Student Guide to Blackboard 7

http://blackboard.hartford.edu

 

Blackboard is an Internet application used by many instructors to put their courses online.  Typically, your instructor will let you know on the first day of class if he or she is going to be using Blackboard and will provide you with the information you need to log in and use Blackboard.  Handouts on using Blackboard are available at:  http://uhaweb.hartford.edu/fcld/handoutsstudent.htm.

 

Students are automatically enrolled into their Blackboard courses based on their registration information. 

 

All Blackboard faculty, staff and student Blackboard users will be required to use their University of Hartford e-mail username to access Blackboard (e.g., jdoe if your e-mail is jdoe@hartford.edu ).

  • If you DO NOT have a University of Hartford email address, visit the Information Technology Services department in the Computer Center building room 113.  In order to prove your affiliation with the university, bring your current class schedule or your schedule for an upcoming semester or your University of Hartford Student ID card.  Within 24-48 hours of requesting your university email, you will have access to Blackboard. 

Logging into Blackboard

Your username is your email username ID (e.g., ‘jdoe’ if your e-mail is jdoe@hartford.edu ) and your initial password is the last four digits of your university ID.  You should change your password after you log in for the first time.

  1. Go to http://blackboard.hartford.edu
  2. Click User Login.
  3. A new log in window will open. 
  4. Type in your Username and Password.  NOTE:  In Fall 2007, all passwords were reset to the last four digits of your University ID.
  5. Click Login or hit return.  It is recommended that you change your password to something other than the last four digits of your ID number. 

Changing Your Blackboard Password

  1. From your Blackboard Home Page, find the Tools menu at the left.
  2. Select Personal Information.
  3. Select Change Password.
  4. Enter your new password twice.
  5. Click Submit to save your changes.

 

If you can’t remember your password, click the “Forgot Password?” link on the Blackboard login page.  A link will be sent to your University email address, allowing you to reset your password.

 

How do I access my Blackboard courses?

Go to http://blackboard.hartford.edu, and log in using your username and password.  After you log in, you will see your Blackboard Home Page. This home page includes announcements and links to your Blackboard Courses, as well as some useful tools like a Calendar, Tasks, and other Blackboard features.  Your Blackboard courses will appear in a list to right under a heading titled “My Courses.”  To enter a class, select the name of the course.

I logged into Blackboard, but I don’t see my courses anywhere!

Students will be automatically enrolled into Blackboard courses.  If you do not see any of your courses listed under the “My Courses” heading, it may be that your instructors are not using Blackboard this semester, or have not yet made the course visible students.  Generally, instructors will tell you on the first day of class if they plan to use Blackboard in a course. 

 

NOTE:  If you have recently added a course, there is approximately a twenty-four hour waiting period between your official course registration and enrollment into Blackboard courses (excluding weekends).  If you have not processed the paperwork for adding or dropping a course, you will not have access to the course on Blackboard.  You must process your paperwork in order to be enrolled in a course in Blackboard.  Contact the Registrar’s Office at (860) 768-4999 for more information about adding or dropping a course.

My username and password aren’t working.  What should I do?

  • Make sure you have university email.  You will not be able to access Blackboard without it.
  • Make sure you are using the correct case for your password – passwords are case sensitive!
  • Make sure that you aren’t using your entire email address as a username.  Only the first part of your email address should be entered (e.g. ‘jdoe’ if your email is jdoe@hartford.edu).
  • Make sure that you are using only the last four digits of your university ID.
  • Check to make sure that you do not have two university emails.  If you do, you should contact ITS at (860) 768-5999 to have them eliminate the second email. 
  • Call the ITS Hotline to be sure that you are using the correct username.  (860) 768-5999.

I already have email; do I have to use the University email?   

You must have a university email account to access Blackboard.  If you want to continue using an alternative email, you may forward your Hartford email to your other email account.  Instructions for forwarding email can be found at:  http://uhaweb.hartford.edu/www/index_howto.html

Are there any instructions or handouts on using Blackboard?  

If you are logged into Blackboard, selecting the Help button (question mark) at the top of the screen will direct you to a site where you will find student handouts.  If you are not logged into Blackboard, handouts are available at:  http://uhaweb.hartford.edu/fcld/handoutsstudent.htm   There is also a User Manual found under Course Tools in all Blackboard courses.  You must enter a course to locate it.

What if I have trouble using Blackboard?

Ask your instructor for assistance if you are having trouble using the tools and features of Blackboard.  If you continue to have trouble, or if he or she is not able to answer your questions, contact the Computer Support Center for assistance at (860) 768-5999.  The Computer Support Center has evening and weekend hours.

 

Hardware and software specifications for Blackboard

  • You need a computer with multimedia capabilities (i.e., sound with speakers), a modem or Internet connection of least a 56K modem connection, and an Internet Browser in order to access Blackboard.
  • Your browser must accommodate both Javascript and Java for some functions of the course.  These are functions you can turn on in your browser.
  • Your browser must be set to accept cookies (use Medium browser security settings).
  • Windows users will need the Java Virtual Machine, which can be downloaded for free from Sun Microsystems (see below).

Windows Users Only – Instructions for downloading Java plug-in

Ø      The Java 2 Run Time Environment JRE 1.5.06 (recommended) is required to use the Collaboration Tools. 

Ø      This plug-in may be downloaded from the page that appears when a user joins a Collaboration Session, or downloaded from the page at http://java.sun.com/jproducts/plugin/index.jsp

 

NOTE: The use of the AOL browser, firewalls, anti-spyware programs, and popup blockers may affect your ability to access and use Blackboard.

