or subject.
Dashboard
Personal start page with configurable widgets.
Data collection
Surveys used within the Quality Management module to gather feedback.
Data collection generator
Automated rule sets that create data collections (surveys) based on triggers like course start or end.
Delivery format
A metadata field indicating the mode of delivery (online, blended, in-person) shown in catalog cards.
Document
A course element for embedding and displaying documents.
Document pool
Taxonomy-based document management area.
draw.io
draw.io diagramming integration used for Whiteboard in Projects.
Drop box
The file submission area within a Task course element where participants upload their work.
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
edu-sharing
edu-sharing educational content repository integration.
edu-sharing
A course element for accessing shared educational resources via edu-sharing.
Edubase
Edubase digital textbook integration.
Edubase
A course element for digital textbook content via Edubase.
Education manager
Can manage educational programs.
Educational product
A Course Planner product consisting of multiple courses and implementations, visible in the Coaching tool.
Element owner
Manages a specific curriculum element within Course Planner.
Enrolment
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
ePortfolio
Electronic portfolio for learner reflection and evidence collection.
Essay Grading
AI feature that produces formative feedback on learners' essay answers.
Essay Question Generator
AI feature that creates open-text (essay) questions with grading criteria from a source text or an uploaded file.
Events / Absences
Lecture block management with absence tracking.
Evidence of achievement
Record of a user's performance in assessable course elements.
Excel
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
External course tool
Configurable link in the course toolbar to an external web application. Up to four external course tools with name, URL, icon, and role-based visibility can be configured per course.
External page
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
External reference
An external identifier for a learning resource, e.g. from a course catalog or lecture directory.
File
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
File dialog
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
File Hub
Central file browser aggregating files from courses, groups, and personal storage.
Folder
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Form
A course element for embedding evaluation forms that participants fill out.
Form
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Forum
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
frentix cloud transcoding service
A service operated by frentix that OpenOlat communicates with via an API. It transcodes uploaded videos into multiple resolutions and automatically generates subtitles. Not part of the standard OpenOlat distribution. Contact frentix support if interested: contact@frentix.com
Full-text search
System-wide search for content across courses, learning resources, and user data.
Generated reports
Section in the Reporting area of the Coaching tool; lists the generated Excel files, which are available for download for 10 days.
Glossary
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
GoToMeeting
GoToMeeting/GoToTraining virtual meeting integration.
GoToMeeting
A course element for GoToMeeting virtual meetings.
Grading assignment
A task assigned to a corrector to manually grade a specific test submission. Completed grading assignments are additionally logged permanently and listed in the "Archive" worksheet of the Excel report, so that the data relevant for remuneration (grading time, completion date) is retained even if the assignment itself is deleted.
Group manager
Can manage groups across the system.
Groups
Collaborative groups for learning and project work.
Grouptask
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Guest
Anonymous user with limited read-only access.
HTML-Page
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Icon catalog
Predefined selection of around 30 icons from which the symbol for an external course tool is chosen.
Image
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Image Description Generator
AI feature that generates title, description, alt text and keywords for uploaded images.
Implementation
A concrete offering of a curriculum element with dates and members.
Implementation status
Lifecycle status of an implementation in the Course Planner: preparation, provisional, confirmed, active, cancelled, finished. Separate from the publication status of a learning resource.
Implementation widget
Widget on the Dashboard of the Course Planner, showing the implementations relevant to the person with key figures and a table.
Import (content editor)
Import function of the content editor that automatically converts markdown files, Word documents (.docx) or pasted markdown text into content editor blocks.
Instant messaging
Built-in chat/messenger for real-time communication between users.
Invitee
External user invited to access specific resources.
JupyterHub
JupyterHub interactive computing integration.
JupyterHub
A course element for interactive Jupyter computing notebooks.
Launcher
A configurable section in Catalog 2.0 that dynamically assembles and displays course offerings.
Learning area
A named grouping of course groups used to simplify group-based visibility rules.
Learning path
Sequential course design with progress tracking and completion criteria.
Learning progress
Tracking of user progress through a learning path course.
Learning resource
A managed content object in the authoring area (course, test, form, video, etc.).
Learning resource manager
Can manage learning resources across the system.
Lesson block
A schedulable teaching unit within the Events/Absences module, comprising 1 to 12 individual lessons.
Levels/Grading
Configuration of grading scales and performance levels.
Library
Document library for shared reading materials.
Licenses
Management of content licenses for learning resources.
Lightbox mode
Display mode in which content (documents, media, details) is opened in a modal overlay above the current page, without leaving the page.
Line manager
Has line management permissions for user oversight.
Link list
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Live stream
A course element for live video streaming.
LTI
Learning Tools Interoperability standard for external tool integration.
LTI page
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Master coach
Supervises coaches across curriculum implementations.
MC Question Generator
AI feature that creates suggestions for multiple-choice questions in the question pool from a source text.
Media Center
Central repository for media elements reusable across content.
Mediasite
Sonic Foundry Mediasite lecture capture integration.
Mediasite
A course element for Sonic Foundry Mediasite lecture capture.
Member widget
Widget on the Dashboard of the Course Planner, showing the number of participants and the persons responsible for an implementation.
Metadata
Descriptive information about a learning resource (title, description, authors, license, etc.).
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams virtual meeting integration.
Microsoft Teams
A course element for Microsoft Teams virtual meetings within a course.
Movie
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Notes
Personal note-taking feature for users.
Notifications
A course element for posting and reading course notifications/messages.
OAI-PMH
Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting, used for catalog exposure.
Occasion
A named topic within the Appointment Scheduling course element, to which multiple time slots can be assigned.
