New Tools to Consider in Blackboard 9 Ryan Kaina Yoshiharu Shiba, M.A. Academic Instructional Technology Center
Tool Accessibility You can make tools available or unavailable in your course. In addition, you can make a tool unavailable to just students. Watch these tutorials to learn how: Turning Tool Availability On and Off Making Tools Available to Students
If you would like to add Audio to your course, please contact AITC at asaitc@adams.edu or 719.587.7371 for information and assistance. DO NOT import audio files into Blackboard on your own as you could be in violation of copyright by doing so. Additionally, we have access to a video server that allows us to embed such documents into Blackboard without increasing the amount of space your course is taking up on our hosted Blackboard server.
This section introduces you to the new Blank Page tool. Blackboard 9.1 allows you to create two kinds of pages a Content Area and a Blank Page. Content Areas allow you to add items like assessments, folders, and Turnitin Assignments. Blank pages are different. They are simple pages you are limited to adding text, images, and attached files. The Blank Page tool allows instructors to create a blank page as a Content Area. There are two ways that you can create a blank page. You can create a blank page from the menu bar at the top of a Content Area:
This creates a link to the blank page from the current page. In the image below, the link to a new blank page has been created on the Assignments page. There is a second way to create a blank page. You can create it from the course menu:
This creates a link to the new blank page at the bottom of the course menu. You can use the arrow handles to move the link up to a new position in the menu. Let s compare a Blank Page to a Content Area. The image below shows you what a Content Area looks like. Notice the menu bar at the top.
Now let s look at a Blank Page. Notice that the Blank Page does not contain the menu bar. However, it does allow you to modify the page using the text editor. To learn more about adding a Blank Page to your course menu, watch these tutorials: Creating Content Using a Blank Page Creating a Blank Page on the Course Menu
This section introduces you to the new Blog tool. This tool allows you to create a blog for your students on a Content Area page. Blogs are usually one-to-many resources. One student writes an entry and others can view or comment. Group or class blogs allow for several authors. Blogs are limited to course room use that is, no-one else outside the Blackboard course can access the blogs. There are two ways to create a blog. You can use the Add Interactive Tool drop-down menu in a Content Area. This allows you to (1) create a link to the Blogs Page or (2) create a new blog.
There is a second way to create a new blog. You can click on the Blogs link in the course Control Panel. This opens the Blogs Page, where you can create a new Blog. Why use Blogs? Students can interact with one another or the instructor in creative ways. They interact via the Comment feature. Instructors can moderate the blogs. They do this via the Comment feature. Blogs deliver reflective learning. Unlike discussion boards, where the emphasis is on public debate, blogs provide an emphasis on sharing ideas and public reflection. Blogs enable a student s thoughts on a subject to unfold over time. Other students and the instructor can see the growth in the student s learning. Another way of stating the purpose of blogs: Blogs deliver public reflection with peer and instructor review.
For more information about Blogs, watch these tutorials: Creating a Blog Creating and Editing Blog Entries Commenting on a Blog Entry
This section introduces you to the new Course Files section. This section allows you to upload files to a centralized place in your Blackboard course. To make the files accessible to your students, you create links to the files in your course Content Areas. You can upload one file at a time. Or you can zip your files and then upload them all at once. Blackboard will automatically unzip ( unpackage ) the files for you. The Course Files tool permits instructors to centralize files in a course storage area and then link to the files from Content Areas. By default, the files are not available to students from the central storage area. The instructor needs to go to a Content Area and create a link to the file this makes the file available to students. Each course has its own central storage area. To access this file, click the arrows link in the Control Panel (you will see the arrows link next to Files). This is illustrated in the image on the next page.
This is what the Course Files area looks like after it has been populated with course material and organized into folders.
The Course Files feature allows instructors to (1) upload individual files or (2) upload multiple files and folders to the course central storage area. Instructors can upload an HTML Object that is, a small web site containing content and images. After the HTML object has been uploaded to the storage area, the instructor can make it available by linking to it from one of the Content Areas. Instructors can organize the central storage files into folders. These folders do not necessarily reflect how the course material is arranged in the course. For example, you can create a folder for all course images. Or all course lecture notes. To learn more about the Course Files area, watch these tutorials: Attaching Course Files to a Content Item Tour the Course Files Feature Adding Your Own Web Content Through Course Files (Use this process when linking to SoftChalk files) Uploading One or More Files to your Course
This section introduces you to the new Flickr tool. This tool allows you to add images to your Content Area pages from the popular Flickr image storage site. The Flickr tool allows instructors to pull images from the popular Flickr site and integrate them into a Content Area. Notice in the image below that an instructor can use keywords to search for an image that is relevant for the topic at hand.
