For Faculty

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Do you know how to complete a test, submit an assignment and check your grade in Blackboard? If not, TU's Blackboard team can show you!

Using Blackboard

Be sure to review the Blackboard Procedures and Guidelines (PDF). See and search the TechHelp Knowledge Base Blackboard articles for faculty, including settings and tools, and how to use them when working in and managing courses. The TU Blackboard team also maintains an Ultra organizational site with faculty-specific announcements, help and training schedules, forums and other resources.

Courses

Blackboard courses are like your own digital classrooms. They contain everything you need: lessons, assignments, and tools to interact with your students. If you need help with a course, check the help session schedule or submit a TechHelp service request.

Blackboard courses are generated via PeopleSoft system. If you do not see a course you are teaching, please submit a Course Request form.

All courses that exist in PeopleSoft can be found with enrollments in Blackboard. See how to move your course online. Once you're all set up in Blackboard, use it to hold virtual class meetings. Need help? Contact the TU Blackboard Team.

To merge enrollments into one Blackboard course site please submit a Course Combine request. Note: this request can take 2-3 business days to complete.

Shell courses allow instructors to populate a Blackboard course with class materials related to courses they teach every term. This allows a faculty member to update the shell course and then copy it each semester to multiple courses. Students will not access a shell course. For details and to request a shell course, submit a Course Request. 

Master courses allow a program coordinator to populate a course on Blackboard with course materials related to a program or particular course that, regardless of section, has the same course materials. This master course can then be copied to multiple courses regardless of the instructor. Students will not access a master course. For details and to request a master course, submit a Course Request.   

Faculty Feedback

TU's Blackboard team wants to hear from you! You can tell us which features you'd like to see in Blackboard during our workshops or through the discussion board. Your feedback helps shape Blackboard at TU. Here are current ideas proposed by faculty:

  • Do *NOT* create an attempt when students view an assignment
  • Add option "weight items in a category equally" to weighted gradebook calculations
  • Grade tests by question and offer feedback by question
  • Course Activity Log
  • No Points Rubric
  • Advanced Adaptive Release - Multiple Rules (feature parity Ultra)
  • Instructors can create internal course links in documents
  • Ability to change the default setting for content visibility
  • Preserve formatting in assignment files
  • Allow course links within documents
  • Announcements - "save" or "publish"
  • Bulk change question points in test
  • Add jumbled sentence question type
  • "Empty content" submission should get automatic 0 grade
  • Add grade categories at Content & Settings
  • Email alerts default to assignments due in the next seven days
  • Add discussion description
  • Create exemptions for journal assignments
  • Display announcements on course content page
  • Ability to change the default setting for content visibility
  • Add discussion description
  • Exchange My Tasks Module
  • Ultra textbank needs to keep title option
  • Copy/Paste & drag/drop images into the content editor
  • Allow instructors to take a test without entering student preview mode
  • Make it harder to delete a test or assignment without submission/grades
  • Ability to download detailed log after ultra course conversion
  • Add a "View submission one time" assessment results setting
  • Gradebook bulk category change
  • Options to add images to new grade categories
  • Instructor can drag and drop gradebook items into new categories on overall grade page
  • Images for folders

Updates Completed

Here are some recent updates and their release date, resulting from your input:

  • Grade by question without refreshing - Feb. 2024
  • Set default point value for test questions to 1 vs 10 - Feb. 2024
  • Release conditions on folders and modules affecting gradable items being seen in gradebook for student - Jan. 2024
  • More compact view of gradebook grid - Jan. 2024
  • Allow self-enroll via link (without course catalog) - Nov. 2023
  • Multiple choice questions: unable to leave a question without any answer once you select one - Oct. 2023
  • Be able to send reminder from gradebook - Oct. 2023
  • Ability to unpost announcements in bulk - Sept. 2023
  • Messages landing page should only list current courses where there is a message - Aug. 2023
  • Relabel "view assessment" button to "view/begin assessment - July 2023
  • Create a way to hide roster from students - March 2023
  • Feedback for grade overrides in the gradebook - Feb. 2023

See all Blackboard releases/updates.

INSTRUCTIONAL LECTURE CAPTURE GUIDELINES AND RELEASE FORM  

Guidelines

Faculty and staff who intend to use instructional lecture capture resources supported by Towson University are to adhere to the Instructional Lecture Capture Guidelines to ensure the FERPA regulations are not violated.

Release Form

If a faculty/staff member intends to reuse recordings where the image, voice or materials of students are captured, the Instructional Lecture Capture Release Form must be used. *Be sure to read the guidelines (above) first.