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Category: Blackboard Bits, Bytes, and Nibbles

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #107: Mashups

The Blackboard Mashup feature allows you to view and share media content from external websites (i.e., YouTube Video, Flickr Photo, and SlideShare Presentation). A Mashup can be used in a variety of ways within a course. For example, you can encourage discussion about a classic play by creating a Mashup that links to a YouTube video of a scene from the play and a link to a newspaper review of that production.

You can create Mashups as standalone content items in a course area. You can also create them in other places such as test questions, discussion board forums, journals, blogs, and assignments by using the Content Editor.

Mashups will appear in your Blackboard course in the following ways:

  • Embed: The Mashup appears directly on the page.
  • Thumbnail: A small picture of the Mashup appears on the page with controls to launch it.
  • Text Link with Player: A link to the Mashup appears on the page. Click the link to launch the Mashup.

Although fully integrated within the Blackboard course, the Mashup resides on an external website, reducing file space needs within a course.

Students are able to add Mashups wherever they have access to the Content Editor.

Follow these steps to do it.

To add a Mashup in a content area in your course you should:

  1. Get into the course where you want to add a Mashup
  2. Verify Edit Mode is On
  3. On the Course Menu, click Content Area where you want to add the Mashup
  4. In the Content Area window, roll your mouse over [Build Content] and navigate to Mashups (in right hand column) and select a Mashup (i.e., Flickr Photo, SlideShare Presentation, YouTube Video)
  5. Enter your search terms and click [Go]
  6. After the search results have loaded, there is an option to 'Preview' or 'Select' your Mashup Item
  7. Selecting your Mashup Item will launch a window giving you the opportunity to select options for your Mashup
  8. Select your options and click [Submit]

To add a Mashup using the Content Editor you should:

image showing Mashup dropdown list content editor

  1. Navigate to an Assignment, Journal, Blog, Wiki, Discussion Board, or other course content where the Content Editor is accessible
  2. Once in the Content Editor, place your cursor where you want the Mashup to be inserted
  3. Click on the Mashups button in the Content Editor toolbar and select a Mashup (i.e. Flickr Photo, SlideShare Presentation, YouTube Video)
  4. Enter your search terms and click [Go]
  5. After the search results have loaded, there is an option to 'Preview' or 'Select' your Mashup Item
  6. Selecting your Mashup Item will launch a window giving you the opportunity to select options for your Mashup
  7. Select your options and click [Submit]

Want more information?

How to Create Mashups in a Content Area
How to Create Mashups Using the Content Editor
Content Editor Explained
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 2 Comments on Bb Tip #106: Working with Groups

Online groups can enrich class discussion and provide a virtual environment for sharing information. The Groups tool allows instructors to form virtual groups of students to support peer collaboration. Groups can be easily created one at a time or in sets. Groups can be designated as Self-Enroll (allows students to add themselves to a Group), Manual Enroll (instructor assigns students to Groups), or Random Enroll (Blackboard system distributes students equally into Groups). Once created, each Group has its own space in the course which allows the students to work together. The instructor can enable an assortment of tools for the Groups (i.e., blogs, wikis, journals, discussion boards, file exchange) to help students collaborate. Students can belong to multiple Groups simultaneously, so an instructor might assign students to different Groups for different assignments or projects.

Follow these steps to do it.

To create a group and assign students to the group you should:

  1. In the [Control Panel], click on [Users and Groups] to expand it, and then select [Groups].
  2. Click on [Create Single Group] and select [Manual Enroll].
  3. Select whether the new group is available to students.
  4. Select the collaboration tools to make available to the group. Select the grading option if the Group Blog, Group Journal, or Group Wiki contributions will be graded and type points possible. Once the grade setting is made, it cannot be reversed.
  5. Select whether to allow members to add modules to the group home page. Only the person who added the modules can view them.
  6. Select members by moving them from the Items to Select box to the Selected Items box using the right-pointing arrow.
  7. Click [Submit].

To create a group set and assign students to the groups you should:

  1. In the [Control Panel], click on [Users and Groups] to expand it, and then select [Groups].
  2. Click on [Create Group Set] on the action bar to access the drop-down list.
  3. Select the type of group set you want to create (i.e., Manual Enroll, Self-Enroll, or Random Enroll).
  4. Choose your Group options. The options presented are dependent on type of group set you are creating.
  5. Click [Submit].

Want more information?

