The Blackboard Content System interfaces with your courses in Blackboard allowing you to store, share, reuse and maintain your course materials.
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(December 7, 2005)
Last updated: February 17, 2006
Due to vendor recommended maintenance on GW's Blackboard system, Blackboard will be unavailable from 12:01 AM through 1:00 AM Monday February 20th. We apologize for any inconvenience. As always, please report any technical problems with Blackboard to the ISS Helpdesk at 202-994-5530.
Thank you
(February 17, 2006)
Following the upgrade of Blackboard Learning System to version 6.3, the computation of values in the total and weighted total columns were changed. This issue has been resolved for all courses. However, between January 3 rd and January 12 th, gradebook totals and weighted totals were calculated differently than in the past. Prior to January 3 rd when Blackboard version 6.3 was applied, items in the Blackboard gradebook with no value entered were calculated with an assumed value of ‘0’. Between January 3 rd and January 12 th, the calculated totals column ignored items with no value. This may have resulted in the total and weighted total columns displaying unintended values.
Blackboard version 6.3 provides you with the option of having ungraded gradebook items included or excluded from the calculated totals based on your preference.
As soon as this issue was identified, Blackboard Inc. was contacted and they corrected the problem by 3pm January 12 th. We apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused.
(January 12, 2006)
Exciting New Features to Improve Teaching & Learning
Click here for details.
The Blackboard Content System interfaces with your courses in Blackboard allowing you to store, share, reuse and maintain your course materials.
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The new My Courses v.1.5 has the following enhancements:
As per the previously announced schedule, all online copies of the Summer 2003, Fall 2003 courses will be taken off the Blackboard servers on January 31, 2006.
If you would like to retain a local copy of your Blackboard course content from these semesters, please follow the simple steps below to download you’re a local copy of a course.
If you have any questions or need assistance in creating an archive of your course, please contact the Instructional Technology Lab at (202) 994-0485 or email bbadmin@gwu.edu.
(December 19, 2005)
All available courses for Spring Semester 2006 in Banner are now available on your Course List in Blackboard. If you do not see a course on your list for which you believe you are the official instructor, please contact the ISS Helpdesk at (202) 994-5530, option 2.
(December 1, 2005)
Blackboard unavailable due to scheduled maintenance January 3rd 12:00 AM - 10 AM.
In an effort to provide the best possible service, the Blackboard
Learning system will be unavailable, January 3rd 12:00 AM - 10 AM to
perform vendor recommended maintenance.
Should you experience any problems following this outage please
contact the ISS Help Desk at 202-994-5530 or by e-mail at
http://my.gwu.edu/mod/helpdesk/.
(December 19, 2005)
Important Gradebook Note
Faculty who wish to display their assessment item scores as Letter Grades in Blackboard need to be aware that by default Blackboard uses a pre-defined conversion table for the letter grade calculation.
Faculty should verify and/or modify the grade conversion table prior to displaying auto-generated Letter Grades.
To view or modify go to:
Course Control Panel>Gradebook>Gradebook Settings>
Manage Display Options>Modify(Letter Grade)>[make modifications]> Submit.
For help, contact the Instructional Technology Lab (itl@gwu.edu, 202-994-0485).
(September 14, 2005)Blackboard unavailable for scheduled maintenance 8/18/05 4 pm through 8/19/05 5 pm
Blackboard will be unavailable August 18, 2005 beginning at 4 pm through August 19, 2005 at 5 pm. This outage is necessary for required maintenance and system updates prior to the fall semester.
We apologize for any inconvenience this maintenance outage may cause. Should you experience any problems following this outage please call the ISS Help Desk at 202-994-5530 or by e-mail at http://my.gwu.edu/mod/helpdesk/.
(August 1, 2005)Fall 2005 Courses Ready for Use
All available courses for Fall Semester 2005 in Banner are now available on your Course List in Blackboard. If you do not see a course on your list for which you believe you are the official instructor, please contact the ISS Helpdesk at (202) 994-5530, option 2.
(August 1, 2005)
Possible Issue Affecting Some Blackboard Users
Important Bb Course Maintenance Information
Important Bb Course Maintenance Information
The following information concerning Course Availability and Course Deletions will affect both students and faculty. This information impacts courses offered in semesters PRIOR TO the Summer 2005 semester.
May 30th, 2005 Course Maintenance Update
Course Deletion Process and Timeline: All Summer 2003 and Fall 2003 Banner generated courses to be deleted.
July 1, 2005 Course Maintenance Update
Course Availability Change: All courses in Blackboard created prior to the Spring 2005 will be set to unavailable. (Details follow)
Course Availability Change:
On July 1st, 2005 all Blackboard LS courses, excluding Summer 2005
courses, will be set to unavailable.
One (1) month following a term, all courses from prior terms will be set to unavailable.
Notes
1) Setting a course to Unavailable does not delete a course, it merely removes
the course listing from a students Course List page. An unavailable course
is not visible to students but is visible to instructors, teaching assistants,
and course builders.
2) Faculty who desire to make courses available or unavailable can choose
this setting for individual courses by following these
directions. http://cidd.gwu.edu/bbnews/faq_accounts.aspx#q7
3) Course availability settings will only be changed system wide for all
prior semester courses three times a year and will exclude current semester
courses.
4) Students will not see prior semester courses in their course list when
the course availability setting is changed.
5) The conclusion of a term as defined for this maintenance program will
be the month following the actual term end date. The one-month time period
will extend until the following month. For example, courses ending within
the month of May will be set to unavailable July 1st.
Course Deletion Process and Timeline:
On May 30th, 2005 all summer and fall 2003 Banner generated courses will be deleted
from the Blackboard Learning System (Blackboard LS). All Banner generated
courses within Blackboard LS will be deleted sixteen (16) months from the
end of a semester.
The Blackboard LS Course Deletion Schedule:
May 30, 2005 Summer 2003 Banner courses deleted (term 200302) May 30, 2005 Fall 2003 Banner courses deleted (term 200303) October 1, 2005 Spring 2004 Banner courses deleted (term 200401) January 1, 2006 Summer 2004 Banner courses deleted (term 200402) May 1, 2006 Fall 2004 Banner courses deleted (term 200403) October 1, 2006 Spring 2005 Banner courses deleted (term 200501) January 1, 2007 Summer 2005 Banner courses deleted (term 200502) May 1, 2007 Fall 2005 Banner courses deleted (term 200503) October 1, 2007 Spring 2006 Banner courses deleted (term 200601) This pattern will continue for future semesters Notes:
1) Faculty may choose to delete courses prior to this automatic process at any time by using the Delete this Course tool located in the More Tools area of the Control Panel. This tool has been provided for your convenience by the Center for Instructional Design and Development and The Instructional Technology Lab.
2) Development (Dev) courses will not be deleted from the system during this process.
3) Special Use [BBSU] courses will not be deleted from the system during this process.
4) Faculty are encouraged to use Export Course to download a ZIP file of your course content for use in another Blackboard course down the road.
5) The course retention period will be calculated by adding 16 months to the month in which a semester normally ends. For calculation purposes, semester end dates are assumed as follows: Summer-August, Fall-December, and Spring-May.
Blackboard unavailable for scheduled maintenance May 6th 3AM - 5AM.
In an effort to provide the best possible service, the Blackboard Learning system will be unavailable, May 6th 3AM-5AM to perform vendor recommended maintenance.
Should you experience any problems following this outage please call the ISS Help Desk at 202-994-5530 or by e-mail at http://my.gwu.edu/mod/helpdesk/.
Spring 2005 Courses Ready for Use
All available courses for Spring Semester 2005 in Banner are now available on your Course List in Blackboard. If you do not see a course on your list for which you believe you are the official instructor, please contact the ISS Helpdesk at (202) 994-5530, option 2.
GW Systems Unavailable Nov. 26-27:
Blackboard will be unavailable during this time period.
For more information please visit the ISS help desk web site. (http://helpdesk.gwu.edu/)
Important Bb Course Maintenance Information:
The following information concerning Course Availability and Course Deletions will affect both students and faculty. This information impacts courses offered in semesters PRIOR TO the Fall 2004 semester.
October 1, 2004 Course Maintenance Update (two items)
Course Availability Change: All courses in Blackboard created prior to the Fall 2004 will be set to unavailable. (Details follow)
Course Deletion Process and Timeline: All Summer 2003 Banner generated courses to be deleted. (Details follow)
Course Availability Change:
On October 1, 2004 all Blackboard LS courses, excluding the current Fall 2004 courses, will be set to unavailable.
One (1) month following a term, all courses from prior terms will be set to unavailable.
Blackboard LS Course Availability Change Schedule
Notes
1) Setting a course to Unavailable does not delete a course, it merely removes the course listing from a students Course List page. An unavailable course is not visible to students but is visible to instructors, teaching assistants, and course builders.
2) Faculty who desire to make courses available or unavailable can choose this setting for individual courses by following these directions. http://cidd.gwu.edu/bbnews/faq_accounts.aspx#q7
3) Course availability settings will only be changed system wide for all prior semester courses three times a year and will exclude current semester courses.
4) Students will not see prior semester courses in their course list when the course availability setting is changed.
5) The conclusion of a term as defined for this maintenance program will be the month following the actual term end date. The one-month time period will extend until the following month. For example, courses ending within the month of May will be set to unavailable July 1st.
Course Deletion Process and Timeline:
On January 1, 2005 all summer 2003 Banner generated courses will be deleted
from the Blackboard Learning System (Blackboard LS). All Banner generated
courses within Blackboard LS will be deleted sixteen (16) months from the
end of a semester.
The Blackboard LS Course Deletion Schedule:
January 1, 2005 Summer 2003 Banner courses deleted (term 200302) May 1, 2005 Fall 2003 Banner courses deleted (term 200303) October 1, 2005 Spring 2004 Banner courses deleted (term 200401) January 1, 2006 Summer 2004 Banner courses deleted (term 200402) May 1, 2006 Fall 2004 Banner courses deleted (term 200403) October 1, 2006 Spring 2005 Banner courses deleted (term 200501) January 1, 2007 Summer 2005 Banner courses deleted (term 200502) May 1, 2007 Fall 2005 Banner courses deleted (term 200503) October 1, 2007 Spring 2006 Banner courses deleted (term 200601) This pattern will continue for future semesters Notes:
1) Faculty may choose to delete courses prior to this automatic process at any time by using the Delete this Course tool located in the More Tools area of the Control Panel. This tool has been provided for your convenience by the Center for Instructional Design and Development and The Instructional Technology Lab.
2) Development (Dev) courses will not be deleted from the system during this process.
3) Special Use [BBSU] courses will not be deleted from the system during this process.
4) Faculty are encouraged to use Export Course to download a ZIP file of your course content for use in another Blackboard course down the road.
5) The course retention period will be calculated by adding 16 months to the month in which a semester normally ends. For calculation purposes, semester end dates are assumed as follows: Summer-August, Fall-December, and Spring-May.
Prometheus Countdown Preparedness Kit:
Did you know Prometheus being turned off on May 31st, only 3 months from now?
Do you know what to do with your Prometheus courses between now and then?
Do you know how to use Blackboard?
- Export your Prometheus courses now to save course Files to your computer!
Once you have your files exported to your own computer, you can post them up to Blackboard, to your own web site, email them to students, print them, etc.
Click here to view a PDF that describes the process.- Download your Prometheus Gradebooks to Excel!
If your students have not removed themselves from your course(s) yet, you can still retain their grades by Downloading to Excel.
Click here to view a PDF that describes the process.
- Attend one of the many Blackboard workshops available this Spring!
