Hwb Tools

The majority of the resources on Hwb are available bilingually and the Hwb Content team are continually working with content partners across Wales to secure additional bilingual materials.

Some of the third party resources, such as Britannica Digital Learning, are not currently available in Welsh.

Resources created by members of the Hwb Community will be in their chosen language.

1. Navigate to https://hwb.gov.wales
2. Click on the Resources tile.
3. You can quickly search for a resource by typing a keyword into the Search teaching and learning resources bar (towards the top of the page).

Additional search options are available once you have logged-in, including the Hwb Community, Britannica Digital Learning, Image Quest and People’s Collection Wales. These options can be selected just above the Search teaching and learning resources bar.

Alternatively, you can search within a particular educational area by using the Discover menu, or within a particular key stage by using the Find and use menu (along the top of the resources page).

Once you have logged-in to Hwb, you are then able to bookmark your favourite resources.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on the Resources tile.
3. Select the resource you wish to bookmark.
4. Click on the bookmark symbol on the top left-hand side.

You can find your bookmarked resources by clicking Resources > Bookmarks (along the top of the page next to Make and share).

All Hwb users, apart from learners, who have joined the Hwb Community will be able to see resources uploaded to the Hwb Community. Learners, and anyone who hasn’t joined the Community, will not be able to see them.

This icon shows that the resource has been created by a member of the Hwb Community. Welsh Government are not responsible for its quality or accuracy.

Sharing resources from the Hwb Community with learners

Learners cannot view materials in the Hwb Community.

If the resource is simply a link to a website or playlist you can share this link with learners via Hwb Classes, Office 365, J2e or G Suite for Education.

Files such as Word documents or PowerPoints will need to be to downloaded from the resource and made accessible to learners, again through Hwb Classes, Office 365, J2e, G Suite for Education or any other system used by the school.

If the resource is a playlist you can use the Copy a playlist feature by clicking on the share icon (in the top right-hand corner of the playlist). You will then find the playlist in the Playlists application.

1. Click on the Menu (at the top of the page).
2. Click Playlists.
3. Click on the relevant playlist.
4. Click Share (in the top right-hand corner).
5. Either copy the link and share it with learners using another application or, if you are using Hwb Classes, click Hwb Groups > Select the Classes tab > Click Share to group next to the relevant Class.

Users who have joined the Hwb Community are able to upload resources (including links to websites), which can be viewed by other Community members.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on the Resources tile.
3. Click Make and share (from the options along the top of the Resources page).
4. Click + New resource (in the top right-hand corner).
5. If your resource is a link, enter the URL in the Add website address here bar. If your resource is a file, click File and drag and drop your files from your local storage > Click Next.
6. In the Publish a resource window, any fields with a pencil icon next to them can be edited by clicking on the icon.
7. Add tags for subject, key stage(s) and keywords (this will make it easier for other users to find your resource and they will be picked up when someone uses the search feature on Hwb).
8. Once you are ready to publish your resource to the Hwb Community, click Publish (in the top right-hand corner).

To rate or review a resource you will need to be logged-in to Hwb. You can then select a resource, click on the Reviews tab or the 5 stars that appear at the top of the page and then give it a star rating and a review. Once you have completed your review, click Send.

If you find an issue with a resource then please use the Report tab on the resource to alert the Hwb Content team who will investigate.

Tagging is a term used to describe the process of applying keywords to resources. These keywords are used in searches for resources, along with other information about the resource, making it easier to find what you’re looking for.

For example, an English resource on William Shakespeare’s Macbeth used at Key Stage 4 could have the following tags (keywords) associated with it: William Shakespeare, English, language, Macbeth, king, the Scottish play, tragedy, Globe Theatre, prophecy, KS4, GCSE.

The more tags a resource has, the easier it is to find. This is because you are more likely to type a search term that matches the resource’s tags.

Tags are also used to organise items in the resources section of the site. We use the tags applied to resources to put them into the relevant category, educational area or subject so they can be found easily.

If you find there are missing tags, you can apply additional tags yourself by going to the Tags tab within a resource and typing the tag into the Add a new tag bar.

The majority of the resources will work on a wide range of devices and browsers. However, some older resources use Adobe Flash which is not supported by some mobile devices. We recommend that you always test a resource to ensure its suitability before distributing to learners.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on the Playlists tile.
3. Click + Add New (on the right-hand side) > Add a new Playlist.
4. Give your Playlist a name > Click Create.
5. Where you see a pencil icon, you can click the icon to edit the text.
6. On the right-hand side of the page you will see a number of content options:
   • Hwb search (to find relevant Hwb resources)
   • Google search (to find relevant web content – safe search is enabled here)
   • YouTube search (to find relevant YouTube videos – safe search is enabled here)
   • Britannica Digital Learning search (to find relevant Britannica Digital Learning articles)
   • ImageQuest search (to find safe royalty-free images for education use)
   • Add URL (to add your own URL)
   • People’s Collection Wales search (to find Welsh history resources).

