UPDATE: Bb Annotate has been staged back for deployment — US East Cost is slated for June 3rd.
Available for summer courses, Blackboard’s new inline grading tool, allows instructors, teaching assistants, and graders to embed feedback, such as comments, highlights, and even drawings, directly on a converted view of student assignments in Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and PDF file formats. Bb Annotate’s enhanced commenting tools offer faculty a robust feature set to provide valuable feedback to students about their progress in a course.
The current interface for the inline grading tool is powered by a third-party conversion tool from Box. This version of the feedback tool was rolled out about two years ago. Recognizing the limited functionality of the Box-based tool, Blackboard initiated the development of a new tool last summer. Bb Annotate is the product of extensive research into faculty grading needs.
Available for both Original and Ultra courses, Bb Annotate offers expanded toos to provide customizable feedback to students. Features include a sidebar summary view, highlighting, freehand drawing and shapes, various color selections, a reusable comment bank across courses, and much more. This overview video shares some of the exciting changes:
View this webinar recording, Getting Started with Bb Annotate.
Please check the FAQ collection after May 20 to learn more about specific functionality. Instructional Technology staff are updating documentation and linking to Bb resources.
No planned downtime is expected on May 25, 2020 when Bb Annotate is enabled for UMBC. The file migration will begin in the background and could take some time to complete depending on the number of annotated files that need to be migrated. However, the current inline grading tools will remain available and all pre-existing grading comments will be migrated and visible in Bb Annotate. Please review additional information about the transition to Bb Annotate on this FAQ.
As always, if you have any questions, please consider the following options:
Follow the Instructional Technology & DoIT myUMBC groups
Request a consult with instructional technology staff
VoiceThread is a learning tool for enhancing student engagement and online presence. With VoiceThread, instructors and/or students can create, share, and comment on images, Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, videos, audio files, documents, and PDFs, using microphone, webcam, text, phone, and audio-file upload.
VoiceThread is offering the following training sessions:
Humanize Your Online Course with VoiceThread
When: May 19, 2020 1:00 pm (Eastern Standard Time)
Creating engaging online courses is not easy. In many discussion-board based courses, students feel isolated and disconnected from their instructors and classmates. VoiceThread bridges the gaps in social presence typically found in online courses. In this workshop, educators will learn how to establish a social presence and connect with their students using VoiceThread to improve course satisfaction and student learning.
VoiceThread Basics 1: Upload, Comment, and Share
When: May 26, 2020 1:00 pm (Eastern Time)
Participants will learn how to upload media, comment and annotate on that media, and share it with others. This will be a slow paced, step-by-step, hands-on workshop. It is open to both VoiceThread license holders and free accounts.
Using VoiceThread in Blackboard
When: June 2, 2020 1:00 pm (Eastern Time)
In this hands-on workshop, you will learn how to create VoiceThreads and then add them to your Blackboard course as lessons or assessments.
]]>Blackboard has announced a webinar series to help faculty transition to remote instruction. Click here to sign up for the options described below.
Who are these webinars for?
This webinar series is designed for Instructors who are just getting started with teaching using Blackboard Learn and Blackboard Collaborate, as well as those who have started to transition to deliver instruction remotely and are looking to make some improvements.
About the webinar series
Many of you had to quickly transition to remote teaching in response to growing concerns on the spread of the coronavirus. The journey to teaching remotely is a process, and we want to ensure you have the tools you need to be successful for both you and your students.
Whether you are brand new to teaching online or looking to make some improvements to what you have started, we designed a set of webinars from basic topics to advanced. We added more topics to help you as you prepare for your next semester.
Getting Started with Blackboard Learn Original Course Experience - Do I have Learn Original?
This webinar is designed to provide you easy step-by-step instructions on how to upload course content, create discussion boards for students to communicate, and provide an overview on the types of online assessments available in Blackboard Learn’s ORIGINAL course experience.
Getting Started with Blackboard Learn Ultra Course Experience - Do I have Learn Ultra?
This webinar is designed to provide you easy step-by-step instructions on how to upload course content, create discussion boards for students to communicate, and provide an overview on the types of online assessments available in Blackboard Learn’s ULTRA course experience.
