Getting Started

Shapeshift separates the tools used to manage your learning platform from the experience used by learners.

Before getting started, it is useful to understand the main parts of the platform and how they relate to one another.

For definitions of common terminology, see the Glossary.

CMS and LMS

Shapeshift has two main interfaces:

• CMS (Content Management System): The administrative area, built on Strapi, where learning content, Users, Organizations, enrollments, notifications and other platform data are managed.
• LMS (Learning Management System): The learner-facing experience where Users access Courses, complete learning activities and track their progress.

Changes made in the CMS affect what is available through the LMS.

Administrators should therefore use the CMS to manage the platform, while learners and Organization Owners generally use the LMS and Management Dashboard.

See Using the CMS for an introduction to the administrative interface.

Learning content

Shapeshift learning content follows a simple hierarchy:

Learning Path → Course → Module

Learning Paths

A Learning Path groups multiple Courses into a wider learning journey.

Learning Paths are optional. They can use linear or freeform progression and can award their own Certificate where configured.

The underlying technical term for a Learning Path is Group, which you may still encounter in some CMS URLs or technical references.

Courses

A Course contains a curriculum of Modules.

Courses track learner progress and completion and can award a Certificate when completed.

Modules

A Module is an individual learning activity within a Course.

Standard Module types include:

• Lessons
• Quizzes
• SCORM Content
• Surveys
• Webinars

Courses can also contain optional Modules and Sections used to organize the curriculum.

Users and Administrators

Shapeshift keeps learner accounts and CMS Administrator accounts separate.

Users have accounts for the learner-facing LMS. A User may be a learner, an Organization Owner, or both.

Administrators have access to the CMS. Their access can be controlled through CMS roles and permissions.

The same person can have both accounts, but giving someone an LMS account does not give them access to the CMS.

See Users, Administrators and Impersonation for more information.

Organizations and Sub-Groups

Organizations provide the structure for managing groups of learners within a Portal.

An Organization can contain learners and Organization Owners and can be divided further using Sub-Groups.

Organization Owners can use the Management Dashboard to perform permitted management and reporting tasks without requiring CMS access.

Within the underlying Shapeshift structure, Organizations and Sub-Groups are represented by Cohorts, so you may still encounter Cohort terminology in some technical areas.

See Organizations and Sub-Groups and Organizations: The Management Dashboard for more information.

Enrollments

An Enrollment connects a learner to their learning content.

Enrollments are used to determine access and track progress and completion across Learning Paths, Courses and individual Modules.

Learners can be enrolled in different ways depending on your implementation, including self-enrollment, administrator assignment, Organization management, Learning Paths and external integrations.

See Enrollments for more information.

Draft and Publish

Supported learning content uses Draft and Publish.

This allows administrators to prepare changes in the CMS before making them available to learners.

Publishing requirements vary by content type, so if content is not appearing where expected, its publication status is one of the first things to check.

See Draft and Publish for more information.

Where to go next

If you are new to administering Shapeshift, we recommend starting with:

1. Using the CMS to understand the administrative interface.
2. Courses and the relevant Module documentation to understand learning content.
3. Learning Paths to understand multi-Course journeys.
4. Organizations and Sub-Groups to understand learner management.
5. Enrollments to understand how learners are connected to their learning.
6. Reporting and Analytics to understand learner and platform reporting.

Your implementation may enable, disable or adapt particular features to meet your requirements. Where behavior differs from the standard Shapeshift functionality described in these guides, refer to your implementation-specific documentation or contact Plume.