Once you have found your content, drag and drop it into your playlist steps (to the left, under Steps).

7. To add a page where you can insert your own content and images, click on the Add page type button (to the right of the search options). Select a page type and drag and drop it into your playlist steps. Use the pencil icon (to the right of the relevant playlist step) to edit your pages.

Playlist steps can be reordered using the arrows that appear next to the step number when you hover over it.

Creating a quiz in a Playlist

You can add a quiz to your playlist by selecting the Add page type icon to add a new page type and then selecting one of the quiz options. If you’re unsure which option to choose, hover over each option and click the i for more information about quiz types.

Once you have selected a quiz type, drag and drop it into your playlist steps. To edit your quiz do the following.

1. Click on the pencil icon next to the quiz type in your playlist steps.
2. Type your question, your answers and feedback (if required).
3. Either click Save and close, Save and preview (to preview how your quiz will look for learners) or click on the green + button at the top of the page to add another quiz question.

There is a Preview button in the top right-hand corner that you can use at any point to preview your playlist.

You have several options to share your Playlist, all of which are available through the Share button (in the top right-hand corner) of your playlist.

1. Sharing the link will allow anyone logged in to Hwb to view your playlist.
2. Sharing to the Hwb Community will allow you to create a Hwb Community Resource from your playlist. The resource will then be available to all Hwb Community users (learners will not have access).
3. Sharing to Hwb Groups will bring up a list of Networks and Classes you are a member of and will allow you to share your playlist to that group. This is the recommended way of sharing your playlist with your Class.
4. Sharing as an Assignment will take you to a page where you can turn your playlist into an Assignment for your learners.

Accessing share links

To get to the share links feature, first click Playlists in the Hwb tools menu in the top right-hand corner. You’ll be taken to a list of your Playlists and folders.

Click the drop-down menu on the furthest right-hand side of the chosen playlist. You’ll be presented with the following options.

• Rename will allow you to change your Playlist’s name.
• Move to folder allows you to change its location.
• Copy creates a duplicate of your Playlist.
• Manage Share Links is the feature we will be exploring in this help guide.
• Reports is where you can view statistics about every individual quiz and question.
• Manage Contributors allows you to manage your Playlist’s contributors and requests.
• Delete is where you can delete your Playlist. You will be asked to confirm the deletion.

Click on Manage Share Links and you’ll be taken to the following page.

From here, you can create share links, as well as revoke or rename any links you’ve already created.

Creating a share link

Click the Create new share link button in the top right-hand corner of the page. This will open a pop-up box.

Here you can:

• add a Name
• adjust the Privacy Settings if you have permission, choosing whether you want the link to be Public or available only to Authenticated (logged-in) users
• choose whether you want to Remember user progress, meaning users’ scores will be remembered if they leave the playlist. Please be mindful that this only saves progress on full activities that have been completed, and will not save your position within the activity itself
• choose whether you want to Allow users to edit survey answers, meaning that users will be able to edit and resubmit their answers as many times as they like.

Once you’ve finished editing the share link, hit Save and your brand new share link will appear in your list of existing share links.

Editing share links

If, at any time, you want to Rename or Revoke your link, click the drop-down menu on the far right of your link and find the appropriate option.

Clicking on Rename will open a pop-up box where you can enter the link’s new name.

Clicking on Revoke link will open a pop-up box asking you to confirm that you want to revoke the link. There will be a reminder that revoking the link will mean anyone viewing the Playlist will no longer be able to view it, no matter where you’ve shared the link to.

To the left of the Share link button is a drop-down menu where you can change whether your Playlist is visible to the Public or only Authenticated users.

Sharing your link

You’ll also see a button on each row labelled Share link.

You can add mathematical content to Playlists by using Mathquill. Further guidance on how to do this can be found here:

How to use Mathquill in playlists

A list of the commands available for use within Mathquill can be found here:

Mathquill commands

Make a copy of one of your own playlists as follows.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on the Playlists tile.
3. Click on the drop-down arrow to the right of the relevant Playlist > Click Copy.
4. The copy will then appear in your list of playlists with the name ‘Copy of original playlist name’.

Make a copy of someone else's playlist as follows.

