TILE Web Online Instruction
Blackboard has been adopted as the online course management system (CMS) at JBU. It enables instructors to post components of their courses or their entire course on the World Wide Web (WWW). Students may access these materials by logging into the system using specific Usernames and Passwords. One major advantage of such a system is that the materials are accessible anytime and anyplace as long as the user has Internet access.
Elements of Blackboard include:
- Threaded discussion
- Real-time chat and whiteboard
- Digital drop box (file exchange capability)
- Content areas
- Group work areas
- Individual and group personal web pages
- Online testing
- External links
- Site statistics
- Organize your course materials before you begin developing your Blackboard site.
- Create your documents in a word processing software or FrontPage. This gives you the advantage of easier editing and spell check. It also allows you to keep a backup copy of your content material.
- Avoid long scrolling screens. Instead, divide the material into “chunks” of information.
- Keep the navigation simple and logical.
- Use a sans serif font such as Arial or Helvetica. Research has shown that these fonts are easier to read from a computer screen. Use a 12 point font size for text copy.
- Avoid all caps. On the Internet this is considered “SCREAMING!” In addition, it is harder to read. It is better to use the normal capitalization and punctuation that is found in books or publications.
- Keep animations and sound effects to a minimum. They can be effective but they can also be annoying if over used.
- Use appropriate images. These add interest and understanding. Make sure images are clear. Try and create images that are between 5-35 kb in size for easy loading.
- Use emoticons :) These add lightheartedness. They help students feel at ease and comfortable, to remember content and to connect with you the instructor.
- Write text in a conversational tone. This helps humanize your content.
- Use links to provide additional, useful information. Provide a brief description of link pages for references.
- Consider using short video clips. It is usually best to make this content optional since some students will be accessing the site over slow modems and may not be able to view them.
- Sound files are another good option. These are usually smaller than video files and are also effective.
- As much as possible include the content within the Blackboard course rather than relying on links to your documents. The reason for this is that not all students have the same word processing software. If you link to a Word document your students will have to have Word or the Word Viewer to view that document.
What do I need to do in order to get started and create a class?
JBU has two Blackboard System Administrators, Kathy Hogan and Ryan Edwards. In addition, Diana Summers and Rick Froman have administrative authorization. Each of these individuals has specific responsibilities related to Blackboard.
- Ryan Edwards is the Network Administrator and keeps everything up and running.
- Kathy Hogan is Coordinator of Online Education and will create a course for you and assist you in curriculum and course design and with how-to questions.
- Diana Summers is the Help Desk Coordinator and is responsible for enrolling users into the Blackboard system. She is also able to answer how-to questions.
- Rick Froman is a knowledgeable and helpful instructor. He will help you with curriculum and course design and with how-to questions.
In order to have your course created in Blackboard will need to contact Kathy Hogan and request that the course be initiated. You will be asked to provide the course name (Old Testament Survey) and the course ID (BBL1013).
Logging into Blackboard
Step 1: Open your browser, either Internet Explorer (IE) or Netscape. Since Blackboard makes extensive use of Java, make sure that you are using a Java enabled version of the browser and that it is functional. Internet Explorer is recommended
Step 2: Type myeagle.jbu.edu in the address line and hit Enter. Click on Blackboard under Resources. This will take you to the log in screen. Use your regular JBU login name and your ID number as your password (or another password that you have previously selected.
Once you are logged on you will be taken to the My Institution Tab area. Blackboard includes a header frame with buttons and images customized for JBU and contains tabs that will navigate to different areas within Blackboard. Clicking on a tabbed area will open that area in the content frame.
My Institution Tab
This area contains tools and information specific to your courses.
Courses Tab
The Course Tab lists the courses specific to each user. User courses are listed in two categories, those that you are teaching and those that you are enrolled in as a student. To access a particular course, click on the course link in this area.
Academic Web Resources Tab
This tab provides direct access to Blackboard’s Resource Center on the web where users can explore selected knowledge areas.
Your Course Site
The top right hand box contains the courses that you have access to. Click on the course you will enhance with Blackboard. You will see a page similar to the following graphic. This is your course homepage. When you or students enter your course, this is the first page they will see.
Course web site elements
| Announcements | Posts timely information critical to course success. Announcements appear on the Main Frame upon entry to Blackboard. |
| Course Information | Displays descriptive material about the course. Usually, the course syllabus and course objectives are displayed here. |
| Faculty Information | Provides background and contact information about course instructors. |
| Course Documents | Contains learning materials and lesson aids. |
| Assignments | Lists due dates and descriptions for class work. Also contains online quizzes and tests. |
| Communication | Allows course participants to communicate. Allows users to:
|
| External Links | Hyperlinks to outside learning materials. Can provide a description of each external link. |
| Tools | Tools that can be used on the course site. These include:
|
Several buttons are found below the main menu.
These include:
| Resources | Accesses Blackboard’s Resource Center |
| Course Map | Alternate means of navigation that includes an expandable/collapsible bookmark. |
| Control Panel | Accesses the Instructor Control Panel. This can only be seen by the course instructor. It allows the instructor to populate the course with content. |
Other Resources
For “how-to” information contact Kathy Hogan, or Rick Froman.
Several books are available to faculty in the Teaching and Learning Center, LRC 129/130.
French, Deanie, Charles Hale, Charles Johnson, and Gerald Farr, ed. Internet [based] learning: An Introduction and Framework for Higher Education and Business. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing, 1999.
Kearsley, Greg. Online Education: Learning and Teaching in Cyberspace. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2000.
Moore, Gary, Kathryn Winograd and Dan Lange. You Can Teach Online: Building a Creative Learning Environment. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2001.
Palloff, Rena and Keith Pratt. Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace: Effective Strategies for the Online Classroom. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1999.
Palloff, Rena and Keith Pratt. Lessons from the Cyberspace Classroom: The Realities of Online Teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2001.
Schweizer, Heidi. Designing and Teaching an On-Line Course: Spinning Your Web Classroom. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1999.
Simonson, Michael, Sharon Smaldino, Michael Albright, and Susan Zvacek. Teaching and Learning at a Distance: Foundations of Distance Education. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 2000.
Blackboard
Assessment Builder
A resource from Wytheville Community College that makes creating assessments
in Blackboard easier.
Quality On The
Line (PDF)
Quality Control and Standards for Internet Based Instruction
Blackboard Help
The Blackboard site for tips, helps, and instructional manuals.
Self
Evaluation Quiz
Will you make a good online instructor? Click on the link and take the
evaluation that has been created by The University of San Diego.
IMPLEMENTING THE SEVEN PRINCIPLES: Technology
as Lever
by Arthur W. Chickering and Stephen C. Ehrmann