Getting Started with Blackboard Collaborate
Moving from in-classroom instruction to the virtual classroom does not have to be difficult or stressful. Blackboard Collaborate Ultra is a web-based communication tool that allows you to continue to engage with your students in real time or even to record sessions for students to watch at a later time. In this 30-minute session, we will review the Collaborate interface and tools that support engaging teaching online.
Getting Started with Bb Annotate: Inline Assignment Grading in Blackboard Learn
Blackboard Learn’s inline assignment grading functionality, currently delivered through a technology called New Box View, will be replaced over the next few months with a new tool called Bb Annotate. Created in partnership with clients around the globe, Bb Annotate will offer a more robust feature set to provide customizable feedback to learners, including a sidebar summary view, freehand drawing tools, various color selections, and much more. Join this webinar to see a demonstration of the new tool and get your questions answered by Blackboard experts.
OFFICE HOURS: Ask the Experts About Blackboard Learn and Collaborate
Have a question on how to do something in Blackboard Learn or Blackboard Collaborate? Join this live Office Hours session where Blackboard experts will be on hand to answer questions, demonstrate workflows and provide guidance on teaching remotely.
Intermediate/Advanced Topics
Assessment & Assignments in Blackboard Learn (Original Course Experience)
This intermediate session will provide a deeper dive into setting up assessments, utilizing different types of assessments and creating gradable assignments within a Blackboard Learn Original experience course.
Guide to Building Mobile Content (Original & Ultra Course Experiences)
Many students prefer to consume course content on their mobile phone. This webinar is designed to provide you with basic fundamentals for preparing online course content for mobile delivery. Additionally, we will review Blackboard mobile apps and provide you with a helpful worksheet on mobile content development.
Improving Student Engagement (Original Course Experience)
In the new world of social distancing and limited interaction with others, instructors and students may be missing some accustomed modes of interpersonal communication in courses. Join a team of Blackboard experts who understand first-hand the demands of a fully online teaching environment—we are eager to help you discover how utilizing tools within Blackboard Learn can encourage meaningful engagement among students and between your students and you! Effectively use discussion boards, engage students with interactive lectures and quizzes and challenge them to collaborate together in teams and then present their work back to the larger class. Blackboard’s team of academic professionals have plenty of ideas to share with you and are eager to support you as you consider different ways to promote communication, get your students involved, and to keep them engaged in online classes.
Setting up the Gradebook (Original Course Experience)
As you prepare (or continue) to deliver instruction remotely this summer, empower yourself to do so with maximum efficiency by understanding Blackboard Learn’s powerful Grade Center. The Grade Center is more than just a location to record students' grades--it is an interactive tool that allows faculty to filter, sort, and access data , calculate grades, and monitor student progress. Join this session to learn the basics of efficiently managing your students’ work and grades.
Grading Workflows for Discussions, Assessment & Assignments (Original Course Experience)
Let’s face it – grading is possibly one of the least ‘fun’ parts of teaching. However, now that you’ve created assessments, assignments, and quizzes in Blackboard Learn, the grading process can be easier than ever. In Blackboard, instructors can provide feedback, post grades, and check the originality of student work with ease. Discover how much easier it can be to grade papers when you can annotate right within the online course. You can even provide audio feedback to the student, helping them understand areas of the paper that may need some attention. Want to set up a quiz to be automatically graded? You can do that too! Join us in this informative session on how to use Blackboard’s course tools to make your online teaching experience more efficient, more engaged and less time consuming!
Click here to register for any of the sessions.
Session Dates
Getting Started with Blackboard Learn Original Course Experience - Do I have Learn Original?
· Monday, May 4 | 9:00–9:30 am ET
· Monday, May 11 | 1:00–1:30 pm ET
Getting Started with Blackboard Learn Ultra Course Experience - Do I have Learn Ultra?
