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Login
at http://blackboard.highline.edu
Orientation: Tour
Demonstration
and Guide to Features
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Login screen
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Home (Entry) page
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Sample course (content, communication, assignments,
testing and grade book)
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Control Panel
Login Screen
Users must login to access their BlackBoard courses. The page shown in fig. 1, below, appears after clicking the login button on the initial page at http://blackboard.highline.edu. (Note that on this initial page, users can select alternate languages in which to view their BlackBoard shell. Instructors can enforce a particular language in their own courses.) Users enter their username and password at the login screen. They can find a reminder about HCC’s default login; and the “Forgot Password” link, in case they need to reset their password. They can also find announcements from the BlackBoard Administrator and a link to the IC help page.
Figure 1. Login screen
Home
Page
The Home page (fig. 2) is the user’s home base. It
features Tool links that aggregate all courses and allow users to add their own
events and items (e.g. Calendar and Tasks). Users can see all new
announcements, and can select from their courses. They can also use the Modify
Content and Modify Layout buttons on the upper right to customize the
appearance of this page.
Figure
2. Home page
Course
Overview
Building your course is a matter of organizing and
placing different teaching tools and your existing materials into the BlackBoard
platform. Your course site is organized into functions located on the
navigation panel (see fig. 3 below).
You can label these buttons or links according to
your approach to teaching your class. You can also add and remove buttons or
links. For example, if you want a link directly to your syllabus, you can add
one. Figure 3 below shows a course menu that has been customized.
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FEATURE |
DESCRIPTION |
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Announcements -
Post important information for your students -- especially information about
dates or deadlines. Go to the Control Panel to add an Announcement. |
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Course Information -
Use this section for your course syllabus, testing requirements, policies,
tech support information, etc… |
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Course Documents – A content page. You can change the page label,
if desired. |
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Assignments-
This is a good section to list assignments, quizzes, surveys, and other
assessment pieces. |
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Instructor Information-
Place information about the instructors in this section. Go to the Control
Panel to access the form for posting your information here. |
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Communication-
This section contains all the communication tools including e-mail, threaded discussion,
virtual chat, etc… |
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Discussion Board–
You can add a direct link to the discussion boards. |
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Groups-
If groups are assigned as part of a course, members can access group
homepages and other tools in this area. |
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External Links-
An optional section for links such as reference material, the library
catalog, etc. |
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Course Tools-
Students can view and update their personal information, create personal web
pages, see the course calendar, and more. |
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Dictionary–
Example of a direct link to an external web page, added by the instructor. |
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Course Map-
Gives immediate access to the directory of documents and tools in a course. |
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Control Panel-
This is where you make changes to course materials and course design. You
will also use this section to create quizzes and other assessments, update
student information, enroll students, access the grade book, and more. |
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Figure
3. Navigation panel (left)
Control Panel
The Control Panel can be
accessed only by the Instructor. Students will not see the “Control Panel”
link, as visible in fig. 3. There are six areas to the control panel. The
Content and Tools areas reflect what you have chosen to make available in your
course. The Course Options area is where you can customize your course (see
“Customization” module). Other areas are
also covered in separate modules.
Figure
4. BlackBoard Control Panel
Note the sixth area, labeled “Help.” There are
links there to the BlackBoard manual and to Quick Tutorials, (also available on
your home page). “Contact System Administrator” is an email link directly to
Highline’s IC Help hotline. You can also get help using BlackBoard from
Instructional Design, at id@highline.edu.