This following image shows a Flickr image that has been added to a Content Area. Students can click the View Photo button to see the image full-size. Flickr is a mashup tool. To learn more about mashups, watch this tutorial: Creating a Mashup
This section introduces you to the new Image tool. This tool allows you to (1) add images to your Content Area pages from the Course Files section or (2) upload the images from your computer. The Image tool allows an instructor to integrate an image with a description into the Content Area. The Create Image Page (see image below) lets you (1) browse your computer for photos; (2) browse for photos that are stored in the Course Files area; (3) or switch to the Flickr Photo page to browse for photos on the Flickr site.
Here is an example of an image that has been added to a Content Area.
This section introduces you to the new Journal tool. Journals are normally a one to one reflection tool, usually between one student and the instructor(s). While they can be shared with the entire class, there is only one author and only the instructor(s) can comment on them. There are two ways to create a Journal. You can use the Add Interactive Tool dropdown menu in a Content Area. This allows you to (1) create a link to the Journals Page or (2) create a new Journal. There is a second way to create a new Journal. You can click on the Journals link in the course Control Panel (see image on next page).
This opens the Journals Page, where you can create a new Journal. Why use Journals? Instructors can ask students to reflect on a particular topic or aspect of the course. Students can engage in private and internal reflection. Instructors can review and comment on reflection. Journals can be opened so that students can see one another s journal entries (beneficial in a course that emphasizes learning from one another). Journals enable a student s internal thoughts on a subject to unfold over time. Another way of stating the purpose of journals: Journals provide formative assessment with student/teacher interaction. For more information about Journals, watch these tutorials: Creating a Journal Creating and Editing Journal Entries Commenting on a Journal Entry
This section introduces you to the new Lesson Plan tool. The Lesson Plan tool permits instructors to create a lesson plan that incorporates curriculum resources for their students. The Lesson Plan tool allows an instructor to create a lesson plan and associate curriculum resources with it. The Create Lesson Plan page allows an instructor to add content information about the lesson plan (see images on next page). First, you provide a name and description:
Then you enter instructional level, instructor, and objectives (see next page):
Finally, you enter the subject area: Notice that the instructor can add curriculum resources by clicking the Curriculum Resources tab (see image on next page).
Clicking this tab opens the Curriculum Resources screen:
Notice that you can add content, assessments, and interactive tools to your curriculum plan just as you would to a Content Area. To learn more about lesson plans, watch this tutorial: Creating a Lesson Plan
This section introduces you to the new SlideShare tool. This tool allows you to add presentations to your Content Area pages from the popular SlideShare presentation storage site. The SlideShare tool allows instructors to pull presentations that have been posted by others to the SlideShare.com site and integrate them into a Content Area. Notice that you can search for presentations using more than one criterion:
The image below shows what a SlideShare page may look like after you have searched for presentations on a particular topic. The image on the next page illustrates a SlideShare item that has been added to a Content Area. To watch the presentation, the student must click the Watch Presentation link.
SlideShare is a mashup tool. To learn more about mashups, watch this tutorial: Creating a Mashup
This section introduces you to the new Rubrics tool. This is a new tool that you can associate with any column in the Blackboard Grade Center. The Rubrics tool allows instructors to associate rubrics with any column in the Grade Center. Rubrics can be viewed from the Grade Center during the grading process. To access the Rubrics tool, click the link in the Control Panel (see image below).
To learn more about the Rubric tool, see the following video: Creating a Rubric Associating a Rubric with a Gradable Item Grading with Rubrics
If you would like to add Video to your course, please contact AITC at asaitc@adams.edu or 719.587.7371 for information and assistance. DO NOT import video files into Blackboard on your own as you could be in violation of copyright by doing so. Additionally, we have access to a video server that allows us to embed such documents into Blackboard without increasing the amount of space your course is taking up on our hosted Blackboard server.
This section introduces you to the new Wiki tool. Wikis are collaborative web-sites. Many individuals can post and edit each others' posts. There is a contribution history available for grading purposes. There are two ways to create a Wiki. You can use the Add Interactive Tool drop-down menu in a Content Area. This allows you to (1) create a link to the Wiki Page or (2) create a new Wiki. There is a second way to create a new Wiki. You can click on the Wikis link in the course Control Panel (see image on next page).
This opens the Wikis Page, where you can create a new Wiki.
Why use Wikis? Students can creatively collaborate to design special projects. Instructors can grade and evaluate Wiki projects. To learn more about Wikis, watch these tutorials: Creating a Wiki Adding Rich Content to a Wiki Editing a Wiki Page Linking Wiki Pages Viewing a Wiki Page History Grading a Wiki
This section introduces you to the new YouTube tool. This tool allows you to add videos to your Content Area pages from the popular YouTube site. The YouTube Video tool allows instructors to integrate videos from YouTube into a Content Area. You can search for a relevant YouTube video using a word or phrase without leaving Blackboard.
Here is a YouTube video that has been added to a Content Area: YouTube is a mashup tool. To learn more about mashups, watch this tutorial: Creating a Mashup As always, if you have any questions, please contact AITC at 719.587.7371 or asaitc@adams.edu.