1. Open the Playlist.
2. Click on the cog icon (in the top right-hand corner).
3. Click Save a copy to My Playlists.
4. You will then find a fully editable copy in your Playlist library.

Learners need to be logged-in to Hwb to view Playlists. They also need the specific URL (web address) of the Playlist, which can be found when you click Share from within your Playlist.

Playlists provide links out to the web, they don't make copies of the sites/videos used. That means if a website were to be changed or to disappear, or a video was removed from YouTube, anyone using the Playlist would no longer have access to the resource.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on the Networks tile.
3. There is a search bar at the top of the page for you to search the networks or you can scroll through the networks displayed on the page.
4. Click on the network you would like to join.
5. Click on the blue Join Network button.

Your request will be received by the administrator of the network who can grant you access. You can also contact network owners using the Contact option (represented by an envelope symbol) on the network overview page.

All users, except learners, can create a Hwb Network.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on the Networks tile.
3. Click + Create a new Network (at the top of the page).
4. Give your network a name and click Start Network. Your new network will then open.
5. To add information about your network and images (optional), click on the settings ‘cog’.
   • About Network: edit the name and add a description.
   • Picture: add a picture for the network by clicking on the mountains icon.
   • Banner: add a banner image for the network.
   • Privacy: the default privacy setting for a network is Inactive. Once you are ready for your network to be returned in search results, change this to Live.

You can find a full guide to Hwb Networks in Hwb Resources. Just search Hwb Networks Guide.

You can give other members of your network a Manager role.

1. Within your network, click on the Members list.
2. Hover over the relevant member and click on the drop-down arrow next to their name > Select the Manager tick box.

The managers will then be able to approve new members, make announcements and will have the same permissions as the administrator(s).

Removing someone from a Hwb Network

1. Within your network, click on the Members list.
2. Hover over the relevant member and click on the drop-down arrow next to their name > Click Remove user.

Deleting a Hwb Network

You can unpublish a network at any point. This will stop it being listed on the Hwb Networks page and remove access to all current members.

1. Within your Network, click on the Settings cog.
2. Click Privacy > Inactive > Save.

Storing files in a network

There is a Files area in each network. Files will be visible to other members of the network and members can Rename, Move or Delete files and folders.

To add a new file, click + Add New (on the right-hand side).

Navigate to the network you wish to leave, click Joined > Leave.

Files can be shared within a Hwb Network, but you cannot collaborate in ‘real-time’ on a file in the same way you can in Office 365 and G Suite for Education. If ‘real-time’ collaboration is required, we recommend an additional Office 365 Team or Google Classroom is created for members to facilitate this.

Hwb Networks are not moderated. The intention is for Hwb Networks to be self-moderated by the network administrators and identified managers. All users have a professional obligation to behave appropriately when using Hwb, as set out in the site’s terms and conditions. Inappropriate behaviour can be reported to the Hwb Service Desk: hwb@gov.wales | 03000 25 25 25.

When you join or create a network, you will be automatically subscribed to a weekly e-mail digest of activity, but you can adjust the frequency of these notifications.

1. Open the relevant network.
2. Click the drop-down arrow next to Unsubscribe and select the frequency you would like to receive notifications for that network.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on your name (in the top right hand corner) and select View Profile.
3. Click Customise (in the white bar along the middle of the page).
4. Click Dashboard (underneath the Customise option).
5. Select either My Hwb or My Hwb Lite > Click Save.

This can be changed as often as you like.

Things I need to do: 

Things I need to do is automatically populated with your Hwb activity. You can filter the tasks that appear here by date (All Time), by application (All Alerts) or both. If you have lots of tasks you can make them all appear by clicking Show more. You can also hide this section altogether if you wish.

Latest resources: 

The latest resources are customisable by key stage and subject. To choose what you would like to appear here, click Customise.

Latest Networks: 

This ticker shows the latest Networks that have been created in Hwb.

Latest news: 

Keep an eye on the latest news to stay up to date with Hwb developments and events.

Latest: 

This is your personal Hwb activity feed, which gives you quick links back to areas you have been working on recently. For a more comprehensive view of your feed, click View full feed.

There are handy shortcut buttons to many of the Hwb tools down the left hand side of the dashboard. If you’d like to access further Hwb tools and services, click on the Menu (at the top of the page).

You can get back to the Hwb homepage by selecting Hwb from the Menu (at the top of the page).

As well as switching between dashboard views, you can customise what you would like to appear in your Latest resources ticker in My Hwb.

1. Log in to Hwb.
2. Click on the My Hwb dashboard tile.
3. Next to Latest Resources, click Customise.
4. Use the tick boxes to select your interests > Click Save.