· Monday, May 4 | 10:00–10:30 am ET
· Monday, May 11 | 2:00–2:30 pm ET
Getting Started with Blackboard Collaborate
· Monday, May 4 | 11:00–11:30 am ET
· Monday, May 11 | 3:00–3:30 pm ET
Getting Started with Bb Annotate: Inline Assignment Grading in Blackboard Learn
· Tuesday, May 12 | 2:00–3:00 pm ET
· Wednesday, May 13 | 9:00-10:00 pm ET / Thursday, May 14 | 11:00 am–12:00 pm AEST
· Thursday, May 14 | 9:00–10:00 am ET
OFFICE HOURS: Ask the Experts about Blackboard Learn & Collaborate
· Thursday, May 14 | 11:00 am–12:00 pm ET
· Thursday, May 28 | 11:00 am–12:00 pm ET
Assessment & Assignments in Blackboard Learn (Original Course Experience)
· Tuesday, May 5 | 9:00–9:45 am ET
· Tuesday, May 19 | 2:00–2:45 pm ET
Guide to Building Mobile Content (Original & Ultra Course Experiences)
· Wednesday, May 6 | 9:00am - 9:45am ET
· Wednesday, May 20 | 2:00pm - 2:45pm ET
Improving Student Engagement (Original Course Experience)
· Friday, May 8 | 9:00am - 9:45am ET
· Thursday, May 21 | 3:00pm - 3:45pm ET
Setting up the Gradebook (Original Course Experience)
· Thursday, May 7 | 9:00am - 9:45am ET
· Thursday, May 21 | 2:00pm - 2:45pm ET
Grading Workflows for Discussions, Assessment & Assignments (Original Course Experience)
· Wednesday, May 13 | 9:00am - 9:45am ET
· Wednesday, May 27 | 2:00pm - 2:45pm ET
Click here to register for any of these sessions.
Looking for recordings?
Click here to watch past webinar sessions.
| Instructor Training: LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor |
| LockDown Browser is a custom browser that prevents digital cheating during an online exam. Respondus Monitor is a companion application for LockDown Browser that deters cheating when students take online exams in non-proctored environments. Students use their own computers with a standard webcam to record assessment sessions. |
This comprehensive training webinar is intended for instructors who plan to use LockDown Browser and/or Respondus Monitor with online exams. The session provides a detailed demonstration of both applications, including enhancements that make Respondus Monitor even more effective and easy to use.
As UMBC prepares to offer all SU2020 courses in an online format, DoIT’s Instructional Technology team is pleased to introduce Planning Instructional Variety for Online Teaching (PIVOT), a new professional development program for instructors who wish to take a more deliberate and holistic approach to preparing their courses for remote, synchronous and asynchronous, online instruction. PIVOTconsists of five 60-minute webinars over five days with recorded replays available later that same day. Prototype versions of the live PIVOT webinars will occur daily from May 4 to 8 at noon (up to 225 people can participate, but registration via myUMBC is required).
PIVOT topics will focus on helping instructors achieve competency in areas related to pedagogy, course design and development as well as technical and administrative skills:
Engaging Students & Building Online Community (5/6) - view recorded session here
Reconceptualizing Online Assessments (5/7) - view the recorded session here
Supporting Students and Monitoring Progress (5/8) - view the recorded session here
The first phase of PIVOT is the live webinars open to all instructors, including graduate students, especially those teaching in the Summer [view proposed agenda]. Throughout the summer, PIVOT webinars will be available and part of college-based models with experienced online instructor colleagues who can help provide support or customize content, pending feedback on the early prototype of topics and formats.
In addition to the PIVOT live webinar series, two additional tracks to support faculty are currently under development: PIVOT+ will be a facilitated, cohort-based online workshop available to faculty who are preparing for FA2020 courses. PIVOT Solo will provide a self-directed experience using the PIVOT webinar recordings (available after the PIVOT protype week), complemented by DoIT’s Academic Continuity and the Faculty Development Center’s (FDC) Keep on Teaching sites, as well as select FAQs for a robust reference collection or “playlist.” Also, the FDC will provide multiple opportunities after PIVOT offerings for faculty to reflect and refine lessons gleaned from the initial training.
Inspired by nearly 90 faculty participating in the Alternate Delivery Program (ADP), which focuses on redesigning select courses for winter and summer delivery in online or hybrid format, PIVOT is grounded in the evidence-based principles for how people learn and shares many of the best practices of teaching in face-to-face classrooms, but leverages those principles and adapts the practices to the online environment. Like the ADP, PIVOT leverages the highly-regarded Quality Matters (QM) standards for effective online course design, and is ideal for participants who found themselves thrust into online teaching this Spring, but would like to be more proactive and intentional about their future online course design and instruction.