Offer
A booking configuration that controls access to a learning resource.
Opencast
Opencast lecture recording and video management integration.
Opencast
A course element for Opencast lecture recordings and videos.
OpenMeetings
Apache OpenMeetings web conferencing integration.
OpenMeetings
A course element for Apache OpenMeetings web conferencing.
Organisations
Hierarchical organizational structure for role-scoped management.
Other file
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Owner
Owner of a learning resource or course.
Page
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Partial score
Scoring method for multiple-choice, hotspot, hottext, drag&drop, matrix, and gap questions (text, numerical, mixed, with dropdown): a weighted score is added for each correctly selected answer and subtracted for each incorrectly selected answer.
Participant
A learner enrolled in a course or group.
Participant Folder
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Participant list
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Participants accepted
Group in the "Topic assignment" course element listing the course participants accepted for a topic.
Passkey
Passwordless authentication via WebAuthn allowing users to log in with biometric or hardware keys.
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Peer review
Feature enabling participants to review each other's work in task elements.
Podcast
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Podcast
A type of learning resource for podcast content.
Portfolio 2.0 Template
Template defining structure and tasks for ePortfolio assignments.
Portfolio task
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
PowerPoint
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Practice
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Principal
Has principal oversight permissions.
Product
Top-level entity in Course Planner representing a curriculum with implementations and courses.
Product owner
Manages a complete product (curriculum) in Course Planner.
Project manager
Can manage project spaces across the system.
Projects
Project management tool with to-dos, files, and decisions.
Publication status
Lifecycle state of a learning resource: Preparation, Review, Access for Coach, Published, Finished.
QTI 2.1
Question and Test Interoperability standard for assessment items.
Quality management
Tools for quality assurance surveys and data collections.
Quality manager
Can manage quality management processes.
Question bank
Shared pool of assessment questions across courses.
Question bank manager
Can manage the question bank pool.
Questionnaire
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Recertification
Process of re-earning a certificate after expiration within a certification program.
Report templates
Table in the Reporting area of the Coaching tool; lists the available reports with name, category, description and type (static/dynamic).
Reporting
Area of the Coaching tool in which authorised roles create Excel reports based on report templates.
Reports
Button in the Coaching tool that opens the Reporting area.
Repository entry
A managed learning resource in the authoring area (course, test, form, etc.).
Resource folder
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Responsible for the topic
Group in the "Topic assignment" course element listing the topic authors assigned to a topic.
REST API
RESTful API for external system integration.
Return box
The file area within a Task course element where coaches return graded work to participants.
Role switching
Ability for multi-role members to change their active role perspective within a course.
Roles manager
Can manage role assignments.
Room management
OpenOlat module for the central management of physical rooms in buildings and their booking by course events in the Course Planner.
Rubric
A form element for evaluating multiple criteria against the same rating scale, used in assessments and surveys.
Safe Exam Browser
Integration with Safe Exam Browser (SEB) for secure online exams.
Sample solutions
Model answers or reference solutions provided within a Task course element.
Score per answer
Scoring method for multiple-choice, hotspot, hottext, drag&drop, matrix, and gap questions (text, numerical, mixed, with dropdown): positive and negative points are configured individually for each answer option.
SCORM
Sharable Content Object Reference Model for e-learning content packaging.
SCORM 1.2
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Selection
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Self-test
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
SharePoint / OneDrive
Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive file access integration.
Storage folder
Internal file management area within a course for storing course files.
Structure
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Subject
A taxonomy-based classification term assigned to a learning resource to enable catalog filtering and grouping in taxonomy launchers.
Subscriptions
User subscriptions to notifications about changes in courses and resources.
Success status
Metric in course and people lists of the Coaching Tool, shows the assessment status graphically and in figures: "Passed", "Not passed", "Not specified".
Survey
A course element for anonymous surveys using evaluation forms.
Survey
A type of learning resource for questionnaires and surveys.
System administrator
Has full system-level administration rights including server configuration.
Table widget
Widget on the Dashboard showing implementations or offers in table format.
Task
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Taxonomy
Hierarchical classification system for competences and content.
Teaser
A short preview text used for compact announcements, currently available for courses.
Template course
A source course from which implementation instances are automatically created in Course Planner. See also: Course template.
Test
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Test (QTI 1.2 - no longer supported)
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Test (QTI 2.1)
Learning resource for assessments in IMS QTI 2.1 format.
To-do
Personal and course-related task management.
Topic assignment
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Topic broker
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Trash can
The area where deleted learning resources are moved before permanent deletion.
User
A registered account holder in the system with basic access rights.
User manager
Can manage user accounts and roles.
Video
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Video
A type of learning resource for video content with annotations and quizzes.
Video collection
Central area aggregating all shared video learning resources.
Video task
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Vitero
Vitero virtual team room integration.
Vitero
A course element for Vitero virtual team rooms.
Waiting list
A queue for users who cannot be immediately enrolled, with automatic promotion when places become available.
Web catalog
Externally accessible catalog that allows non-registered users to browse and book course offerings.
WebDAV
Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning for file access.
Whiteboard
Visual collaboration tool (powered by draw.io) within the Projects module.
Wiki
A course element (building block) that can be added to a course structure.
Wiki
A type of learning resource for collaborative wiki content.
Wiki page
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Word
A type of learning resource that can be created or imported in the authoring area.
Working area
The area in the main navigation assigned to a role, where the tasks belonging to that role are carried out. The main navigation is composed depending on the user's roles: participants work in "Courses", coaches in "Coaching", authors in the "Authoring" area.
Zoom
Zoom video conferencing integration.
Zoom
A course element for Zoom video conferencing within a course.