Course enrolment and permissions

[willdayble]

The three modes we want to implement for this are:

• Free access, no code, no login (anon allowed)
• Free access, but requires login
• Free access, requires login, requires code

This is set in the course edit, and changes the 'enrol' button functionality on the course_intro page.

[mkarpicz]

Course permissions are set on a course level and are edited so. We can add model with course permissions which will act as a state machine. This way we can connect give course permission with a user enrolment.

What should happen when a user is enrolled and a course creator changes permissions? For instance from free to paid or from no code and no login to login required? What we can do:

• disallow a course creator to change permissions once at least one user is enrolled
• disallow a course creator to change permissions once a course is published (see edit course - draft)
• force a user to upgrade or leave course
• give a user a free upgrade

[willdayble]

Any user that is enrolled in a course should remain in that course once it changes state.

E.g. User X joins a course that is "free", and the course is later given a price (not free), the user should remain enrolled, even though every other user must pay a fee after the change.

[mkarpicz]

@willdayble @Yuffster below are some of my concerns regarding anonymous users and their access to content:

• at the moment an anonymous user can't enroll for a course as the whole logic requires user-id (the user object in a database).
• what is the difference between guess access and "Free access, no code, no login"?
• does paid course have the same access levels?
• what does it mean requires code? Is it some access code or just course code? If it's just course code, what's the point of this mode at all, as if someone already entered course via code can enroll?
• what does anonymity mean for us at all? Is it just not knowing an email address or we're not tracking user activity at all?

For now, the simplest way would be to allow viewing public courses without enrollment for an anonymous user and in every other case require login.

[willdayble]

Okay this is a tricky one, let me try again from a teacher point of view:

As a teacher of a course with limited number of students (i.e. a class with physical enrolments in a school), I want to ensure that only my students get in, i.e. "only course code access" or "only logged in students", or possibly both.

As a teacher of a course with possibly unlimited number of students (i.e. an online course that is open to the internet), I probably want to allow anonymous users and logged in users because:

• I want to allow anonymous (i.e. not logged in users) to access the course because I am expecting many of them to decide they don't like it and drop out.
• I want students who DO enjoy it to be able to log in, track their progress, etc.
• There may be thousands of anonymous users, and many fewer logged in users.

HOWEVER, I don't want to tie the idea of anonymity with public accessibility, and this means that the simplest way would be to allow viewing public courses without enrollment for an anonymous user and in every other case require login. doesn't work.

Example:

I'm a high school teacher with teenage students, so I would not expect my students to make accounts (i.e. be anonymous). But I want to see how many (anonymous) people log into the course, to see if only 2 people sign up, or if all of my 25 students do.

However, I don't want random strangers in the course, so I want it only accessible via a course code, to know that those anonymous users are my students.

You and @Yuffster need to solve the above with magic internet code, sorry!

If you're requiring a user-id for enrolment, you may need to either allow generation of "shadow" user-ids that are tied to session, or some other magical method for allowing anonymous, tracked access to courses.

[mkarpicz]

@willdayble as for UX from teacher perspective: Free access, no code, no login (anon allowed) is: Cost=free, Visibility=public, Anonymity=True

Free access, but requires login is: Cost=free, Visibility=public, Anonymity=False

Free access, requires a login, requires code is: Cost=free, Visibility=code only, Anonymity=False

In that case, what's left if business logic behind those options. :)

[mkarpicz]

There are a few things left:

• [x] check access to segments
• [x] check access to resources
• [x] send is_enrolled variable for the course intro page

[mkarpicz]

@willdayble there is at least one thing to check for you, namely on the course intro page we have in two places with enrollment CTA. I've added logic for the bottom.

[mkarpicz]

@willdayble on my side it's done.