Making the most of the Library inside Blackboard - Marcus Harvey & Sue D'ath
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Analytics suggest that a low proportion of Blackboard pages are connected to the
library
But there are a lot of people who go from Blackboard sites to the library
A literature review suggests that direct connections from course Blackboard pages to
the library can help connect the library into courses and provide benefits for students.
o CLNR 401 – an example of integration of Blackboard, the library and course
material.
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Sue D’ath (a librarian) teaches a component of the course
This component is assessed with online tests and an annotated bibliography
assignment
The course blackboard page links directly to the library
Course Blackboard page discussion forum includes a section for "questions for the
library"
Sue highlighted a new book about virtual classrooms that may be of interestavailable now from the library.
o Benefits of integrating the library into course blackboard pages:
 the library is able to handle copyright issues when linking to electronic material
 Subject librarians are happy to introduce themselves at the start of course. Point to
generic starting resources.
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Discussion about involving library in course assessment
o Rhian includes a library module in one of her courses, working with her
(great) subject librarian who develops the questions
o Related assessment items could be multi-choice, short answer or longer
assessments as needed.
o Discussion of possibility of creating a general “introduction to the library”
video that could be added to any course where it would be appropriate.
Lightning Tours of Blackboard
(please note - lightning talks were not recorded in order to maintain class
confidentiality)
Irina Elgort on VUW’s use of blackboard
o Describing a project that evaluated pedagogical uses of Blackboard at VUW
o Good uptake of Blackboard into VUW courses- increased steadily to current
high plateau.
o There’s a need to assess whether use of this LMS enhances engagement in
courses (it is known that engagement enhances learning)
o One assessment method is to ask students and staff. When this has been done
Blackboard has been nominated by more people as the most useful resource
available than other resources. But students also nominate Blackboard as a
resource that needs improvement
o Another assessment method is to mine system analytics to find out about how
blackboard is being used.
 Particularly looked at usage of Blackboard tools that enhance
engagement like discussion forums and presentation of assessment
feedback
 Overall use is currently low at VUW
o Next step is to find teachers who use Blackboard a lot and well and find out
what they’re doing that’s working well.
Sydney Shep - lightning tour of TXTT301, wikis, blogs, and developing skills in
technology using Blackboard
o Blackboard site for: TXTT-301 – Special Topic: Entangled Print Cultures,
Canada in the British World
o key principles for use of Blackboard:
o 1. Keep it simple (silly)
o 2. Make it pedagogically informed
o 3. Make it fit for purpose
o Overall think about what you’re using Blackboard for and why. For
example, threshold concepts.
o Use of Blackboard connects with course content relating to use of
technology and cultivating digital literacy
o Blackboard site has a minimal design
o “week 0” material used to give students preparation for course- unassessed
quizzes about Canada and a survey about technology use. Provides
information about academic use of twitter for taking notes
o Uses blogs that provide (assessed) tasks given before class that require
engagement with reading and facilitate class preparation.
Norman Meehan - lightning tour of MUSC125, featuring V-stream in music
o Course: MUSC 125, History of Jazz (taught in summer)
o Success with videos
o Connects students with lecturer, can provide demonstrations of instruments etc
o Smaller sized videos embedded directly into Blackboard using QuickTime,
larger videos on VStream.
o Videos incorporate texts that highlight key points
o Process was easy to do overall – ITS brought all the equipment and did
everything at the school of music.
Rhian Salmon - lightning tour of SCIE211, featuring large groups, learning
contracts, Twitter feed, and discussion fora
o Course: Contemporary issues in science and society
o One discussion group for each tutorial- lots of discussion happening in those.
o Includes Twitter feed
o Based on course-related hashtag - feeds straight into Blackboard
o Use of twitter is scaffolded across the first few weeks of the course.
Starting with socializing, includes material on etiquette of appropriate use
of twitter, eventually use twitter to find and share resources.
o Students have various responses to the use of twitter: many are happy to
learn about how it can be used as a research tool
o Tweets are used to build up a wiki and then students can refer to them in the blogs
that they create.
o Private journal. In this area students sign a learning contract where they agree with
the course coordinator about assessment due dates, or negotiate ones that work for
them. Once agreed they have to stick to them, or can re-negotiate (in advance of
deadlines). All correspondance with student is recorded in this space –visible to
both the individual student and instructor(s).
Liz Jones – Teaching between two worlds
Thoughts about the role of technology in creating a need for change within the university as
well as in assisting us to effect this change – see recording.