Roundup of relevant Teaching Tips during coronavirus pandemic
As you begin teaching via distance, these tips from the eCampus archives can help you modify your course without losing quality.
Blackboard Bitez: Getting started with your course in Blackboard
In this Blackboard Bitez, we’ll show you how to get started with your Blackboard course. Especially if you have not used Blackboard before, or just a little, this should help you get started. Show Notes To view specific topics, click the links below: Getting to...The Assignment Tool
Welcome to Blackboard Bitez! In this episode, let’s take a look at the build-in tool for assignments in Blackboard. ; Show NotesThe video shows you how to use the assignment feature in your Blackboard course. The assignment tool is one way to provide an...My Courses Navigation
This Blackboard Bitez shows you how to modify and personalize your landing page in Blackboard. You might find that this useful little tip helps you navigate around Blackboard a lot easier.; Show NotesThis video shows you how to make it easier to navigate to your...Multiple Folders Creation
Welcome to the inaugural edition of Blackboard Bytez. Each episode we take a look at the inner workings of Blackboard and the features that save us time. This week, I’ll show you how to create multiple folders in your Bb course shell. ; Show Notes Creating a...Smart Views
Welcome to another episode of Blackboard Bitez. Each week, we take a look at the inner workings of Blackboard. This week, we look at the awesomeness of Smart Views. Show Notes A Smart View is a filtered view of specific columns in the Grade Center. It allows you to...Discussion Board Course Link
This Blackboard Bitez tutorial shows you how to create a course link to a discussion forum. Course links are an easy way to keep all your navigation in one folder, one location. It minimizes confusion and makes your course overall look better.
Save time setting up due dates in Blackboard
Setting due dates for assessments in Blackboard can be a time-consuming task. Use the Grade Center Due Dates tool to manage this task faster.
Four things to do before the semester starts
A new semester is starting in just a few days and there’s so much to do! Start here with these four step-by-step priorities.
Create Custom Column in Blackboard
You can create a custom text column in Blackboard to help you make notes about your students. This columns holds about 32 characters and spaces so this option isn’t for lengthly comments just for short identifiable text and you can only see about 20 characters...Blackboard clear quiz attempt
If you need to clear a student’s attempt on a quiz for any reason, you can do this from the Blackboard Grade Center. Go to the Full Grade Center and search for the student and quiz. In the cell where you see the student’s score click on the double drop...Make use of Blackboard Test Tool
In the UA Blackboard system, one of the most used tools is the Test Tool. It can be used to create quizzes, midterms, exams and pre- and post-assessments.Good and effective use of the Test Tool can be facilitated by carefully thinking about how to configure the...How to update due dates in Blackboard
You may have noticed the familiar Set Grade Center Due Dates tool has not been available recently. This handy tool has become incompatible with the current version of Blackboard. While we hope that it can return in the future, there is another way to edit all of your...Try something new in Blackboard
Here are three scenarios you might find yourself in – and three new-ish Blackboard features that could help you out.
Keep track of revision notes inside of Blackboard
As you’re teaching a class, especially for the first time, you will run into things you want to revise for the next offering. There are many ways to keep track of these notes and you should select the method that best works for you. Here’s an idea for...How to improve course accessibility with Blackboard Ally
Blackboard Ally is now available to UAF instructors. Here are the first steps you should take to make your online course more accessible.
Introducing Blackboard Ally, a new accessibility tool
Blackboard Ally is a new accessibility tool coming to UAF Blackboard on October 6, 2018. It is integrated software that automatically scans your uploaded course files and materials, looking for common accessibility issues. It provides insight into the course’s level of accessibility and feedback on how the content can be improved for better quality and usability for everyone. It will also generate alternative formats on demand using machine learning algorithms. Read on in this Teaching Tip to familiarize yourself with Blackboard Ally.
Three tips to untangle Blackboard notifications
Customizing notifications in Blackboard allows both instructors and students to better manage their online educational experiences.
Blackboard FAQ
Pedagogy Resources UAF eCampus's Collection of Resources for Building Better Courses All Pedagogy TopicsReference the Glossary Find solutions to the most often asked questions about Blackboard Refer to this page often! How do I… Assessments and Grades Remove extra...Blackboard set Grade Center Due Dates
If you are reusing course content from one semester to the next, one of the more tedious clean up tasks you’ll need to do is to update assessment and assignment due dates. Students depend on due dates to keep on task and create some momentum towards completion...To total or not to total – Blackboard Grade Center
Every teacher has goals to be effective and efficient. Knowing more about the tools and features in Blackboard’s Grade Center can help you reach your potential. This week’s tip concentrates on different kinds of Total columns you might use in your course to organize and compute final grades. There is a lot of capability and might be the perfect feature for you to implement in your course.
Blackboard adds new features
New features have been updated in Blackboard Learn relating to assignment submissions. Teachers and students are now able to add attachments via drag and drop. There are also new features that allow tracking of quiz attempts and assignment submissions. Read this week’s Teaching Tip to learn how the new features are giving both students and instructors more power in Blackboard Learn.
Providing feedback in Blackboard two ways
Building a rubric can help you determine how–or if–an assignment aligns to your course objectives. Once built, you may use it to frame your feedback. Sharing the specifics with students prior to task assignment helps focus their efforts. Your students may not know about the wealth of information provided by clicking on the link, “View Rubric.’
Publish videos to your course with Kaltura Mediaspace
In this Teaching Tip we introduce Kaltura Mediaspace, a new option that gives UAF instructors a lot of control over how a video is presented in their course and how students interact with it.
Adapt your course for Blackboard Mobile Learn
More and more students are using mobile devices and an app called Blackboard Mobile Learn to access course content on the go. While students shouldn’t solely rely on smartphones to complete course requirements, there are steps instructors can take to make it a better experience, such as using common file types (like PDFs), keeping titles short and testing links on a variety of devices.
Build game badging options inside of Blackboard Learn
We all spend time playing games. According to vertoanalytics.com, we spend more than a billion hours per month playing mobile games and that doesn’t include games played on laptops, desktops or with game consoles.1 According to the entertainment software association, in 2015, 65% of US households had at least one person who played online games, three hours or more per week.
Release content when students are ready
In most disciplines, there are skills that need to be learned and understood before moving on to something more complicated. Without a solid foundation, moving on to more difficult endeavors can be challenging as well as frustrating and can be a hurdle the student is not able to get over.
Building accessibility into online Blackboard courses
Blackboard provides built-in mechanisms to ensure online content adheres to accessibility standards for its static structure. Once content or third party elements like multimedia and links to resources are added, there are steps you take to maintain accessibility. As you begin adding course content in Blackboard, be mindful of what the end result may look like using a screen reader.
Blackboard provides student performance analysis tools
The Blackboard Grade Center offers options for reviewing student performance on your tests and exams and can be a useful mechanism for evaluating the effectiveness of your test questions. A poorly worded question doesn’t mean your students aren’t mastering the content. Look for Attempts Statistics, Download Results, Item Analysis and Column Statistics as options in the column header for your test.
Blackboard – time to reconsider
This time of year we’re all spending a lot of time in Blackboard, yet seldom does one hear its praises sung within our hallowed halls. It may not be the shiniest tool in our toolbox, and some might even say its menus and structures are less than an inspiring home for the learning and cognitive transformations we expect it to facilitate.