Get started with Blackboard the easy way, and attend one of the many workshops offered by the Instructional Technology Lab. We also have open hours for you to work 1-on-1 with our staff, if you have specific questions or needs.
Click here to view a list of upcoming Instructional Technology Lab workshops.
- Request a course conversion from Prometheus to Blackboard - first round ends April 1st!
The Prometheus to Blackboard Conversion Tool is provided by Blackboard, Inc and is helpful if you have a lot of files posted to Prometheus courses. Contact the ITL at 4-0485 to see if the Tool is right for you!
Click here to request course conversions from Prometheus to Blackboard.
Spring 2004 Courses Ready for Use on December 1, 2003
New Course Title Format on your Course List Page
Electronic Reserves Request Procedures Improved
How to Transition Your Courses from Fall to Spring and Beyond?
BbNews Re-organized to be More Usable
How Many Faculty are Using Blackboard vs. Prometheus?Spring 2004 Courses Ready for Use
All available courses for Spring Semester 2004 in Banner system are now available on your Course List in Blackboard. If you do not see a course on your list for which you believe you are the official instructor, please contact the ISS Helpdesk at (202) 994-5530, option 2.
New Course Title Format on Your Course List Page
Starting December 1, 2003 your courses in Blackboard will be listed using the following format:
Course Name: Year_Term Course name_Subject_Course #_Section
e.g. 200401 CourseName_SubjCode_100_11.
Course ID: Year_Term_CRN
e.g. 200401_12345
The following changes will not affect your Fall 2003 courses.
The benefits
1. Course Name will contain more meaningful information consistently displayed throughout your Blackboard course.
2. Courses will be grouped by semester on your Courses page.
3. Course Names in bread crumbs will contain more meaningful information making it easier to identify course you are editing.
4. The Course Copy functionality will be improved as courses will be more easily differentiated.
5. Changes to course sections in Banner will no longer impact your Courses in Blackboard.
How to Transition Your Courses from Fall to Spring and Beyond
Here are a couple of tips for faculty on how to move content to Spring 2004 courses:
- If you are teaching the same course in Spring that you taught in Fall, you can use Course Copy from the Fall Course to duplicate this content in the official Spring 2004 course created by Banner.
- If you have been developing content in a DEV Course, you can use Course Copy from the DEV Course to duplicate this content in the official Spring 2004 course created by Banner.
- If you are teaching a course in Spring 2004 for which you have the content on Prometheus, here is a link to the Prometheus-to-Blackboard Conversion Request Form. Please note limitations of the tool, consult with ITL staff on whether it is better for you to build the content from scratch in Blackboard or use this tool. The answer is not always as clear as you may think.
Electronic Reserves Request Procedures Improved
In order to place and use electronic reserves materials you will need to give Library Electronic Reserves staff course builder access to all courses from which you want to use e-reserves.
This access is necessary in order to post E-reserve materials to the course. To use Electronic Reserves from Blackboard you will need to complete the following steps in full.
1. Provide Electronic Reserves staff access to the course by selecting the desired library in step 2 below.
2. Click Submit
3. Once you have clicked submit you will be forwarded to the appropriate Library Electronic Reserves form.Fill out the form and submit. (Note: Library Electronic Reserves forms are owned and maintained by the corresponding Library any questions about these forms should be addressed to the library.)
BbNews Reorganized to be More Usable
Welcome to BbNews version 2.0! We have made some usability related changes to BbNews for the Spring Semester 2004. Much of the content is reorganized and a new menu system (on the left) is designed to improve locating and accessing content easily for all users of BbNews website. Please feel free to provide feedback about the site improvements.
How Many Faculty are Using Blackboard vs. Prometheus
From available data since the beginning of Fall 2003, the Center for Instructional Design & Development has been able to estimate that roughly half of the total enrolled courses for Fall are being delivered using Blackboard. This means the other half have been using Prometheus in some way.
Don't be left behind, visit the workshops page at http://cidd.gwu.edu, to begin learning about Blackboard. Prometheus will be turned off on May 31st, 2004.
