Blackboard for Instructors: Getting started with Blackboard at UO

1
Blackboard for InstructorsGetting started with
Blackboard at UO

• JQ JohnsonAcademic Education CoordinatorUniversi
  ty of Oregonjqj_at_darkwing.uoregon.edu

2
This presentation

• Blackboard at The University of Oregon
• How can Blackboard improve teaching? (a
  students view of a typical course)
• How does an instructor use blackboard?
• Discussion whats in it for me?

3
Timeline of UO Blackboard project

• Need assessment (1996-1999) evaluated a variety
  of course management systems
• Evaluation (spring 1999) trial courses using
  WebCT and Blackboard
• Implementation (summer 1999-spring 2000)
  licensed Blackboard for pilot project
• Production (summer 2000) Blackboard becomes
  standard library service
• Planned upgrade (fall 2003) to Blackboard 6
  Enterprise Edition

4
Results to date consistent growth in usage
5
Results to date a very popular tool

• I think it's a real tribute to the design of
  Blackboard that I was up and running after a four
  hour workshop. I've been impressed from the
  get-go.
• Elizabeth Hoffman InstructorArts
  Administration2000

• Statistics as of Nov 2002
• 12,215 student users (2/3 of university
  population)
• 305 active coursesites
• 415 instructors teaching using Blackboard during
  fall 2002
• 19,435 student-course enrollments
• Approximately 400,000 web server hits/day
• Approximately 10000 sessions/day

6
What is Blackboard?

• A commercial, web-based Course Management
  System
• Integrated environment offering wide variety of
  features for teaching
• access control only enrolled students may view
  course
• easy web publishing of syllabus, lecture notes,
  etc.
• asynchronous communication announcements,
  threaded discussion, surveys
• synchronous communication chat room, virtual
  whiteboard
• online quizzes and gradebook
• collaborative workgroups

7
The UO Blackboard home page http//blackboard.uor
egon.edu
8
A Blackboard CourseSitehttp//blackboard.uoregon.
edu/courses/PSY201JJF
9
Course Documents
10
Lecture Notes
11
Integrated discussion forum
12
Online quizzes
13
Typical UO Blackboard users

• Courses in a wide range of disciplines
• Art and Gender
• Intro to Business
• Introduction to Native American Literature
• Introductory Psychology
• Architecture
• Organic Chemistry
• etc.
• Adopters tend to cluster in particular
  departments
• Different instructors use different features
• Different instructors have different pedagogical
  goals

14
Getting started

• First step for an instructor is to get an
  account. Second, is to request a CourseSite for
  a particular course and term
• Most instructors start slow first term teaching
  with Blackboard uses only a few features

15
Example Intro to Business (BA101W02)

• Large lecture course (1200 students/term) with
  minimal staff support
• Pedagogical goal Blackboard primarily used to
  improve/streamline course administration
• Course announcements
• Just in time lecture notes
• On-line self-assessments (quiizzes)
• FAQ (reduce demand for office hours)
• Posting marks securely

16
Example Introductory Psychology (PSY201JJFw01)

• Lecturesection (350 students). Pedagogical
  goal replace existing web site (used only for
  course documents), with support for
• Active learning
• Online practice quizzes (with answers, immediate
  feedback)
• Online demos, links to web resources, real-world
  applications
• Collaborative learning discussion forum as
  supplement to tutorial (f2f discussion) sections
• Creates sense of community despite lecture format
• Different students perform well on-line (e.g.
  non-native English speakers)
• Students generally more thoughtful when posting
  than speaking
• Allows interaction among students outside of
  normal class times

17
Example Arch 282/682, Harbor Hills Village
(Village)

• Architecture course designing a new housing
  complex
• Pedagogical problem how to conduct a meaningful
  (ecologically valid) review of student designs
  taking advantage of outside experts
• Used chat tool and electronic whiteboard to
  implement virtual design reviews
• I have 7-8 professionals around the country and
  in different parts of the world lined up to act
  as remote critics for my studio project. In
  order for them to interact with the students,
  these professionals can log on to blackboard in
  order to use the chat feature.

18
Example Psychology of Trauma (PSY410S03)

• Discussion/lecture course (30 students)
• Blackboard used for
• Course management (e.g. grade distribution)
• Copies of all announcements, handouts, and
  lecture notes online for student convenience
  (just in case publishing)
• Online discussion, extending in-class discussion
  as homework
• Access to readings (all course readings are on
  line)

19
Features in widespread use at UO

• Fill in the blanks easy web page creation
  (e.g., announcements, annotations)
• Posting syllabus and course assignments
• Posting lecture materials (html, MS Powerpoint,
  PDF, etc.)
• Threaded discussion forum
• Gradebook

20
Features in moderate use

• Online quizzes (usually low-stakes e.g.,
  self-assessment)
• Surveys
• Group communication features
• Student web pages
• Digital dropbox
• Integrated calendar, todo lists
• E-mail interface

21
Features generally not used

• Resource center (digital library)
• Chat tool
• Course cartridges (publisher-provided content)

22
Developing course materials

• Faculty develop their own materials
• Faculty Instructional Training Center provides
  guidance and resources, but not labor
• Library and Teaching Effectiveness Program
  provide additional training
• Some departments assign graduate student teaching
  assistants or clerical staff to Blackboard
  support and development
• Library can provide assistance in locating
  materials (reference material for students and
  learning objects for instructors)

23
Helping students use Blackboard

• Students get accounts and coursesite membership
  automatically based on CRN enrollment
• Most students need minimal or no help using
  system
• Refer student questions
• Knight Library ITC (only common problem is
  first-time login)
• http//blackboard.uoregon.edu/local/help.html
• Typical text for a syllabus
• The web site for this course uses "Blackboard."
  On the web site, you will find general
  announcements for the class, all documents for
  the course (including this syllabus), lecture
  notes, on-line discussions, links to relevant web
  sites, and more. You can get to the course web
  site by going to http//blackboard.uoregon.edu.
  You can get help starting by going to the Knight
  Library Information Technology Center (ITC).
• Plan to check the course site at least twice a
  week. In addition, you should post contributions
  to the online discussion list at least 4 times
  during the term (and no more than twice a week).

24
Upgrade Plans

• Have been running Basic Edition, designed for
  departments and small (lt3000 student) schools
• About to upgrade to Enterprise Edition

25
For more information

• This presentationhttp//darkwing.uoregon.edu/jq
  j/ presentations/bbintro.ppt
• University of Oregon Blackboard site
  http//blackboard.uoregon.edu
• UO Blackboard help filehttp//blackboard.uoregon
  .edu/local/help.html
• UO Faculty Instructional Technology Training
  Center http//libweb.uoregon.edu/fittc/
• JQ Johnson jqj_at_darkwing.uoregon.edu