DoIT News

Students: Using Clickers in Class

Faculty: Preparing to Use Clickers & Reporting Problems

DoIT is actively working with eInstruction to improve the support process and improve the performance of the clickers in the classroom. If you have any questions, concerns or suggestions, contact Steven Anderson or leave a comment on this announcement.

Posted by fritz at 8:50 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 17, 2008

Using Clickers to Control Online Access to Recordings of In-Class Lectures

If you record in-class lectures and make them available online, why would students still come to class? If they don’t—but can pass exams—does it matter? While faculty have mixed feelings about recorded lectures, a combination of new technologies makes it possible to allow ONLY students who attend class to access recorded lectures online, for the purposes of review (not discovery).

Problem

For several years, UMBC has been providing a lecture-capture taping service whereby student videographers are paid by professors or departments to trek across campus, set up tripods and cameras, capture a variety of lecture content (and formats), and bring them back for light editing, digitization and distribution online through open and (sometimes) closed access websites. While the process doesn’t scale particularly well, it is relatively unobtrusive to the faculty member, who can go about the process of lecturing pretty much the way he or she has always done.

In recent years, lecture capture demand has grown as have a variety of solutions that include dedicated, wall-mounted, pan/tilt video cameras with remote control and automated, scheduled recording. These are attractive (and expensive) solutions, but still don’t address faculty concerns about whether students will come to class if the lectures are available online.

Tamara Mendelson

A view of the lecturn at the start of Mendelson's Spring 2008 Biology class.

Last spring, after seeing a photo of 15 personal digital audio recorders aligned along the podium of a large biology class, we talked with the instructor, Tamara Mendelson, who explains her rationale for allowing them: “Everything I say is fair game for a test, so I tell the students ‘If I were you, I’d record it all.’ And they do.”

Just like our labor intensive lecture capture service, Mendelson didn’t have to do anything and apparently the students were content to have only her PowerPoint presentations online and their own audio recordings. When we suggested she could make the recordings herself and post them on Blackboard, Mendelson wondered if she could limit access to only students who were in the class. In other words, she wanted to provide the online, recorded lectures for review by students who were present, not for discovery by students who were absent.

Combined with our own lessons learned about simple screencasting software solutions, clickers and the use of a function called “adaptive release” in Blackboard, we realized it is possible to use a daily record of attendance collected by the clickers as a "precondition" for who can access recorded lectures that the instructor posts to his or her Blackboard site.

While we are using MP3 digital audio recorders only, the same process can be used for recorded screencasts made with Camtasia and published in Blackboard, which we have been supporting for years.

Essentially, any faculty member can adapt this cookbook “recipe” to use clickers to control access to any file or function in Blackboard:

1. Record the audio of your lecture with an MP3 digital recorder (we’ve found a good one for $80) accompanied by a powerpoint; or make a screencast which combines audio and any actions or screens on the instructor’s vga display into one synchronized file (we like Camtasia).

2. Ask at least one clicker question during the class period or (ideally) the lecture yourself so you don't get clicker-only "drop ins" (you might even want to ask questions at the start & end of the period/lecture).

3. Upload your clicker grades into your Blackboard gradebook.

4. Create a folder where your lecture materials (e.g., PPTs & audio or screencasts) will reside; make it unavailable to students so you can take your time uploading lecture materials.

5. Upload your lecture materials

6. Use Blackboard's "Adaptive Release" function to limit access to only those students who have ANY score (e.g., activity) for that day's clicker question(s)

7. Make the lecture folder available.

8. Send and/or post announcement that the day's lecture materials are available for REVIEW to students who were present and "clicked."
   

For more information, DoIT has prepared a help sheet, which also uses short screencast videos to "show and tell" the process Mendelson will be piloting this fall:

Posting/Controlling Access to Recorded Lectures
http://www.umbc.edu/oit/newmedia/blackboard/help/audio/audio_directions.html

Posted by fritz at 10:15 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

Changes to Turnitin Interface--Not Status @ UMBC

While the interface to Turnitin has changed, the status of the plagiarism detection software's use at UMBC remains unchanged.

As announced last spring, there remain unresolved issues with Turnitn possibly "crashing" inside Blackboard versions 7.2 or higher (which UMBC runs).

While there were minimal reports of this happening at UMBC, the Division of Information Technology (DoIT) still wants faculty to be aware of these potential issues as well as other alternatives (e.g., using Turnitin oustide of Blackboard or using SafeAssign, which is Blackboard's plagiarism detection tool).

In the meantime, DoIT will continue to support both Turnitin and SafeAssign for the Fall 2008 semester, but faculty should weigh their own concerns about interruptions in deciding which tool they should use.

FYI: Once you use the new Turnitin interface, there is a "switch back" option to return to the original interface.

Posted by fritz at 4:16 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

"Clicker" Hardware & Software to be Upgraded in Lecture Halls

Following a recommendation from eInstruction.com, makers of the Classroom Performance System (CPS) "clickers" used on campus, the Division of Information Technology (DoIT), will be upgrading the clicker hardware and software in all lecture halls for start of semester.

So far, DoIT has upgraded the CPS receivers in all of the lecture halls to the new receivers that are similar to the “stick” USB flash drives that many of us use to transport data. Testing has shown they accept the inputs from clickers faster and more reliably then previous versions.

In addition, new PC versions of the CPS instructor software will be installed in all of the lecture halls. As a result, to remain compatible, DoIT strongly recommends that all instructors upgrade their PC or Mac CPS software on their computers as well. The download for the software can be found at http://www.einstruction.com/Downloads/index.cfm.

FYI: One of the best features of the new CPS software is the ability to take attendance without having to start a Teacher Managed engage session.

For more information, visit the eInstruction CPS support site or visit UMBC's "clicker" support site.

Posted by fritz at 12:49 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Seven Classrooms & One Lecture Hall Get Tech Upgrades; Mobile AV Requests Due 8/22

For the second straight year, the Provost's Office has funded a classroom technology plan to permanently install presentation technology upgrades in all of UMBC's 73 general purpose classrooms.

Specifically, seven ACIV classrooms (006, 011, 108, 145, 150, 151 and 305) now have permanently installed data projectors, which now means 53 (or 73 percent) of UMBC's general purpose classrooms are permanently "fixtured." In addition, projectors in Physics 107 and 201 have been upgraded this summer.

NOTE: For faculty teaching in classrooms without a permanently installed data projector--you can check the classroom tech inventory here--please submit an AV request by Friday, August 22.

The new screen in LH7 is nearly twice as high as the previous one, making it easy to see any slide, web page, image or video from the back of the room.

1. Use The Portable White Board

DoIT has purchased a portable, double-sided white board that can be moved anywhere at the front of the room--including 25 feet closer to where students are sitting compared with the permanent white board.

NOTE: The portable white board must NOT be stored or placed directly underneath the new, larger projector screen. If the screen is lowered or raised, any sharp edges on the white board can damage the screen fabric, which is very expensive to replace.

2. Convert to Digital Annotation & Writing

If you only want to use one display (the larger screen), then consider switching to digital annotation, writing or drawing, using a tablet PC or the built-in "star board" annotation pad built into the instructor station. In addition to just switching between applications like PowerPoint, a website and a video or image, you can record your digital annotations (and voice) for later review by students.

For more information, view the taped archive of DoIT's 3/10 "Digital Alternatives to Chalk" brown bag presentation or contact Steven Anderson, manager of classroom technology, at 410.455.3680 or sanderso@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 7:13 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 20, 2008

OIT Publishes SP2008 Most Active Blackboard Courses

OIT has again published UMBC's "Most Active Blackboard" courses reports for the Spring 2008 semester, based on an "average hits per user" approach. For the second straight semester, one department (Information Systems) and one class (PSYC 100 "Introduction to Psychology) have taken the top spot for most active discipline and undergraduate course, respectively. For more information, visit www.umbc.edu/blackboard/reports.

