Faculty Can Enhance Their Blackboard Skills During a Series of Classes in September

The Global Campus Instructional Design and Support Services team and the Faculty Technology Center will host a series of classes to help faculty enhance both essential and advanced Blackboard Learn skills.

Essentials and advanced classes will run from Tuesday, Sept. 15, to Wednesday, Sept. 24, at the Gibson Annex. Seating is limited. Instructors can register at Blackboard Learn Essentials and Blackboard Learn Advanced. Instructors are encouraged to bring their laptops for the hands-on activities.

The Blackboard Essentials class will cover building the basic structure of a course. Activities will include orientation to the control panel, adding items to the course menu, building content folders and content items, adding files to the course, adding contact and textbook information, creating course announcements, and sending emails from Blackboard. We will also cover the basics of the Grade Center.

The times and dates for Essential classes are

• 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15
• 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16           
• 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23
• 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24           

The Blackboard Advanced class is recommended for instructors who already have a basic understanding of Blackboard. It will cover advanced features, such as how to use the communication and learning analytics tools.

The times and dates for the Advanced classes are

• 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15
• 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16
• 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23
• 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24

"These classes are helpful for faculty who are new to Blackboard or for those who have been using Blackboard but think there must be an easier way to do this," said Miran Kang, director of Instructional Design and Support Services.  "Blackboard is a great tool to use to improve the efficiency of managing classes of all sizes and increase the communication between students and instructors."

For assistance with troubleshooting Blackboard technical issues, contact the Blackboard Learn Help Desk at 479-575-6804 or bbhelp@uark.edu. For assistance using Blackboard Learn features to enhance learning and promote student interaction, contact Global Campus at 479-575-4096 or tips@uark.edu.