Getting Started with Groups (pdf)
Working with Course Groups
Create Single Group Video [03:39]
Create Group Sets Video [02:28]
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.

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #105: Add Test Student in Courses

Instructors can see their courses as a student would by turning edit mode off. However, instructors do not get the true experience of navigating the course like a student when edit mode is turned off.

The "Add Test Student" course tool allows instructors to add a test student to their course. The instructor can login to the course as the test student and navigate the course exactly as a student would. While logged in as the test student, the instructor is able to complete assignments, tests, surveys, etc. The instructor would also be able to see the "test student" in the Grade Center. The instructor has the option of removing the test student from the course when the test student is no longer needed.

image showing Add Test Student Course Tool

Follow these steps to do it.

In order to add a test student to your course, you should:

  1. Goto the [Control Panel] for the course and click on the [Course Tools] link to expand it. Click on [Add Test Student].
  2. You should see the Create Test Student Account screen. Make a note of the Test Student Account’s username, and then enter a password for the test student account. The "enroll this test student on the current course" option should be checked.
  3. Click on the [Submit] button. You should see a message indicating the test student user was created.
  4. You can now login as the "test student" using the username and password created in step 2.

Want more information?

Step-by-step instructions are available [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.

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #104: Word Count

One feature missing from Blackboard is the ability to get a word count for discussion board threads, blogs, wikis, and journals. Currently, most professors get a word count by copying text from Blackboard, pasting it into Microsoft Word and then getting a word count inside MS Word. The "Word Count" Add-on for the Firefox web browser skips this whole process and gives you the ability to get a word count for discussion board threads, blogs, wikis, and journals while on the respective page in Blackboard.

image showing word count

Follow these steps to do it.

First download and install the Add-on:
Liberty University Word Count Add-on for Firefox
To get a word count in Blackboard:

When on the Blackboard page (i.e., discussion boards, blogs, wikis, or journals), you will see a button labeled ‘Word Count’ at the top and bottom of the page. Highlight the text you would like to count and click the Word Count button. A count of the number of highlighted words will be displayed in the box next to the Word Count button.

Want more information?

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.

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #103: Inline Grading for Assignments

Inline Assignment Grading enhances the grading experience for instructors. You can view, comment, and grade student-submitted assignment files without leaving the Grade Assignment page.

When you view a document submitted in an assignment, that document is converted to a format that is viewable inside the web browser. The converted document is displayed in a viewer on the Grade Assignment page. Formatting and embedded images of the original document are preserved in the conversion. Annotation tools enable instructors to provide feedback -- comments, highlights, and even drawing -- directly on the inline view of the document. Inline grading allows for full screen editing, and brings the sidebar to all gradable items like blogs, wikis, discussions and journals.

Note: Supported document types that can be used with inline grading are Word (doc, docx), PowerPoint (ppt, pptx), Excel (xls, xlsx), and PDF (pdf).

Want more information?

Using Inline Grading for Assignments
Using Inline Grading for Assignments Video [00:05:35]
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.

6

Published on 6 Comments on Bb Tip #102: Content Editor

The newly designed Content Editor vastly improves your experience for adding text and other forms of digital content to your course.

The Content Editor provides instructors and students with content processing tools that help users create text, tables, hyperlinks, embedded multimedia, and file attachments. The Content Editor can be accessed throughout Blackboard to create lesson content, announcements, discussion posts, assignments, test items, and more!

The new Content Editor improves your ability to enter text, paste from Microsoft Word and add content to all areas of your courses and organizations. Gone are the prior formatting problems of cutting and pasting text from Word. The Content Editor retains the formatting of the pasted text.

Video Everywhere is a new feature in the Content Editor that allows instructors and students to record short YouTube videos on the fly using a webcam and seamlessly embed the video into course materials, interactions, and feedback.

Want more information?
Using the Content Editor
Using Video Everywhere
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.

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #101: Are You Ready?

Course delivery is vulnerable to unplanned events. Potential interruptions to class activities include but are not limited to natural disasters, widespread illness, acts of violence, planned or unexpected construction-related closures, severe weather conditions, and medical emergencies.

Here are a few things you can do in Blackboard to help you prepare should the need arise.

  • Understanding and Building Your Course
    • Getting Started with Course Environment (Video) (PDF)
    • Getting Started with Course Content (PDF)
  • Utilize Blackboard’s Communication Tools
  • Collecting Student Work
    • Getting Started with Assignments (PDF)
  • Utilize Blackboard’s Collaboration Tools
    • Blogs, Wikis, Journals, & Discussion Boards Explained (PDF)
  • Posting Grades
    • Getting Started with the Grade Center (PDF)

Additionally, you should consider developing an instructional continuity plan to help you to be ready to continue teaching with minimal interruption. More information about instructional continuity plans can be found on our Instructional Continuity web page. There you will find planning guides, resources, and a link to our April 2014 Instructional Continuity workshop presentation.

Want more information?
Get more information about instructional continuity plans.
Sign up for Blackboard workshops or request one-on-one help.
Try these Blackboard How-To documents.
Explore Blackboard’s On Demand Learning Center.
Visit our Blackboard FAQs for additional blackboard information
or schedule a one-on-one session, email, or
call Janice Florent: (504) 520-7418.

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #100: Blackboard Collaborate Launcher

A new Blackboard Collaborate Launcher utility is available for Windows users. A Collaborate Launcher utility was released last summer for Mac users and now the utility is available for Windows users.

Calendar

The Blackboard Collaborate Launcher simplifies the process for joining Blackboard Collaborate web conferencing sessions and recordings. When you click 'Join Room' on the Room Details page or a recording link in the Recordings table, Blackboard Collaborate checks to see if you have the launcher installed. If you do not, Blackboard Collaborate prompts you to download it.

Using the Blackboard Collaborate Launcher:

- When a participant clicks on a session or recording link, Blackboard Collaborate checks to see if you have the launcher installed and, if you don't, prompts you to download it.
- When the launcher is installed, clicking a session or recording link triggers the download of a .collab file. This .collab file will be used to launch your session or recording.
- The launcher download can be done in advance or just prior to attending the Collaborate session.

Want more information?
Bb Collaborate Launcher
Visit the Collaborate On Demand Learning Center
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.

Published on Leave a comment on The Art of Effectively Managing Discussion Board Posts

by Karen Nichols
A recent edition of Faculty Focus includes an article on successful discussions conducted online. There is after all an art to effective online communication. These considerations include the necessity to communicate with all students in the discussion forum. Personally, I respond to each of my students' original postings, but I do not intrude in subsequent conversations between the students. (I do monitor them however, to ensure that the students are communicating appropriately.)

The Faculty Focus article also describes how you should communicate with your students depending on their individual needs. For example, if a student actively and fully participates in the discussions, you may wish to challenge him/her, while students who express confusion may need more direction and time spent in explaining the goals of the discussion assignments.

Further, try to be open to a variety of responses and lengths. More is not always better so be sure to give shorter postings and unexpected opinions and answers due consideration. Along these lines, there is an art to knowing when to lead the discussions and when to gently guide them along in order for the students to feel comfortable taking the lead themselves and/or expressing their sentiments even if they may differ from those of the instructor.

Last year, Blackboard sponsored a discussion on breathing new life into Discussion Boards:

Do you use online discussions? If so, what are some of your best practices and suggestions?

Published on Leave a comment on Bb Tip #99: Beginning of Semester Tasks

As you prepare for the start of the semester, it is a good time to get started setting up your Blackboard courses. Blackboard courses are automatically created using the course information in Banner a few weeks before the start of the semester. You can post your syllabus, course documents, and announcements to your Blackboard courses. You can also customize your course menu and/or add a course banner.

If you teach a course that is cross listed you will have a Blackboard course for each cross listing. You can combine the cross listed courses into one Blackboard course so that you can post course materials and grades to one combined Blackboard course. Combining courses may also work for you if you are teaching different sections of the same course and would like to have the different sections combined into one Blackboard course so that you can post course documents and grades in the one combined course. The beginning of the semester is the best time to combine your Blackboard courses before you add course material or grades to the courses.

Follow these steps to do it.

Listed below are links with instructions for

  • Merging courses [Web page]
  • Hiding old courses from view [Web page]
  • Getting started with the course environment [PDF] [Video]
  • Course structures and course themes [Web page] [Video]
  • Changing the display name for your course [Web page]
  • Adding a course banner [Web page]
  • Adding items to the course menu [PDF]
  • Posting announcements [Web page]
  • Copying content into another course [Web page]
  • Using date management to update dates after course copy [Web page]

Want more information?

Attend a drop-in session to get one-on-one help.
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.