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Tag: Email

We're moving our newsletter to the JetPack platform.
Published on Leave a comment on Let’s Get Set to Jet

For at least 15 years, Xavier faculty have gotten timely updates from this blog delivered to their inboxes. We hope to continue that tradition for many years to come, but we're making a few changes. Well, just one change, actually, but it's kind of a big deal.

We're moving our "CAT FooD" newsletter to the JetPack platform, which should offer several advantages.

Jetpack Logo

For one thing, it gives you more power to customize exactly how often you get your newsletter delivered. Also, it integrates more seamlessly with our blogging platform, WordPress.

What do you have to do? Nothing! If you are subscribed to the old newsletter, we'll add you directly to the new newsletter. We anticipate doing this during the winter break for minimal disruptions.

However, if you like, there are a few things you could do to make your transition even smoother.

  • The new newsletter will be coming at you from <donotreply@wordpress.com> so you could add that address to your contacts in order to keep it from getting flagged as spam.
  • You could even add yourself to the new JetPack newsletter now. (You will need to verify your subscription.) You might get a few duplicate issues, but that will resolve itself when we stop the old newsletter.

Again, those steps are optional. We envision a smooth transition. The only potentially confusing issue that we foresee might arise if you already subscribe to some other WordPress.com newsletters, but that is probably only a handful of you. We're happy to work with you to resolve anything that comes up on a case-by-case basis.

Yes, our inboxes are clogged these days, but email remains the best way to stay in touch for certain things. We hope timely info from CAT+FD is one of those things! We look forward to seeing you on the other side, in our brand-new shiny jet-powered future.

Some fun factual footnotes for those who read to the end: The origins of the CAT FooD newsletter are lost in the mists of time, but we believe it got started in 2009 using the Feedburner service. In October of 2016 we made the switch to MailChimp. We currently have 216 subscribers, a quarter of whom are not affiliated with Xavier.

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #178: Email the Professor

As we start this new semester students will have a lot of questions. I'm a big fan of setting up your Blackboard course to minimize student questions. A lot of student questions are asked via email. I provided some tips on how you can manage student emails in previous CAT FooD blog post.

For those times when students do need to send email to you, you can give them a one click solution to make it easy for them to send you email from inside your Blackboard course.

Here’s a Bb ninja trick to do the job.

ninja star embedded in a tree

Follow these steps to do it.

To add an “Email the Professor” link to your course menu:

  1. From the [Add Course Menu] option, choose [Course Link].
  2. Click on [Browse] in the Add Course Link window.
  3. Choose [All Instructor Users] from the pop-up window. This can be found in the Tools area under Send Email.
  4. Change the name field to “Email the Professor” and make sure the Available to Users box is checked. Click Submit.

Note: The Tools link must be in your course menu for these instructions to work. Refer to the step-by-step instructions if you need to add the Tools link to your course menu.

Want more information?

Step-by-step instructions are available [Email the Professor (PDF)]
Explore Blackboard’s On Demand Learning Center
Try these Blackboard How-To documents
Visit the Blackboard FAQs for additional blackboard information
or schedule a one-on-one session, email, or
call Janice Florent: (504) 520-7418.

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Published on 1 Comment on Tips to Help You Manage Student Emails

by Janice Florent

pile of letters with two feet sticking out and you've got mail on computer monitor in the background

Unlike face-to-face instructors, online instructors are generally inundated with questions from students by way of email messages. It doesn’t take long for an online instructor to feel like they are drowning in student emails.

In a recent eLearning Industry article, Dr. Liz Hardy provided five tips to help you manage student email to avoid a flood of student email. Those tips are:

1. Make communication time frames clear.

Tell your students what to expect when communicating with you. When your students understand your communication rules, they are more likely to work within those rules.

2. Prevent unnecessary student emails in the first place.

Set up your Blackboard course to be as learner-friendly as possible. If your students can find the information they need without extensive searching, they’re less likely to email you for help with simple questions. By encouraging self-directed learning, you find that student email more often relates to valid questions - rather than multiple queries about when the next assignment is due.

Consider using the “three before me” rule, which pushes the responsibility of locating an answer to frequently asked questions to the student. The student must prove to the professor that he/she has attempted to obtain the answer from three different sources prior to contacting the professor.

Additionally, you can minimize emails by utilizing Blackboard for assignment collection. The Blackboard assignment tool is an efficient way to manage and collect your student’s individual and group assignments digitally and can help to unclutter your inbox.

3. Scan your inbox before you answer even one student email.

Scan your inbox first. Are there messages from colleagues or administrators you need to answer first? Is there a reply from a student you’ve been waiting to hear from on an urgent issue? Deal with those messages first. Then you can look for patterns – are there any students who have sent you several emails since you last checked? Try reading email in reverse date order. You may find the student has answered their own question. In this case you can send one email back to the student with a single-line response.

4. Don’t multi-task.

It’s actually more efficient to deal with each student query in full, completely, and then move onto the next. What seems like saved time through multi-tasking can actually lead to a lot of backtracking and cross-checking, as you try to make sure you’re matching the right answer to the right student.

5. Answer student email in blocks.

Check your email messages two or three times a day, in blocks. Avoid checking at other times. Mute your speakers so you won’t hear that demanding bleep every time email arrives in your inbox.

These practical approaches will help you take control of your inbox, and get on with your teaching day. If you would like more information, read Dr. Hardy’s article "5 Ways To Survive A Student Email Avalanche."

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #31: Sending Email within your Course

Tip: You can send email to individual students, groups of students, or all course members within your Blackboard course. Blackboard does not keep copies of the email you send. However, a copy will be sent to your Xavier email address. Within your Xavier emailbox you will be able to save a copy of the email message.

Follow these steps to do it.
To send email, you should click on the [Communication] tool (located on the Course Menu) and then click on [Send Email]. In the Send Email window choose which users you would like to send the email to. Fill in the Email Information form and click Submit.

Want more information?
Step-by-step instructions are available [PDF].
Visit the Blackboard FAQs for additional Blackboard information
or email or call Janice Florent: (504) 520-7418