Course custom pacing, cohort pacing, and blackout dates can cause confusion because they all relate to the way a course is laid out over a period of time. However, understanding the way they each fit into the course experience can help reduce confusion and understanding.
Custom pacing
Custom pacing is where an admin creates different options for the layout of a course. There is a default setting, called auto-paced, which equates to one course lesson per day, and admins can create many options in addition. One pacing may include two lessons per day, if the admin thinks some cohorts would like to complete the course in half the time. Another option may include specific days with two or three lessons, depending on how much time is needed to complete each of the lessons. The Custom Pacing page is where admins create the different layouts that each cohort can choose from.
Cohort pacing
Cohort pacing, located on the cohort Configure page, is where an admin chooses which of the available pacing options will be used for this particular cohort. For example, if in the course Custom Pacing page the admin made three pacing options, named “Two Lessons Per Day” and “Two Week Pacing”, those options would be available on the cohort Configure page for each individual cohort. One cohort could choose one pacing option, another could choose the other.
Blackout dates
Blackout dates, also located on the cohort Configure page, are where admins can select which dates to skip for a particular cohort. This can be due to a company day off, a holiday, or a variety of other reasons. The cohort still follows the custom pacing option selected on the Configure page, but the blackout date(s) is(are) not included in the timeline. The distinction between adding blackout dates and creating a custom pacing option is that blackout dates are cohort-specific, meaning that adding blackout dates for one cohort does not affect another cohort. Changing the custom pacing option, however, updates the pacing layout for all cohorts that select that pacing option.