Beyond responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, PIVOT leverages the University’s prior investment in instructional technology and supports UMBC’s vision of “redefining excellence in higher education through an inclusive culture that connects innovative teaching and learning.”
For additional information, please contact the following:
Dr. Philip Rous, Provost rous@umbc.edu
Dr. Sarah Shin, Associate Provost shin@umbc.edu
Dr. John Fritz, Associate Vice President, Instructional Technology fritz@umbc.edu
Dr. Sherri Braxton, Senior Director of Instructional Technology sbraxton@umbc.edu
Dr. Mariann Hawken, eLearning Manager mariannhawken@umbc.edu
As always, if you have any questions, please consider the following options:
Academic Continuity | Keep On Teaching | Student Technology Resources
Follow the Instructional Technology & DoIT myUMBC groups
VoiceThread Basics 1: Upload, Comment, and Share
Participants will learn how to upload media, comment and annotate on that media, and share it with others. This will be a slow paced, step-by-step, hands-on workshop. It is open to both VoiceThread license holders and free accounts.
When: April 14, 2020 1:00 pm (Eastern Time)
Register here
Dear Colleague,
I thought you might be interested in this webinar sponsored by MarylandOnline which will take place next Tuesday, March 31st. Please see the description and registration information below.
M.O.S.T. Commons: A Resource to Support the Shift to Remote Teaching
The Coronavirus pandemic continues to cause major disruptions for Maryland’s communities, institutions, faculty, and students. We recognize the challenges of preparing programs and courses for remote delivery and are encouraging faculty and staff to consider the Maryland Open Source Textbook (M.O.S.T.) Commons as a resource for locating openly licensed educational resources to support learning.
During this webinar, presenters will discuss how M.O.S.T. Commons can support institutions and faculty in finding high-quality digital materials; how digital rights and responsibilities change when remote teaching; how colleges and systems in other states are using OER to address their transition to remote teaching; and ways the M.O.S.T. team can support your efforts.
There will be plenty of time to answer your questions and address your concerns.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CZF29Y6)
The M.O.S.T. initiative is here to support your efforts to ensure academic continuity and the well-being of your students during this stressful time. Please let us know if there is something we can do to help at most@usmd.edu.
For additional resources related to remote teaching from across the USM and beyond, please visit https://www.usmd.edu/cai/remote-teaching-usm
MJ
*** BONUS: Instructional Technology staff will host a VoiceThread remote workshop on April 1 at noon. Learn more.
As always, if you have any questions, please consider the following options:
https://fdc.umbc.edu/resources/keep-on-teaching/Following guidance from the University System of Maryland in the rapidly developing public health response to COVID-19, UMBC will transition to fully online instruction when classes resume after Spring Break. Per the announcement on March 10, we expect online instruction to continue for at least two weeks. As UMBC faculty shift to remote instruction using virtual tools, Blackboard has designed a series of free 30-minute webinars to help get started. Multiple dates & times are offered.
Teaching Remotely (Blackboard Learn Basics)
In response to growing concerns on the spread of the coronavirus, and institutions moving to fully online teaching, this webinar is designed to provide you easy step-by-step instructions on how to upload course content, create discussion boards for students to communicate, and provide an overview on the types of online assessments available in Blackboard Learn.
--> Register online with Blackboard
Getting Started with Teaching a Virtual Class
Moving from in-classroom instruction to the online classroom does not have to be difficult or stressful. Blackboard Collaborate Ultra is a communication tool that will allow you to continue to engage with your students in a synchronous manner, or record sessions for students to watch at a later time. In this 30-minute session, we will review the Collaborate interface and tools available to use while teaching online.
--> Register online with Blackboard
Guide to Building Mobile Content
In this urgent response to moving from in-person instruction to online instruction, instructors should prepare for students to access course information on the go. In this 30-minute session, we provide you with basic fundamentals for preparing online course content for mobile delivery. Additionally, we will review Blackboard mobile apps and provide you with a helpful worksheet on mobile content development.
As always, if you have any questions, please consider the following resources: