MinerAlert
MinerAlert
Notice: The Blackboard Central Faculty Lab is OPEN via Virtual Office , see below.
We aim to help UTEP Faculty get the most out of Blackboard. Our team handles face-to-face assistance and all 2nd level support. Work on setting up or enhancing your Blackboard courses with us at Blackboard Central.
UTEP Library Room 300
Virtual Office: Mon - Fri 8:00am - 5:00pm, link below.
Phone: (915) 747-5940
Email: blackboard@utep.edu
24/7 Blackboard Support: (915) 747-4357
Blackboard is ready to be used in all classes. "Course Shells" are automatically available for all faculty at the beginning of each semester. To begin using Blackboard, log in at my.utep.edu .
Go to my.utep.edu and log in.
Click on the Blackboard icon.
Click Courses.
Find your course and click to open.
Click Home Page in the course menu on the left (or open any content area).
Hover over Build Content at the top and click File.
In the Name field, type a name that will show in your course.
Click Browse Computer and select the document you want to upload.
Click Submit on the bottom right.
Hover over the plus icon (+) at the top of the course menu on the left.
Click Tool Link from the drop down menu.
Type “ Course Messages” in the Name field.
Select Course Messages from the Type field.
Check Available to Users and click Submit.
An updated version of the Blackboard Self-Paced course is now available. Improve your understanding of Blackboard, its tools, and how to best use them. This training is recommended for teaching with Blackboard but is optional. It is open to all faculty and instructors. Click Here to request access.
Course Essentials
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Get started |
|
|
| Set up your courses | Recycle a Course | |
| Make your course accessible | Ally - Accessibility |
Communication
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Send class announcements | Announcements | |
| Communicate with Individual Students | Course Messages | |
| Conduct office hours virtually | Collaborate Ultra |
|
Lectures
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Provide real-time lecture remotely | Collaborate Ultra , Zoom |
|
| Pre-record a lecture | YuJa Video Management |
|
| Pre-record a voiceover presentation | YuJa Video Management |
|
| Provide lectures and course materials | Upload files |
|
Student Engagement
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Host class discussions (asynchronous) | Discussion Board | |
| Encourage student collaboration | Discussions , Groups | |
| Conduct classroom polling | iClicker CRS |
|
Assessment
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Paper assignments or projects | Assignments , Gradescope , Grade Center |
|
| Check for plagiarism | Safe Assign | |
| Assign student recorded presentations | YuJa Video Recordings | |
| Deliver exams or quizzes | Tests , Respondus 4.0 (Exam Authoring) , E-Exams (In-Class) |
|
| Proctor exams remotely | Respondus Lockdown Browser & Monitor | |
| Assess student discussions | Discussions , Grade Center |
Evaluation & Performance
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Grade Work | Grade Center |
|
| Grade Handwritten Work | Gradescope |
|
| Use rubrics for assessment | Rubrics , Grade Center | |
| Establish learning outcomes | Learning Outcomes (Goals) | |
| Retain students | Retention Center | |
| Assess "attendance" through online participation | Discussions , Collaborate Ultra | |
| Take attendance | Attendance |
Navigate inside an ULTRA course:
This page will provide you with language to include in your syllabus regarding the use of Blackboard and any of the tools you choose to use in your course.
Course Essentials
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Get started |
|
|
| Set up your courses | Coming Soon... | |
| View your course as a student | Student Preview |
|
Make your course inclusive
Please remember that lectures and materials provided to students must be ADA Inclusive by providing accessible documents and subtitles for videos.
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Reading materials | Blackboard Ally | |
| Videos | YuJa Video Management | |
| Granting accommodations and exceptions* | Assessment Exceptions , Student Accommodations |
|
Communicate with your students
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Send class announcements | Announcements |
|
| Communicate individually | Course Messages |
|
| Discuss specific materials | Class Conversations | |
| Hold virtual office hours | *Collaborate Ultra , Zoom , MS Teams |
|
| Provide video/audio feedback | Feedback Recording |
|
* Access to Collaborate Ultra is provided to students automatically
Lectures & Course Materials
Please remember that lectures and materials provided to students must be ADA Inclusive by providing accessible documents and subtitles for videos. See the “Make your course inclusive” section of this page for more info.
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Provide real-time lecture remotely | Collaborate Ultra , Zoom , MS Teams |
|
| Pre-record a lecture | YuJa Video Management | |
| Pre-record a voiceover presentation | YuJa Video Management | |
| Provide course materials | UCV Document , *Upload Media , Create Content |
|
| Access content collection | Blackboard Content Collection |
* The Yuja Video Management tool allows you to import YouTube videos so they will be available even if the creator takes them down.
Student Engagement
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Host class discussions* (asynchronous) | Discussions |
|
| Encourage self-reflection | Journals |
|
| Encourage collaboration | Group Assignments , Group Discussions | |
| Conduct classroom polling | iClicker | |
| Use video quizzes | YuJa Video Management | |
| Facilitate peer review |
* Consider asking for video discussions instead of written posts using Yuja Video Management tool .
Assessment
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Paper assignments or projects | Assignments |
|
| Check for plagiarism | Safe Assign |
|
| Assign student recorded presentations | YuJa Video Management | |
| Deliver exam quizzes | Tests , Respondus 4 , E-Exams (In-class) |
|
| Proctor exams remotely | Respondus Lockdown Browser & Monitor | |
| Analyze question effectiveness | Question Analysis for Assessments |
Grading
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Grading in Blackboard | Gradebook Overview , Gradebook Calculations |
|
| Grading assignments | Grading Assignments , Bb Annotate Feedback |
|
| Grading discussions | Grading Discussions |
|
| Grading Journals | Grading Journals | |
| Grade handwritten work | Gradescope |
|
| Use rubrics for assessment | Rubrics |
|
Overall performance evaluation
| Method | Recommended Solution/Tool | Video/Tutorials |
| Utilize learning outcomes | Learning Outcomes (Goals) | |
| Take attendance | Access Attendance , View Attendance in Gradebook |
|
| Assess "attendance" through online participation | Discussions , Collaborate Ultra , Journals | |
| Evaluate student activity | Student Activity in Assessments , Discussion Analytics , Discussion Analysis for Individuals |
Blackboard Ultra Experience
The Ultra experience offers a user-friendly course design that is seamless and modern. The new course view will be available to instructors Fall 2021.
Gradescope
A Blackboard integrated tool that makes grading paper-based exams, quizzes, and homework more efficient and streamlined.