Highlights (based on student activity ONLY):

Most Active Graduate Course: IS 634 "Structured Systems Analysis and Design" taught by Heather Holden, Carlton Crabtree, Carolyn Seaman (avg hits per student: 2,685).

Most Active Undergraduate Course: PSYC 100 "Introduction to Psychology" taught by Linda Jones, Eileen O'Brien, Brian Jobe (avg hits per student: 1,632).

Note: PSYC 100 was also the most active undergraduate Bb course for Fall 2007.

Most Active Discipline: Information Systems (84 Blackboard courses).

Note: Information Systems was also the most active discipline for Fall 2007.

Most Active Community: Geography and Environmental Systems Department managed by several GES faculty (avg hits per user: 533).

Total Number of Blackboard Courses (including those with multiple sections): 1,034

While activity alone is not a measure of quality, OIT publishes these reports so faculty can seek each other out about what does (or doesn't ) work in using Blackboard. Toward this end, faculty may also want to try out the new "Average Hits Per User by Final Grade Distribution" reports announced on March 6.

For more information about the Blackboard Reports project, contact John Fritz at 410.455.6596 or fritz@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 11:09 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 3, 2008

Using Blackboard for Job Search or RFP Committees

When the 20-member Provost Search Committee identified its four finalists, it did so using a Blackboard community to review AND rank all applicants online before meeting face-to-face to discuss their differences. Similarly, the Alternate Delivery Program has frequently used Blackboard to review faculty proposals to receive a one-time course development stipend to redesign an existing course for hybrid delivery in summer or winter sessions.

Key Steps

1. Members review candidate materials or RFP proposals on the Bb community discussion board or blog.

2. Members post an initial "vote" by changing subject line of their reply to "yes" or "no" or "maybe."

3. Optional: Members use body of their reply to explain their "vote"

4. Members meet face-to-face as a group to "negotiate" their online voting differences and reach consensus

"Show & Tell" videos

Posted by fritz at 12:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

SP2008 UMBC Blackboard Update

UMBC Blackboard update is provided by the Office of Information Technology for
students, faculty and staff using Blackboard at UMBC. If you have questions or
suggestions, contact John Fritz (fritz@umbc.edu or 410.455.6596) or Bob Armstrong
(rarmstro@umbc.edu or 410.455.3885). For more information about using Blackboard,
login via myUMBC or visit http://blackboard.umbc.edu.

HEADLINES

1. SP2008 Course Shells Expire on 6/15

2. SU2008 Course Shells Created on 4/30

3. OIT Publishes FA2007 Blackboard User Survey Results

4. New myUMBC Tools Show How Good Students Use Blackboard

5. UMBC Joins Two National, Online Learning Faculty Development Networks

6. Job Opening: UMBC Blackboard Graduate Assistant

7. FYI: Using Blackboard for Job Search or RFP Committees

8. FYI: OIT to Upgrade Labs to MS Office 2007 (PC) & 2008 (Mac)

9. FYI: BbWorld'08 World Conference is July15-17

Posted by fritz at 12:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 2, 2008

Job Opening: Blackboard Graduate Assistant

OIT’s Instructional Technology & New Media unit seeks a graduate assistant to provide Blackboard support to students, faculty and staff. The person will assist with routine Bb system administration functions (e.g., course & community site creation), and development of Blackboard user support procedures and documentation. Candidates will be expected to work well in a collaborative team environment and to communicate effectively with customers from a variety of academic and administrative departments.

In the past, special projects have included design and development of the following:

UMBC Blackboard Reports
UMBC Blackboard Help

The successful candidate must be self-directed and work well communicating information to technical and non-technical users. The candidate must also be able to interact with customers of all levels in a highly professional and competent manner.

Qualifications

The qualified candidate must be an officially registered UMBC graduate student with demonstrable experience providing end-user support. The candidate must have good problem-solving skills, strong analytical and organization skills, and excellent oral/written communications skills. Experience with web application development (ideally using PHP & MySQL) is preferred.

Compensation & Hours

Term (9 Month)
Closing Date: Open until filled
Compensation: TBD by Graduate School policy (typically stipend, tuition & health)
Hours:
• PT (20 hours/week) in Fall & Spring
• FT (40 hours/week) possible in Winter & Summer

Application Process | Show Me (video)

1. Login to Blackboard via myUMBC or directly at http://blackboard.umbc.edu
2. Search for and “Enroll” in the “Blackboard User Group” organization on the Bb Community tab
3. Complete the “UMBC Bb GA” application by attaching the following:

- Cover Letter (include a brief description of how you use Blackboard now)
- Resume or CV
- Unofficial PDF version of your transcript from myUMBC
- Names of three references and how they know your work
- Note: You can “save” your application and come back, but can only “submit” it once.

Send an email to blackboard@umbc.edu when you have submitted your application using the process described above, or if you need help doing so.

Posted by fritz at 12:15 PM | TrackBack

April 8, 2008

4/30 Team Based Learning Demo

If you want to make sure students are prepared for class and group work, come to this demo of Team Based Learning (TBL) and its Readiness Assurance Process (RAP) that includes the following:

1. An individual quiz over assigned readings;
   
2. A team quiz over the same material using immediate feedback "scratch off" cards;
   
3. An open book "appeals" phase for incorrect "team answers" only.
   
4. Corrective instruction (mini lecture) by the instructor based on a real-time understanding of what students didn't understand.
   

For more information and to register, visit www.umbc.edu/fdc/training

Posted by fritz at 9:49 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 6, 2008

New myUMBC Tools Show How Good Students Use Blackboard

OIT announces the release of two new myUMBC tools designed to show the campus community how top UMBC students use Blackboard.

Specifically, students can "Check My Blackboard Activity" to see a comparison of their own activity against an anonymous summary of other students in their classes. In addition, faculty can now run their own "Grade Distribution" and "Tool Usage" reports showing their students' Blackboard activity by any item in the Blackboard grade book (including final grade), or by overall tool usage within the course.

While the trend needs further study, initial findings suggest that students who earn higher grades tend to use Blackboard more than students earning lower grades. It is NOT the case that using Blackboard alone will produce higher grades, simply by "gaming" the system.

But if students know how their activity compares to an anonymous summary of peers, at any time during the semester, this timely and personal feedback may allow them to monitor and change their own behavior as it pertains to engaging with course concepts, materials, instructors or each other. In essence, students can now draw their own conclusions about the quantity AND quality of their Blackboard activity and the impact this may or may not have on their learning.

Since the "Check Grade" tool in Blackboard allows students to view statistical differences between their grades and the class average for any visible item in the grade book, OIT will eventually publish student reports showing activity by grade distribution as well. In the meantime, faculty who wish to can provide further insight to students, by viewing, printing and publishing (as PDF files in their Bb course site) their current or past student activity GDRs for their specific courses.

Background

A year ago, OIT began reporting on UMBC's "Most Active Blackboard Courses" based on a simple "average hits per user" approach. In this way, "rankings" don't favor large enrollment sites over smaller ones. To date, we now have reports for the Spring, Summer and Fall 2007 semesters.

After OIT announced the Fall 2007 Blackboard reports and availability of the "self service" faculty Grade Distribution Reports (GDR), 16 faculty used their GDRs, which collectively showed overall Blackboard usage was higher by students earning higher grades. The self service GDRs complemented earlier pilots with two faculty from Geography and Environmental Systems (Karin Readel and Chris Swan), which also showed higher Blackboard usage among students earning higher grades.

While there is no statistically significant difference among students earning As, Bs and Cs (numerically there is: students earning higher grades tend to use it more), there is a significant difference between this group and those students who earn Ds and Fs. So far, the pattern has held true in the courses mentioned above, and OIT is working on a way to load final grades into a table that looks at all Bb courses to see if the trend is broadly generalizable.

OIT recognizes that hits alone are no endorsement (or indictment) of course quality. But looking at and publishing user activity is one way to help faculty and students identify and consult each other about effective teaching and learning practices. By adopting an attitude of transparency about Blackboard usage, the entire UMBC community (and not just OIT system administrators) gains a "birds eye view" of how this Course Management System (CMS) is being used.

For more information, visit http://www.umbc.edu/blackboard/reports. You can also view a brief video demo of these new myUMBC tools for students and faculty.

Posted by fritz at 2:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 25, 2008

UMBC Joins Two National, Online Learning Faculty Development Networks

On behalf of the UMBC community, the Office of Information Technology has recently joined QualityMatters and the Sloan-Consortium, two national, online learning networks that specialize in faculty development, online training and research-based "best practices." Membership in both organizations is made possible through a partnership with the University System of Maryland (USM).

Established in 2003 with a three-year, $500k grant from the Fund for Improvement to Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), QualityMatters is a nationally-recognized initiative by MarylandOnline that focuses on defining and evaluating best practices in quality online or hybrid course design--not instructor delivery.

Last year, OIT staff and selected faculty participated in several USM-sponsored course design and peer reviewer training workshops by QualityMatters, which is now an institutional subscription service supported by more than 100 colleges and universities in 31 states who have voluntarily adopted the QM course design and peer review standards. UMBC's own Alternate Delivery Program also adopted the QM standards as part of the Hybrid Course Design Workshop.

Now that UMBC is an institutional QM member, all faculty may access summary or annotated versions of the the highly regarded rubric (or "check list") of 40 course design characteristics that educational research literature identifies in good online courses. An interactive version of the rubric, as well as a form to request peer review by QM trained reviewers, is also available. Send email to John Fritz at fritz@umbc.edu to receive your userid & password for the interactive QM services.

Note: Two Education faculty members, Zane Berge and Greg Williams, are QM certified "peer reviewers," as are Jack Prostko, Director of the Faculty Development Center, and John Fritz and Bob Armstrong from OIT.

Known for its research-based course design rubric--which takes a lot of the guess work out of developing or evaluating online courses--QM does offer face-to-face and online training workshops, but also frequently partners with the Sloan-Consortium, which specializes in online faculty development in all aspects of online learning.

As 2008 institutional members in Sloan-C's "College Pass" program, UMBC has a total of 100 free "seats" to be used toward any online workshop (including how to use the QM rubric) and 50 additional "seats" in select workshops. UMBC also has ten (10) $50 registration discounts toward Sloan-C's highly regarded Conference on Asynchronous Learning Networks in Orlando, Florida (Nov. 5-7).

For now, OIT will manage the "College Pass" registration codes on a "first come, first served" basis. To receive a Sloan-C "College Pass" code, click here.

Finally, faculty are reminded that UMBC has also been a member of the Educause Learning Initiative (ELI) since 2006. While ELI does not focus exclusively on online learning, it provides excellent resources, including free webinars on timely topics, a very popular "Seven Things You Should Know About . . ." series, and the annual Horizon Report that looks at new and emerging technologies likely to be adopted in the next one to five years. The Horizon Report is also a partnership with the New Media Consortium, which UMBC also belongs to.

For more information about any of these opportunities, contact John Fritz at fritz@umbc.edu or 410.455.6596.

Posted by fritz at 11:24 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 14, 2008

3/10 Brown Bag Workshop: Digital Alternatives to Writing (and Drawing) on A Chalkboard

Tired of having to write or draw big so your students can see your notes, formulas or diagrams on the chalk or dry erase board? Then see how you can use digital alternatives that can be projected on a big screen--and even captured, narrated and replayed in Blackboard. This Teaching Learning and Technology (TLT) Brown Bag Workshop will be held on Monday, March 10, at noon in Lecture Hall 8.

Faculty-led demos will include:

• Hitachi Smart Board Input Screens (available in LH 7 & 8)
• Tablet PCs (like the IBM Lenovo X61 currently available in AV Services)
• Wacom Graphic Tablet (http://global.wacom.com/index2.cfm)
• Document Cameras (currently installed in all but two lecture halls: LH1 & LH3)
• AceCad Digimemo "Digital Paper" Pads (http://www.acecad.com)

With most of these options, if you have some kind of screen capture tool like Camtasia (www.techsmith.com/camtasia), you could also capture the screen movements and audio narration for later display in a password-protected space like Blackboard.

Light refreshments will be provided for registered participants. To register, visit www.umbc.edu/brownbag.

Posted by fritz at 1:53 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 9, 2008

3/7 Hybrid Teaching Workshop & Faculty Presentations Brown Bag

OIT and the Faculty Development Center will again sponsor a day-long Hybrid Course Design Workshop on Friday, March 7 in Engineering 023. It includes a lunch-time "Brown Bag" presentation of "learning objects" designed by faculty who have participated in previous hybrid workshops, and are now completing requirements for a one-time, $1,500 course development stipend sponsored by the Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs (OSWSP).

Workshop participants will learn the principles of good course design and apply them to a traditional, face-to-face (F2F) course that could be delivered as a hybrid (part-online, part F2F) course. For more information, visit www.umbc.edu/oit/hybrid/training.

During lunch, faculty in the Summer 2008 Alternate Delivery Program (ADP) will present the first of two required "learning objects" that address the pedagogical problems (or opportunities) a hybrid or online course solves (or creates). A review panel of faculty who have taught online or hybrid courses will hear the presentations, which are open to the campus and will be videotaped (past presentations are also available on the Hybrid Course Design Workshop Blackboard site, and in the Teaching and Learning section of UMBC's iTunesU service). Lunch will be provided to registered participants.

These lunch-time SU2008 ADP faculty presentations are a great way to see how faculty apply their training in online or hybrid course redesign approaches.

Note: Currently registered Hybrid workshop participants do NOT need to register for this brown bag. It is included as part of the workshop.

Posted by fritz at 11:32 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 25, 2008

Blackboard "Turnitin" Issues & Scheduled Downtime (1/26, 6-9 a.m.)

Following the planned upgrade to version 7.2 last week, OIT has discovered issues with the Turnitin "Building Block" that instructors may want to understand before using this tool.

In addition, the main Blackboard production server will be down for routine, scheduled maintenance this Saturday, January 26, from 6 to 9 a.m. This is unrelated to the Turnitin issues described in this announcement.

Basically, the Turnitin "Building Block" (or plug-in) for Blackboard we have used for several years has been going down sporadically in Bb versions 7.2 or higher. This was not publicly announced and it seems to be an issue when Blackboard is used in a multiple server configuration such as UMBC uses to guarantee redundancy and performance. We've learned that other schools have experienced similar issues.

The issue has become more complicated since Blackboard released its own plagiarism detection tool, SafeAssign, this summer. While SafeAssign is free (the Faculty Development Center currently pays for Turnitin), the key to any tool like this is the library of past submissions to compare future papers against. Clearly, Turnitn has a larger library at this point, but given its wider availability across all 3,700 colleges and universities using Blackboard, SafeAssign is bound to catch up. Also, there were early reports of "issues" when Safe Assign first shipped, but they appear to be settling down.

While we have worked with Turnitin, there is no guarantee the tool will not go down if you use it inside Blackboard. Accordingly, OIT has made SafeAssign available in all courses and suggests the following options:

1. Use Turnitin Outside of Blackboard

As a campus, we haven't done this in a while, but it is possible to access Turnitin outside of Blackboard; it's just not as easy for faculty and students who may be accustomed to using it inside Blackboard.

Instructions

After the class is created online, students will need to create accounts and submit papers using your class ID. If you have questions, please contact Jack Prostko, Director, Faculty Development Center (ext. 5-1829 or prostko@umbc.edu).

2. Use SafeAssign

While we do not have a lot of experience with this tool yet, OIT has made it available. Also, faculty can upload student papers from past courses to "jump start" the rebuilding of their respective bank of papers SafeAssign can check against. For more information on how to use SafeAssign, visit www.safeassign.com.

3. Use Turnitin Inside Blackboard | More Information

OIT recommends piloting “Safe Assign” for those courses where issues would be most problematic or for faculty who do not wish to worry about Turnitin. We will keep the Turnitin service running for faculty who wish to continue using it and accept that there is some risk.

If you have questions or concerns, please add them as a comment to this announcement, which OIT will monitor, or send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 1:08 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

November 5, 2007

OIT Publishes Strategic Plan for Teaching, Learning and Technology

This fall, the Office of Information Technology has published Richness AND Reach: A Strategic Plan for Teaching, Learning and Technology and now seeks campus feedback on five specific recommendations and their related issues and opportunities [excerpted below]:

From the TLT Plan Executive Summary . . .

To face our issues and take advantage of recent opportunities, this plan recommends the following actions over the next five to seven years:

1. Assess and promote TLT practices that improve student learning; facilitate faculty awareness, networking, mentoring and training of or in these effective practices, especially in STEM disciplines or where large, introductory “gateway” courses have a history of high failure or dropout rates.

2. Invest more fully in the Blackboard architecture and community of practice, to support and elevate existing faculty usage from simple user and document management to increased interactivity and online assessment that improves student engagement, retention and recruitment.

3. Coordinate development, implementation and support of all current and proposed online degree programs. Collaborative partnerships could include academic departments (for subject matter expertise), the Faculty Development Center and Office of Information Technology (for instructional design and technical support) and Continuing and Professional Studies (to administer and market the online program needs and experiences of students).

4. Develop a strategic plan for design of formal, informal and (where appropriate) virtual learning spaces. A good first step is to complete the three-year plan to equip all registrar-controlled classrooms with fixed presentation technology by FY11. In addition, we should use the new Fine Arts and Humanities building to challenge current and future assumptions about what it means to learn not just anytime, but also anywhere.

5. Create an interdepartmental Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology charged with defining, implementing, evaluating and reporting progress on recommendations 1 through 4. The TLT Center could be populated with staff from the Library, OIT’s Instructional Technology unit, FDC, Learning Resources Center (LRC) and Continuing and Professional Studies (CPS).

Working with a faculty advisory group at the start of the Spring 2007 semester, the plan was developed over the summer and presented to the Provost's IT Steering and Classroom Committees last month, as well as to the Faculty Senate Computer Policy Committee, for which chair Ant Ozok is devoting several meetings to discuss the plan in detail.

In addition to sharing feedback with representatives of the IT-related committees above, members of the campus community may also share comments at the end of this article, or contact John Fritz, director of Instructional Technology & New Media, at fritz@umbc.edu or 410.455.6596.

Posted by fritz at 8:18 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 31, 2007

OIT & FDC Present 11/16 Hybrid Training Workshop

The Office of Information Technology and Faculty Development Center are offering another Hybrid Course Redesign Workshop on Friday, November 16, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in Engineering 023. Participants will learn the principles of good course design and apply them to a traditional, face-to-face (F2F) course that could be delivered as a hybrid (part-online, part F2F) course. Using hybrid delivery to demonstrate best practices of hybrid teaching, this workshop is open to any UMBC instructor considering teaching a hybrid course in any semester. Lunch wll be provided to registered participants.

The workshop will also help meet the WT2008 requirements for a one-time course-redesign stipend through the Alternate Delivery Program, which is sponsored by the Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs. For more information and to register for the workshop, visit http://www.umbc.edu/oit/hybrid/training

Posted by fritz at 9:40 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 16, 2007

GES Faculty Show and Tell How and Why They Use Blackboard

Karin Readel

Chris Swan

In addition, OIT has published pilot reports for some of Readel's and Swan's recent courses showing student activity by final grade distribution:

While this kind of individual course report is not yet available (faculty can do it manually), OIT intends to provide this service to faculty who wish to view it privately (or eventually post it inside a Bb course for future students to monitor and benchmark their own activity).

OIT will also be publishing a similar, public report that summarizes student activity and tool use by grade distribution in the top 25, 50, 75 and 100 percentile ranges of all UMBC Blackboard courses. The goal is to see what difference, if any, exists in student grade distribution across a range of Bb courses and activity levels.

After watching Readel and Swan show how they use Blackboard in their actual course sites, faculty may want to check out why they do so in two new "Q & A" video interviews on UMBC's iTunesU service (for more information about UMBC on iTunes, see http://itunes.umbc.edu).

OIT plans to publish more "Show & Tell" (how) and "Q & A" (why) videos from faculty teaching active Blackboard courses in other disciplines, but if you or a colleague has an effective practice or insight you'd be willing to share, send email to fritz@umbc.edu. Please include a short description of the pedagogical problem that is solved or the new learning opportunity that is created in using Blackboard.

Note: To protect the work and identity of students who may appear in the "Show & Tell" videos, only UMBC faculty can access them with their myUMBC userid & password. These videos are intended for collegial, professional development only, so all faculty are reminded that any medium containing identifiable student academic information constitutes an "educational record" that is protected by the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Posted by fritz at 4:10 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 15, 2007

OIT Staff Present Blackboard Reporting Project at MDBUG Conference

OIT staff members John Fritz, director of Instructional Technology & New Media (ITNM), and Jeffrey Berman (an ITNM graduate assistant) presented the UMBC "Most Active Blackboard Courses" Reports project at the Maryland Blackboard Users Group (MDBUG) conference on Tuesday, October 2, at the UMBC Technology Center.

Proceedings are not yet available on the conference website, but you can watch Fritz and Berman's presentation, "Why and How UMBC Publishes Its Most Active Blackboard Courses Reports," on the Blackboard reports site (Fritz handles the "why" and Berman explains the "how").

Other UMBC presenters included:

Anne Rubin (History): "Child Labor in the American South: Using a Bb Wiki for Historical Research"

Matthias Gobbert (Math/Stats): "Screen Capture of Mathematics with Voice Over using a Tablet Laptop"

Katie Morris (Social Work): "Social Work & Technology: An Unlikely Pair?"

Bev Bickel & Adriana Val (MLL): "Multiple Voices from Online EFL Teacher Education"

Posted by fritz at 1:45 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 13, 2007

SU2007 Blackboard Reports Now Include Tool Usage

OIT has published the Summer 2007 "Most Active Blackboard Courses" reports for all categories of usage (e.g., all courses, graduate courses, undergraduate courses, communities, etc.).

In addition, we have published the specific "tool usage" metrics for the top 50 courses in all categories. Future plans include providing this for all courses.

Reminder: Course activity alone is not a measure or endorsement of quality. These reports are merely provided as a way for faculty to seek each other out about what works (or doesn't) in using Blackboard.

Posted by fritz at 1:39 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 28, 2007

Blackboard Will Be Down 9/1 (9 p.m.) to 9/2 (9 a.m.)

To extend a fix of recent "database connection" errors that have increased during the busy days leading to the start of semester today, the Office of Information Technology (OIT) needs to take Blackboard down from 9 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 1, to 9 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 2.

Working with Blackboard, OIT has developed a short-term fix to the "database connection" errors, but needs extended downtime with no user access to address an underlying issue with the production database. No content has been lost, nor is it expected. But the production database that runs Blackboard needs to be "cleaned up" so performance does not degrade throughout the semester, when the user load will only increase. We are also continuing to work with Blackboard to identify existing processes that may be contributing to the problem.

Currently, we believe overall performance is stable. If we find otherwise, we will post an update on the OIT News site at http://www.umbc.edu/oit/news which you can also subscribe to by RSS feed or view in myUMBC. If you encounter system performance problems, please send email to helpdesk@umbc.edu.

We understand this is a busy time of year, and appreciate your patience as we address these system issues to maintain acceptable performance during the semester.

Posted by fritz at 2:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 6, 2007

Call for Presentations: 10/2 MDBUG Conf. @ UMBC Tech Center

The Maryland Blackboard Users Group (MDBUG) is now accepting presentation proposals for its first-ever conference on Tuesday, October 2, 2007, at the UMBC Technology Center (proposal deadline is Friday, September 7). This is a great, local opportunity to meet other Blackboard users and share effective practices.

To propose a presentation, you MUST use the attached form and submit it on the MDBUG "Connections" site at http://communities.blackboard.com (a free Blackboard "connections" userid is required to login, find and "self-enroll" in the MDBUG site). In addition to traditional lecture, workshop and panel presentation formats, the MDBUG conference will also offer a "Five Minutes of Fame" slot, modeled after the popular format at the annual New Media Consortium conference.

The MDBUG was formed in March 2007, and has 80 members from more than 30 public and private institutions in Maryland who are using or supporting Blackboard on their respective campuses. In addition to the space on Blackboard's own "Connections" site (which always runs the latest version of the Bb software), the MDBUG also maintains a member email listserve (see https://lists.umbc.edu/lists/info/mdbug for more information).

For more information about MDBUG or to consult on a conference proposal idea, contact John Fritz at 410.455.6596 or fritz@umbc.edu or Ellen Borkowski at 301.405.2922 or eyb@umd.edu.

Posted by fritz at 6:17 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 3, 2007

8/22 Hybrid Training Workshop

The Office of Information Technology and Faculty Development Center are offering a Hybrid Course Redesign Workshop on Wednesday, August 22, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in The Commons, Room 328. Participants will learn the principles of good course design and apply them to a traditional, face-to-face (F2F) course that could be delivered as a hybrid (part-online, part F2F) course. Using hybrid delivery to demonstrate best practices of hybrid teaching, this workshop is open to any UMBC instructor considering teaching a hybrid course in any semester.

The workshop will also help meet the WT2008 requirements for a one-time course-redesign stipend through the Alternate Delivery Program, which is sponsored by the Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs. For more information and to register for the workshop, visit http://www.umbc.edu/oit/hybrid/training

Posted by fritz at 10:22 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 3, 2007

5/16 Hybrid Course Design Training "Information Session"

If you're not ready to teach online only, but you'd like to explore teaching and learning beyond a face-to-face (F2F) or even web-enhanced setting, join Jack Prostko, director of the Faculty Development Center, and John Fritz, director of Instructional Technology & New Media, for a hybrid course design training "information session" on Wed., May 16, at Noon in The Commons 331. You'll learn about the training workshop developed to support the Alternate Delivery Program sponsored by the Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs. You can also think about joining the next workshop tentatively scheduled for Friday, August 17 and/or Monday, August 20 (still TBD). Lunch is provided, but please register online so we can plan accordingly.

Posted by fritz at 2:51 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 21, 2007

5/30 Goucher Conference on Teaching & Learning (3/30 RFP Deadline)

The Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology at Goucher College will bring together faculty and academic support personnel from Baltimore area colleges and universities to consider the topic of learning styles in higher education. The 2007 Conference on Teaching and Learning will take place on May 30th, with pre- and post-conference sessions on the 29th and 31st. Our theme is Learning Styles: From Theory to Practice.

We invite proposals for panels and individual presentations for May 30, and workshops for May 31. We especially encourage the submission of proposals that include active learning components. The RFP deadline is March 30.

Questions to consider include: What are learning styles and how can they be identified in the classroom? What activities are you using in the classroom to provide varying approaches to material? What are some effective formats for student projects and research assignments? Is assessment impacted by different learning styles and what strategies can be used to keep it meaningful? Are there new technologies that help faculty to address varying learning styles?

All presenters must register for the Conference.

Proposals are due by March 30, 2007. Notification of accepted proposals will be on or about April 3, 2007.

To propose a session, please e-mail ctlt@goucher.edu and in your message, or attached document, address the following:

Name of session leader and names of additional leaders
Title of session (15-word maximum)
Abstract for website and printed materials (50 words)
Abstract for selection committee (500-word maximum)
Technology needs, if any (internet access, instructor computer with
projection, computer lab, etc.)

Note: In both of your abstracts, you should delineate where appropriate how conference participants who attend your session will engage in active learning.

Alternately, you may mail your proposal to:

Jeffrey Samuels, Conference Coordinator
CTLT / Goucher College
1021 Dulaney Valley Road
Towson, MD 21204

You may view offerings from previous conferences at:
http://www.goucher.edu/x11320.xml

Posted by fritz at 1:40 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 8, 2007

Seven Faculty Selected for SU2007 "Alternate Delivery Program"

Seven UMBC faculty have been selected to participate in UMBC's Alternate Delivery Program (ADP) to redesign existing UMBC courses for online or hybrid delivery in Summer 2007.

Sponsored by the Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs (OSWSP) and supported by the Faculty Development Center (FDC) and Office of Information Technology (OIT), the Alternate Delivery Program provides a course development stipend, instructional design training and technical support to redesign existing courses for online or hybrid delivery.

Since the ADP began in Spring 2005, 16 faculty have redesigned their courses for online or hybrid (part online, part face-to-face) delivery in UMBC's Winter and Summer Special Sessions. Of the seven new faculty accepted into the SU2007 cohort, five will be redesigning an existing course, and two will participate as "peer mentors," which was a new award announced in the Summer 2007 "Request for Proposals."

The SU2007 ADP faculty cohort includes

Matthew Belzer (Music)

Mary Davis (Economics)

Linda Harris (English)

Jodi Kelber-Kaye (Gender & Women's Studies)

Katherine Morris (Social Work)

Susan McCully (Theatre)*

Greg Williams (Education: Instructional Systems Design)*

* Selected to serve as "Peer Mentors."

After two half-day training workshops in mid-January, the SU2007 cohort will begin working on their course redesign deliverables. These include meeting twice during the spring semester (March 1 and April 5) to present two learning objects, assignments or activities that represent how their courses will be redesigned for hybrid or online delivery. Each faculty member's departmental colleagues are encouraged to attend the lunchtime presentations (location and presentation schedule to be announced).

Quality Matters Online Learning "Rubric"

One new development in the SU2007 ADP cohort is the use of the Quality Matters online learning "rubric" or checklist as both a proposal form for the new "peer mentor" awards and as a guide for all new faculty developing future online or hybrid courses. Quality Matters is a voluntary, standards-based method of evaluating online course design (NOT instructor performance or course delivery). In addition to having their online courses evaluated, QM also trains faculty to serve as QM peer reviewers who can earn $150 for participating in a three-member team evaluation of another faculty member's online course.

From 2003 to 2006, QM was funded by a $500,000 grant from the Fund for Improvement of Post Secondary Education (FIPSE). It has won numerous awards for articulating a simple, but effective standard by which online learning design can be evaluated. Currently, QualityMatters is operating on an indvidual and institutional "subscription" model. However, during the 2006-2007 academic year, the University System of Maryland is sponsoring several QM workshops and training programs to System schools and faculty. In March, QM will host online and face-to-face workshops on how to improve an online course and how to become a QM peer reviewer.

For more information about the UMBC Alternate Delivery Program, visit www.umbc.edu/ssfaculty/adp or contact John Fritz at 410.455.6596 or fritz@umbc.edu

Posted by fritz at 2:00 PM

November 6, 2006

11/17 USM Overview of "QualityMatters" Assessment of Online/Hybrid Course Design

The University System of Maryland (USM) is sponsoring a Nov. 17 half-day "Overview" workshop at Towson Univ. on the "QualityMatters" rubric (or "checklist") of best practices for evaluating online or hybrid course design. The deadline for online registration is 11/16, and will be followed by "hands-on" workshops in January and March. Seating is limited, but many participating USM schools (including UMBC) plan to host on-campus, video conference "viewing sites" for most, if not all of workshop activities. For more information about QualityMatters or the related USM sessions, please visit: http://www.usmd.edu/usm/onlinelearning.

FYI: UMBC will be using a "self review" version of the "QualityMatters" rubric for the Summer 2007 Alternate Delivery Program (RFP deadline: 12/8/06). Specifically, the QM rubric will be a required final deliverable for the $1,500 "course redesign" award OR as the proposal form for the new $1,000 "peer mentor" award. For more information, see http://www.umbc.edu/oit/hybrid.

Posted by fritz at 11:02 PM

Summer '07 "Hybrid/Online" Courses RFP (Due: 12/8)

The Office of Summer, Winter & Special Programs (OSWSP) invites proposals from UMBC full and part-time faculty to develop online or hybrid courses to be offered during the 2007 Summer Session. This "Alternate Delivery Program" (ADP) includes $1,500 "course redesign" OR $1,000 "peer mentoring" funding as well as support from the UMBC Faculty Development Center (FDC) and Office of Information Technology (OIT).

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Friday, December 8, 2006
AWARD NOTIFICATION: Monday, December 18, 2006

For more information, including ADP requirements, proposal procedures, a list of past participants and a related 11/28 "information session," please visit www.umbc.edu/ssfaculty/adp or www.umbc.edu/oit/hybrid.

Posted by fritz at 10:49 PM

April 12, 2006

Alternate Delivery (Online & Hybrid) Winter 2007 RFPs (deadline: 5/19)

The Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs (OSWSP) is sponsoring a program to increase the number of alternate delivery courses - specifically, hybrid and online courses - offered during special sessions (winter and summer terms) in 2007.

Supported by OIT and the Faculty Development Center, the OSWSP invites proposals from UMBC full and part-time faculty to develop online or hybrid courses to be offered during the 2007 Winter Session. Course development funding, high speed Internet access, technical support, and the opportunity to participate in a faculty learning community are available through this program. The application deadline is Friday, May 19, 2006 (recipients will be notified the week of May 24, 2006). For more information, visit http://www.umbc.edu/ssfaculty/adp.

Posted by jward at 4:13 PM

December 9, 2005

Summer 2006 ADP Deadline Extended: 12/12/05

Due to today's weather delay, the Summer 2006 "Alternate Delivery (Hybrid/Online) Course Re-design Program" has been extended to Monday, Dec. 12, 2005.

For more information, see the following:

http://www.umbc.edu/ssfaculty/adp

Posted by fritz at 11:28 PM

Bb 2006 User Conference Proposal Deadline Extended: 12/16/05

The 2006 Blackboard World Conference call for proposal deadline has been extended from 12/9 to 12/16. For more information, see the following:

http://blackboard.com/company/events/bbworld/

Posted by fritz at 11:25 PM

Blackboard Announces $50k Innovation Award (Deadline: 1/6/06)

Blackboard has announced it's "Greenhouse" project to "cultivate innovations in e- learning, support the organic growth of knowledge within the Blackboard(R) community and recognize exemplary campus service programs."

According to Bb's 11/29/05 press release . . .

"Three Award Programs Will Offer a Total of $50,000 to Winning Submissions"

"Applications and details on the awards are available on the Blackboard Connections Web site (http://connections.blackboard.com), a central hub where users can collaborate, share best practices and deepen their knowledge and expertise related to Blackboard.

"The deadline for submissions is January 6, 2006. Eight winners, in total, for all three awards, will be selected by February 3, 2006 and invited to attend and speak at the 8th Annual Blackboard Users Conference, Bb World, in San Diego from February 28 - March 2."

Posted by fritz at 11:20 PM

November 29, 2005

Spring 2006 Bb Course Shells to be Created on 12/05/05

On December 5, 2005, OIT will create an empty Blackboard course shell for all Spring 2006 courses that have assigned instructors and are listed in the UMBC Schedule of Classes. Courses that don’t have assigned instructors will be created as courses are added to the Schedule of Classes by the Registrar’s office. Students will be automatically enrolled in all Bb courses as has been done in the past.

Any faculty member who wants to use Blackboard simply needs to login via myUMBC or http://blackboard.umbc.edu and follow the instructions on the Blackboard Help Tab. If you do not wish to use Blackboard, do nothing. By default, all UMBC Blackboard course "shells" remain unavailable to students until the instructor of record makes his or her course available.

NOTE: An online instructor manual is available inside every Blackboard course in the course's "Control Panel" and on the Blackboard Help Tab.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact John Fritz (fritz@umbc.edu or 5-6596) or Bob Armstrong (rarmstro@umbc.edu or 5-3885), or send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by rarmstro at 8:08 AM

Reminder: Fall 2005 Bb Course Shells Will Expire 1/15/06

As announced earlier in the semester, Fall 2005 auto-created Bb course "shells" are set to expire on January 15, 2006 after grades are due. This means the course will automatically revert to being unavailable to students, but faculty will still see the course link. This will help students who frequently complain about having numerous links to old courses in Blackboard. They can request ongoing access from the instructor, who can override the duration settings manually. This may be helpful for processing incompletes, but the majority of students will not have to request to be un-enrolled from old courses

Remember: students can’t un-enroll from Bb courses themselves. If you don’t need your old Bb course site, please consider deleting it by completing the “Bb Course Delete” request form on the Bb Blackboard Help tab.

Posted by rarmstro at 8:03 AM

Blackboard Will Be Down for Upgrades on 1/13/06

The UMBC Blackboard server accessed via myUMBC or at http://blackboard.umbc.edu will be down for maintenance on Friday, January 13, 2006. Among other things, OIT will be applying a hardware upgrade to improve performance and upgrading the Blackboard software to version 6.3. (See below). The server will be back up on Saturday, January 14, 2006.

New Features for Blackboard Version 6.3:

• New Navigation Design
• Content Adaptive Release
• More Question Types
• Performance Dashboard
• Student Report Card
• “What’s New” module
• Improved Language Support
• More information

Posted by rarmstro at 7:57 AM

November 28, 2005

Winter 2006 Bb Courses to Operate on Alternate Server

OIT will run winter 2006 Blackboard courses on an alternate server (http://bbss.umbc.edu) so that we can upgrade and prepare the regular Blackboard server (http://blackboard.umbc.edu) for the spring 2006 semester. The winter semester is the most convenient time to do this upgrade since there are fewer courses using Blackboard. OIT will still enroll students in your winter Bb course, and we will post an announcement in a mirror version of your winter Bb course on the regular server, that links students to the actual course on the alternate Bb server (please alert them of this change during your first winter class as well).

If you wish to use Blackboard for the winter semester, simply submit a request for a course shell by using the New Course Request Form on the Blackboard Help tab available before and after logging in to Blackboard. These courses will stay on this server throughout the winter semester and then be moved to the regular Blackboard server (http://blackboard.umbc.edu) during the Spring semester. If you have a course that is already being developed on the current server, please send an email to blackboard @umbc.edu and we will move it for you. Please include your course name and course id number in your request.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact John Fritz (fritz@umbc.edu or 5-6596) or Bob Armstrong (rarmstro@umbc.edu or 5-3885), or send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by rarmstro at 4:01 PM

OIT Seeks Faculty Volunteers to Pilot Bb version 7.0

OIT has installed the latest version of Blackboard (version 7.0) and is looking for faculty volunteers to pilot this system. For a list of new features available in version 7.0, visit Blackboard’s own site.

As in past UMBC Bb pilot programs, faculty who want to use the most recent version should consider the following:

• OIT will place an announcement in your pilot course describing what you and your students need to do if you encounter a problem in the version 7 pilot environment. We would ask you to make this a “permanent” announcement in your course throughout the semester.

• Throughout the semester, you and your students may be asked to complete a survey about your experience with the software.

• Your course will not be compatible with the regular production server until it is migrated to the version 7.0 software. Currently, OIT plans to migrate all courses to version 7.0 in January 2007, but may considering doing so for Fall 2006 if we get acceptable results during a substantive pilot program this spring.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact John Fritz (fritz@umbc.edu or 5-6596) or Bob Armstrong (rarmstro@umbc.edu or 5-3885), or send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by rarmstro at 3:57 PM

Start of Semester Blackboard Tips & Workshops

Here are a few things to keep in mind starting the Spring 2006 semester:

• Remember to make your course “Available” once you have it ready for students.

• If you copy course content from a previous semester, be sure to check to see that your “Course Duration” is set for the current semester. OIT sets a default “unavailable” date in the semester shells we create, but if you import an entire course from a prior semester into the new shell, the older course’s “duration” will overwrite the new shell’s duration.

• Students will be automatically enrolled in the appropriate Blackboard course after they officially register for a course. Remember to remove those students that drop once the official Add/Drop date has passed, as students can never un-enroll themselves from a Bb course site, and OIT’s “Auto Enroll” process is “additive” only.

Also, starting in January, OIT will be offering a variety of workshops that will highlight the new features in Blackboard 6, as well as our other workshops that focus on Blackboard tools and the new user. For more information and to register online, visit the OIT Training site at http://www.umbc.edu/training and click on Blackboard.

As always, if you have specific questions or you just can’t figure out how to do something in your course/community, please send email to blackboard@umbc.edu, or contact Bob Armstrong at rarmstro@umbc.edu or 5-3885.

Posted by rarmstro at 3:49 PM

FYI: Turnitin Interface Has Changed

If you are using Turnitin in Blackboard, you will notice some changes for spring 2006. The interface now looks more like what you would see if you logged directly into Turnitin.com. Instead of going into “Tools” and then “Login to Turnitin”, you just go to the course control panel and click on “Turnitin Assignments”. The process for creating Turnitin assignments is the same.

The interface is much cleaner and offers you more options for downloads and setting Turnitin assignment preferences.

Posted by rarmstro at 3:45 PM

FYI: Bb Assignments Feature to Replace Digital Drop Box

The Assignments feature in Blackboard is a tool that was designed to replace the Digital Drop Box by allowing the instructor to create individual assignments for each student submission, rather than have all of the submissions for the course submitted into one place. This allows for easier document management—no more need to delete Digital Drop Box files one at a time—and no more confusion by students about whether they've POSTED an assignment to their drop box, or SUBMITTED it to the instructor's drop box. The Assignment function even creates a column in the Gradebook for easier management of grades.

With the upgrade to version 6.3 we we eventually plan to phase out eliminate the use of the Digital Drop Box, and focus exclusively on the Assignments feature.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact John Fritz (fritz@umbc.edu or 5-6596) or Bob Armstrong (rarmstro@umbc.edu or 5-3885), or send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by rarmstro at 3:40 PM

FYI: 2/15/06 Brown Bag: Inside Bb Product Development

Zahra Safavian, Blackboard Product Manager and ’97 UMBC alum, will be here on campus Wednesday, February 15 at noon to talk about how Blackboard develops its’ product and give you an opportunity to give her some of your suggestions. For more information and to register for this free workship, visit http://www.umbc.edu/brownbag.

Posted by fritz at 2:58 PM

FYI: Wimba Voice Tools and Learning Objects Pilots Continue

OIT will continue to pilot the Wimba Voice tools and Leaning Objects Teams and Journal tools for the Spring semester.

The Wimba Voice tools allow you to create voice announcements, emails, and discussion boards along with a live classroom component. These tools can add non-textual interactivity by providing a live voice component that can be used for greetings or discussions. Wimba also has a live classroom component for doing conducting your classes live online.

The learning Objects tools, called Team LX, Journal LX, and Expo provide easy-to-use tools that function as a course wiki or a blog. Descriptions for these tools and online help can be found under the “Blackboard Help” tab before and after logging into Blackboard via myUMBC or directly at http://blackboard.umbc.edu.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact John Fritz (fritz@umbc.edu or 5-6596) or Bob Armstrong (rarmstro@umbc.edu or 5-3885), or send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 2:28 PM

FYI: Maryland Blackboard Community Available

Want an easy way to communicate with other Maryland Blackboard users? Blackboard has set up an active community that you can enroll in and get insight into how other campuses in Maryland are using Blackboard. The community is using many of the new Blackboard features and can serve as a springboard for showing you techniques that you may have never thought of. To enroll in the community, simply go to http://communities.blackboard.com, create and user name and password and you are ready to go.

Posted by fritz at 2:27 PM

FYI: 2006 Bb Users Conference (RFP Deadline: 12/9/05)

The Blackboard World 2006 User Conference will be held in San Diego, CA February 28 to March 2. The deadline for proposal presentations is December 9, 2005, and accepted presenters will receive a 50 percent discount on their conference registration. For more information, see http://blackboard.com/company/events/bbworld

Posted by fritz at 2:24 PM

November 4, 2005

Hybrid/Online Course Design RFP (Deadline: 12/9)

The Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs (OSWSP) is piloting a new program to increase the number of alternate delivery courses - specifically, hybrid and online courses - offered during special sessions (winter and summer terms) in 2006. The OSWSP invites proposals from UMBC full and part-time faculty to develop online or hybrid courses to be offered during the 2006 Summer Session. Course development funding (or a laptop computer), high speed Internet access, technical support, and the opportunity to participate in a faculty “learning community” are available through this program. The proposal deadline is December 9, 2005. More Information.

Posted by fritz at 10:12 PM

September 21, 2005

OIT Seeks New Media/Web Standards Specialist

The UMBC Office of Information Technology (OIT) seeks a New Media and Web standards specialist. The incumbant will serve as a Web developer, evangelist and consensus-builder to lead technical development of UMBC’s web presence and institutional adoption of Web standards as defined by the World Wide Web Consortium. Specific duties include: developing and supporting web applications on university and departmental web sites; leading the technical redesign of UMBC’s external Web site; leading development and implementation of scalable, device-independent Web solutions; producing or providing end-user support through online documentation or training; working with a diverse range of end-users as well as content editors, graphic designers, and systems administrators, to devise clean, standards-compliant, usable web sites; and performing other duties as assigned. More information.

