Using Kialo with Moodle

Contents

There are three recommended ways to use Kialo with Moodle:


1. Use the Kialo Moodle plugin

The Kialo Moodle plugin is the best way to use Kialo with Moodle, but the plugin must be installed by an administrator of your Moodle instance.

Students will be automatically signed in and have the same name in Kialo as in Moodle. You can use your Moodle Groups in Kialo. Grades given in Kialo can be synced back to Moodle, and for added security, the plugin makes using Kialo without sharing links possible. The plugin also allows you to back up and restore your course without having to recreate all discussions and update the links to them.


2. Link to an Instant Access Kialo discussion

This makes it very easy to have a quick discussion with your students.


3. Use LTI

This does everything the Kialo plugin does, but Moodle groups will be arbitrarily named in Kialo, and students’ avatars will not be the same as in Moodle. Setting up LTI yourself will likely take around 5 minutes.



1. Use the Kialo Moodle Plugin

Use this method if an admin has installed the Kialo plugin on your Moodle instance.

  1. In Edit Mode, click Add an activity or resource and select Kialo.
  2. In the popup, add an Activity Name, e.g., Discussion about Shakespeare.
  3. Click Select Discussion.
  4. Select a Kialo discussion or create a New one.
  5. Choose your Small Group Mode setting, then click Save.
    a. If you want all of your students to work in the same discussion, select No Groups.
    b. If you want your students to work in separate copies of the discussion, select the appropriate option. Use LMS Groups will organize students into your existing Moodle groups, while Automatically assign to groups splits your students randomly into the number of groups entered.
  6. Click Save and return to course.


2. Link to an Instant Access Kialo discussion

Use this if you do not want your students to create Kialo accounts. 

  1. In Kialo, enter your discussion and click the Share button.
  2. Enable Instant Access (don’t require Kialo accounts). 
  3. Copy the link and use it in your course.


3. Use LTI

Adding Kialo as an External Tool 

First, set up Kialo as a preconfigured tool in your course – this only needs to be done once:

  1. In your course, click More to open the dropdown menu and select LTI External tools.
  2. Click Add tool.
  3. Fill out the Tool settings section as follows (screenshot); don’t adjust any fields which aren’t mentioned:

    Tool name: Kialo
    Tool URL: https://www.kialo-edu.com/
    LTI version: LTI 1.3
    Public keyset: https://www.kialo-edu.com/lti/jwks.json
    Initiate login URL: https://www.kialo-edu.com/lti/start
    Redirection URI(s): https://www.kialo-edu.com/lti/launch
    Custom parameters: groups=$Moodle.Person.userGroupIds
    Default launch container: Display in embed
    Check the Supports Deep Linking option

    Expand the Services section and select the following:
    IMS LTI Assignment and Grade Services: Use this service for grade sync only

    Expand the Privacy section and select the following:
    Share launcher’s name with tool: Always
    Share launcher’s email with tool: Always
    Accept grades from the tool: As specified in Deep Linking definition or Delegate to teacher

  4. Click Save changes.

Using Kialo as an External Tool 

Now that Kialo has been set up as a preconfigured tool, whenever you want to add a Kialo discussion to your course:

  1. Click Add an activity or resource and select External Tool
  2. Add an Activity Name, e.g., Discussion about Shakespeare.
  3. Select Kialo as the preconfigured tool.
  4. Click Select Content, then select a Kialo discussion or create a New one.
  5. (Optional) If you want to synchronize your Kialo grades with Moodle, check Allow Kialo to add grades in the gradebook and adjust the settings if desired.
  6. Click Save and return to course.

Done! Students clicking the discussion link in Moodle will be automatically signed into their Kialo accounts and given the Writer role.

Syncing Kialo Grades with Moodle

Kialo’s Grading and Feedback feature supports syncing grades with Moodle. The Overall grade you leave for students on Kialo can be sent to Moodle when you’ve finished grading the discussion.

Step-by-step guide on how to synchronize Kialo grades with Moodle:

  1. Ensure the Kialo plugin is installed or LTI is set up on your Moodle site.
  2. In Moodle, add a Kialo discussion to your course.
    If you’re unsure how, follow the instructions for either the plugin or LTI as appropriate. If using LTI, ensure you complete the optional step.

  3. Ensure the Grading and Feedback feature is enabled:
    a. Click the Settings icon in the top-right of the discussion.
    b. Scroll to the Grading and Feedback section and check Enable Grading and Feedback.
    c. Adjust the default settings if appropriate.

  4. When ready, assign grades to students and send the grades to Moodle:
    a. Click the Grading Overview icon in the top-right of the discussion.
    b. Select a student and assign an appropriate Overall grade, then click Save. Repeat until done for all students.
    c. When finished, click Send Grades to LMS.

Done! The grades you’ve assigned in Kialo should now be synchronized with your Moodle course. If you have any issues, confirm that you’ve configured the appropriate grading settings in your Moodle course and Kialo.

warning
Warning:

If you set up LTI before October 2024 and want to use Kialo grading on your Moodle site, you must update Kialo’s external tool configuration to add the updated settings. This is not necessary if you are using the plugin.

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