Blackboard 1: Building a Course Site

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1 Blackboard 1: Building a Course Site This QuickStart outlines the material covered in the first of four workshops on teaching with Blackboard. It will help you to begin creating your Blackboard course site. You will learn how to organize your course site and add the content you need to provide to your students. For more information on Blackboard workshops or to register for one, log into the ACC Workshop Database: To begin, login to Blackboard at using your ACCeID and password. Objectives: Navigate Course Site Site Layout Editing Controls Edit Mode Add Content Menu Item Edit Menu Announcement Folder Item Paste from Word Multimedia Mashup Edit Content Manage Course Appearance Menu Style Entry Point Course Banner Manage Users Test Student Enroll User Send Navigate Course Site 1.1. Site Layout: The image below highlights some of the main components of a Blackboard course site. 1. Course Menu: Links in the menu help users navigate the site and locate materials. 2. Control Panel: This instructors-only area provides access to the Grade Center, Course Tools and other editing options. 3. Course Banner: A course banner adds visual interest and appears on the course site s entry page. 4. Content Area: The main area of the page, where course content appears. 5. Help Button: The Help button opens ACC s Blackboard support site. 6. Logout Button: The Logout button officially ends your Blackboard session Editing Controls: The following controls appear throughout the Blackboard user interface and allow you to manage and edit your content. Click the Action Button next to an item s name to open a dropdown menu with all of your editing options. The action button appears for menu items, content items and grade center columns. Revised 23-Aug-12 1 irt.austincc.edu/blackboard..

2 The double-headed arrow allows you to drag and drop to reorder items. Click on the arrow and hold down the mouse button, drag the item to the desired location, then release the mouse button. The Show/Hide Menu Button appears in between the menu and the main content area. Click once to collapse the menu (the button will shift to the far left of your screen). Click again to restore the menu. Click the Expand/Collapse Menu Button to show expand a menu to show all items or collapse a menu to hide all items. You can expand/collapse your course menu and various menus within the Control Panel Edit Mode: At the top right corner of your screen you will find the Edit Mode button. When Edit Mode is On, editing options are available to add or modify course content. Click the Edit Mode button to turn edit mode off and preview how students will see the course. Click Edit Mode again to turn edit mode back on so you can continue editing. Add Content 2.1. Menu Items: Click the blue box with a plus sign at the top of your course menu. From the dropdown, select the type of link to add to the menu. Options include, but are not limited to, the following types of links: Content Area (a blank page where you can add text, files, folders, tests, assignments and other course materials): Enter a Name > check Available to Users > Submit. Tool Link (a link to an integrated Blackboard tool, such as My Grades or the discussion board): Enter a Name > open the Type dropdown menu and select a course tool > check Available to Users > Submit. External Link (a link to a URL outside of Blackboard): Enter a Name > enter the URL > check Available to Users > Submit. Subheader/ Divider (items to organize your menu): For subheaders, enter a Name > Submit. A divider simply adds a horizontal line to the menu Edit Menu Items: Click the action button next to the menu item to open editing options, which include: Rename Link: Edit the text that appears in the Course Menu. Show/Hide Link: Indicates a menu item is hidden from students. Select Show Link to make it available or Hide Link to make the menu item unavailable. Delete: Remove the menu item. Revised 23-Aug-12 2 irt.austincc.edu/blackboard.

3 2.3. Announcement: Go to Announcements in the course menu > click Create Announcement. Enter a Subject and Message > set Date Restrictions if necessary, or select Not Date Restricted > check Announcement if desired > Submit Folder: Use folders to organize course content by grouping related materials together. Go to a Content Area in your Course Menu > click Build Content > from the New Page column select Content Folder. Enter a Name for the folder > Submit. A folder is added to the Content Area. Click on the name of the folder to open it and begin adding content Item: Creating an Item lets you add text and attach files to a Content Area. Go to a Content Area or Folder > click Build Content > from the Create column select Item. Enter a Name and your Text. Click Browse to locate and attach a file > Submit Paste from Word: When copying text from Microsoft Word to paste into Blackboard, use this option to preserve formatting without including the Microsoft-specific markup. Create an Item as outlined in 2.4 > click in the toolbar > select Paste from Word. Paste text in the new window > Submit. Preview text on the Create Item page > Submit Multimedia: You can attach multimedia files (audio, video or image) to a Content Area. Go to a Content Area or Folder > click Build Content > from the Create column, select Audio, Image or Video > click Browse My Computer to locate and attach a file > enter a Name > adjust Options as needed > Submit Mashup: Mashups allow you to search Flickr (images), SlideShare (presentations) and YouTube (videos) for existing multimedia content to include in your course. Revised 23-Aug-12 3 irt.austincc.edu/blackboard.

4 Go to a Content Area or Folder > click Build Content > from the Mashups column select Flickr Photo, SlideShare Presentation or YouTube Video. Enter Keywords for a search > click Go. Choose the item to add to the page and click Select > enter a Name and Description of the item > set Mashup Options as needed > Submit Edit Content: Click the action button next to an item to open the contextual editing menu; options include editing an item and its settings, moving it to a different Content Area or Folder, and deleting the item. Manage Course Appearance Begin by going to Control Panel > Customization > Style Menu Style: Be sure your menu will be easy to read. Avoid patterns and make sure there is sufficient contrast between the background and text colors. Under section 1. Select Menu Style, select either Text or Buttons and make color selections > Submit Entry Point: Adjust the entry point to determine what page students will see first upon entering the course. Under section 4. Select Course Entry Point, open the dropdown menu to select a page > Submit Course Banner: The course banner will appear on your entry page. A course banner should be approximately 450 x 100 pixels and no larger than 65kb in size. Under section 5. Select Banner, click Browse My Computer to locate and select the file > Submit. Revised 23-Aug-12 4 irt.austincc.edu/blackboard.

5 Manage Users 4.1. Test Student: You can enroll the test student in any course you teach to preview the course site as a student. Go to Control Panel > Course Tools > Add Test Student. A test student account is created with "_s" appended to the end of your username (e.g. j _s). Enter a password for your test student > check the box to enroll the test student in the current course > Submit. The test student is created and enrolled in the current course. Once the test student is created, you can login as the test student from the Blackboard login page (use the username and password described above) to view your course site as a student. You will not have any instructor controls when you login as the test student. Now, when you go to Course Tools > Add Test Student in any course you teach, you have the option to unenroll/enroll the test student or to change the password Enroll User: Manually enrolling students is rare, as student enrollments are loaded automatically. This process is commonly used to add another instructor. Go to Control Panel > Users and Groups > Users. Click Find Users to Enroll. Click Browse to open the "Users" Window. Select a search parameter (as you typically do not have Username, Last Name or are good options) > enter your search criteria > click Go. From the search results, check the box next to the correct user > Submit. In the Add Enrollments window, select a role for the user > Submit. Revised 23-Aug-12 5 irt.austincc.edu/blackboard.

6 4.3. Send You can send an to all or selected users in your course directly through Blackboard. Go to Control Panel > Course Tools > Send . Make a selection based on who should receive the (e.g. All Student Users, Single/Select Users). To select specific recipients, click on a name in the Available to Select column on the left > click the right-pointing arrow in between the boxes to move that user s name into the Selected column on the right. Enter your Subject and Message. You have the option to attach files to your . Check the Return Receipt box to send a copy of the message to yourself (this message will include a list of recipients). Click Submit to send the . Revised 23-Aug-12 6 irt.austincc.edu/blackboard.