Posted by fritz at 4:05 PM

August 25, 2005

OIT Pilots Use of Blogs & Wikis in Blackboard

This year, OIT is piloting a third-party Blackboard extension (or "Building Block") that provides blogs (diary-like web journals) and wikis (group developed websites) contained in Blackboard courses or communities and only visible to enrolled members. Developed by a company called Learning Objects, their "Campus Pack" building block is a set of tools that are designed to foster greater communication between and among Blackboard users.

Bob Armstrong

Journal LX enables users to create, share and comment on blogs within a Blackboard course or community. More Information.

Backpack LX is a dynamic blog and web site builder that permits students and instructors to create and showcase journals and web sites in a central location of the course or community.

OIT will be evaluating the Campus Pack suite of tools during the 2005-06 academic year, and invites instructors/managers and students/members of Blackboard sites to give us feedback on the product. For help or feedback, contact Bob Armstrong (rarmstro@umbc.edu or 410.455.3885). You may also want to see the Team LX and Journal LX help sheets on the UMBC Blackboard Help Tab.

FYI: To see how colleges and universities are using collaborative tools like blogs and wikis in the classroom, see the June 24, 2005 Chronicle of Higher Education special section "Ten Techniques to Change Your Teaching" (login required to view the issue online, or visit the New Media Learning & Development office in ECS 101). Sample articles include the following:

THESE LESSONS CLICK: Thanks to his students' remote-control devices, a biology instructor at the College of Lake County, Ill., can measure the class's comprehension instantly.

C3PO 4 EE101: Electrical engineering students at Montana State University have a lot of knowledge to navigate, and so do their robots.

PIXEL PERFECT: A University of Denver art-history professor exchanges the slide projector for more flexible digital technology.

CUT! Education students at the University of Texas at Austin are learning to tell stories through laptop-produced videos.

CRUDE BEHAVIOR: Computer simulation turns students at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School into oil executives in a tense negotiation.

AMERICAS ONLINE: Videoconferencing allows students at the University of Maryland and the Mexico City campus of the Monterrey Institute of Technology to model a joint business venture.

FACE TO FACE: Thanks to video over IP, the Virginia Community College System can affordably offer an education course team-taught in several linked locations.

A BUILDING TOOL: Three-dimensional software helps students at Carleton College design an environmentally friendly house.
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? Students in an online constitutional-law class from Concord University listen up and write back.

PEN IN HAND: Tablet PC's allow an English professor at CUNY's College of Staten Island to mark up papers the old-fashioned way -- but in a new-fashioned way.

Posted by fritz at 12:11 AM | Comments (0)

June 1, 2005

Enrollment Issues in Summer Blackboard Courses

Some officially enrolled students in summer courses are finding they don't have access to the companion Blackboard course site. This was due to a problem in our auto-enrollment process that now appears to be fixed.

Instructors: If you find otherwise, you can do two things: 1) enroll the students yourself or 2) set the Bb course enrollment options to "self-enroll." This allows students to search for the Blackboard site and then enroll themselves. As instructors, you can change this setting later, if you want to do so.

More Information

Posted by fritz at 1:23 PM

May 20, 2005

Change in Process: Requesting Summer '05 Bb Courses

To UMBC Faculty:

If you plan to use Blackboard for Summer '05, there is a slight change in the process: you will need to request that a course be created for you by using the "Request a New Course Form."

Why?

OIT is currently testing the newest version of Blackboard (version 6.3), including the auto course creation process we've used for the past two semesters. We'll still run the current 6.2 version for Summer '05, but we would like to see if version 6.3 (and our processes for administering it) are ready for Fall '05. Stay tuned.

Posted by fritz at 3:08 PM

OIT Seeks Faculty Volunteers for Summer Pilot of New Blackboard

OIT has installed the latest version of Blackboard (version 6.3) and is looking for faculty volunteers to pilot this system during Summer '05. While there are some interesting new features (especially with assessments), the following conditions would apply for anyone participating in the pilot:

1. Turnitin.com will NOT be available during the summer pilot on version 6.3.

2. Your Summer '05 course is already created, but you will have to:

If you would like to participate in the Bb 6.3 summer pilot, please contact Bob Armstrong at 410.455.3885 or rarmstro@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 1:49 PM

Online Tech Training for UMBC Faculty & Staff

Need to brush up on Excel? How about managing your time & projects? If you need to learn IT or business productivity skills, but don't have time or budget to attend in-class training, you can now learn online with SkillSoft. UMBC recently joined other USM schools using SkillSoft. With over 1,800 titles to choose from, SkillSoft is open to all UMBC faculty and staff. Use it on your own or setup a professional development plan between supervisor and employee. SkillSoft can even be used "off-line" and then synched up "on-line, and you can print certificates of completion. For more information, visit http://www.umbc.edu/skillsoft or http://www.umbc.edu/training (includes online demo). To login, use your full UMBC email address for userid & password (e.g., youruserid@umbc.edu). For more information or help, send email to training@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 1:42 PM

April 25, 2005

Hybrid Courses and Faculty Development

In his column for Insights Online, UMBC Faculty Development Director Jack Prostko explores why and how faculty may want to explore using the hybrid course delivery format.

Posted by fritz at 2:06 PM

March 31, 2005

Spring '05 Blackboard User Survey

OIT is conducting a UMBC Blackboard User Survey until Monday, April 4, 2005. To complete the survey, login to blackboard and select the relevant student/member or instructor/manager survey links on the My Institution page, or inside ANY Blackboard course or community.

Your participation will help improve the service, and be compared with our last user survey in spring 2003. If you have questions or concerns, send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 9:20 AM

What it's Like to Teach an Online or Hybrid Course (4/6, 1 p.m.)

In light of the USM Board of Regents proposal for more online or hybrid (part online, part face-to-face) courses, what's it like to teach and learn this way? Faculty from UMBC's three online master's programs in Emergency Health Services (Maguire), Education (Oliva) and Information Systems (Seaman) will describe their experiences, and share their thoughts on what it would take to support this mode of delivery for UMBC's undergraduate curriculum. Wednesday, April 6, 1 p.m., ECS 023. To register, visit http://www.umbc.edu/brownbag.

Related Information:

For more information, visit Goucher's Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology or send email to ctlt@goucher.edu

Posted by fritz at 9:11 AM

March 30, 2005

End of Semester Check List for Your Blackboard Course

As we near the end of the semester, here's a checklist of tasks instructors may want to keep in mind (help sheets are available on the Blackboard Help tab):

Make your course unavailable to students
Create a backup copy of your course (and gradebook)
Send UMBC Blackboard course deletion requests

While past courses are available online in Blackboard, OIT recommends creating a backup copy, too. It's also smart to make your course unavailable to students after the semester ends, so it doesn't show up in their list of courses in future semesters--a big complaint of students. Exceptions might include keeping the course open to process incompletes, or as a courtesy to students who request to have ongoing access.

If you have created a backup copy of your course (online or on your own computer) consider having all older versions of the course deleted. You can then create your future course from your backup or the most recent version online. This way, you always "copy forward" the most recent version, and can get rid of past versions that are just taking up space--and probably still appear in past students' course lists. To permanently remove the course from your list, use the online form on the Blackboard Help tab. When the request has been received, we will send you an email to confirm your request.

For more information or help, send email to blackboard@umbc.edu.

Posted by fritz at 11:54 PM

January 28, 2005

FYI: How to Limit List of Courses in Blackboard

FYI . . .

To limit the number of courses displayed on your Blackboard "My Institution" screen, click the yellow pencil icon on your "My Courses" menu and then de-select the course link you don't want displayed. You will not be removed from the course, but it will no longer be displayed when you log in.

Posted by OIT at 5:04 PM