 

Supported Browsers for Blackboard 7

(*asterisk indicates full certification)

Internet Explorer

·         Windows 2000, IE version 6.0

·         Windows XP, IE version 6.0* and 7.0 (provisionally - beta)

 

Mozilla Firefox

·         Windows 2000, Firefox 1.0

·         Windows XP, Firefox 1.0*

·         MAC OS 10.2, Firefox 1.0

·         MAC OS 10.3, Firefox 1.0*

·         MAC OS 10.4, Firefox 1.0*

 

 

 

Netscape

·         Windows 2000, Netscape 7.1, 8.0

·         Windows XP, Netscape 7.1, 8.0

·         MAC OS 10.2, Netscape 7.1

·         MAC OS 10.3, Netscape 7.1

 

Apple Safari (for MAC OS only)

·         OS 10.2, Safari version 1.0 and 1.1

·         OS 10.3, Safari version 1.2*

·         OS 10.4, Safari version 2.0*

 

 

Other browsers, such as AOL or Opera, may function but are not officially supported by Blackboard.  AOL users should plan to minimize the AOL browser and use Internet Explorer or Netscape instead.  These browsers are free to download.

Blackboard Tools Overview

All of the following tools can be found in the Communication section of your Blackboard course.

Email

To send email within Blackboard, go to Communication à Send Email

Select one of the following:

Ø      All Users, All Instructors, or Select Users

Ø      Enter a Subject and Message

o        *Important* If you need a copy of the emails you send from Blackboard for recordkeeping purposes, send a copy of the message to yourself.

Ø      Add an Attachment (optional)

Ø      Click Submit

 

You will receive the email within your University of Hartford email Inbox.  You will have to leave Blackboard to check your messages.  You can check University of Hartford email at http://webmail.hartford.edu.

Messages

If your instructor has it enabled, Messages is a feature accessed from the Communication area that provides each course with a private and secure system for communication that functions similar to email.  Not all instructors use the Messages function, so you may want to check with your instructor before using this feature to send messages.  NOTE:  Messages cannot be sent to or received from users outside the course. 

Discussion Board

  1. Access the forum by clicking on the forum name.
  2. Read posts (messages) by clicking on the subject line of the post.
  3. You can reply using the Reply button in the right corner.
  4. If your instructor has made it an option,  new threads (discussion topics) are started by clicking the Thread button on the upper left. 
  5. Click on the Subscribe button in a thread to have thread messages sent to you via email.

Roster

Use the search function to list the students in your course.

Group Pages

If your instructor is using groups, you can access your group using the Communication button and clicking on Group Pages.  Your group name will be underlined.  Only students assigned to a particular group may access the group pages for that group.  Each group will have one or more of the following communication tools: discussions, the Virtual Classroom (chat), File Exchange (Digital Dropbox), and e-mail. 

Collaboration

There are two options within this area: Virtual Classroom or Lightweight Chat. 

Virtual Classroom

The virtual classroom has a whiteboard for displaying items such as websites and course materials, a chat window at the bottom of the screen, and a navigation menu at the left. 

Lightweight Chat

The Lightweight Chat is a text-based chat tool that is simpler to use because it does not have the advanced functionality of the full Virtual Classroom. It allows a group of students to conduct an online session through text-based messages and is similar to Instant Messaging.

 

Accessing Archived Chat Sessions

Your instructor may record (archive) chat sessions that you can read at a later date if you miss a chat session.

 

To access an archived chat session, do the following:

  1. Go to the Control Panel
  2. Select “Collaboration”
  3. Within the list of collaboration sessions, locate the session with the recording you want to view (archives will be listed next to the session).

 

Accessing the Recording from a Collaboration Session

 

  1. Click onto the “Recordings” button to display the list of archives available for that particular collaboration session.
  2. A list of all available archives will appear (see below).

 

Choosing a Recording

 

  1. Click onto the name of the archive.  The entire conversation will appear.

 

Submitting Assignments with the Digital Dropbox

 

The Digital Dropbox is your personal storage area for computer files, as well as a handy tool for sending computer files/assignments back and forth between you and your instructor.

 

Note: Be sure you have updated anti-virus software installed on your computer if you will be using the Digital Dropbox.

 

Submitting an assignment to an instructor is a two-step procedure.  First, you upload the file from your computer to the Digital Dropbox using the “Add File” button. Next, send the file to your instructor using the “Send File” button.  It is possible to bypass step one and send the file directly to your instructor by clicking on the “Send File” button first and we recommend you use this method.

 

TIP:  Before submitting your files, add your initials to the file name (e.g. “assignment1kw.doc”).

Accessing the Digital Dropbox

Ø      Scroll down to the “Tools” box at the bottom of your Blackboard course menu.

Ø      Click on “Communication,” then “Digital Dropbox.”

 

Send a File to your Instructor

  1. Click on the “Send File” button.
  2. Select a file from those already in your Digital Dropbox (see below on how to add them). or
  3. Use the “Browse” button to select one from your computer’s directories.
  4. Click on “Submit.”

 

 

Add a File to your Dropbox

  1. Click on the “Add File” button.
  2. Give file a Title.
  3. Use the Browse button to select the file from your computer’s directories.
  4. Provide Comments (if desired).
  5. Click on “Submit.”

 

To verify that you actually submitted an assignment, check to see if the file receipt in your Digital Dropbox says, “Submitted by” (sent to instructor), or “Posted on” (added to student dropbox only but not sent). If it says, “Posted on” you may click the Send File button and select the posted file from the drop down list to submit it to the instructor.

The Assignment Tool is an alternate, interactive method of assignment submission, but must be set up by your instructor.  If your instructor is using the Assignment Tool, you will find an item with a double carat (>>), as show in the figure below.  This means that this is an interactive assignment.  You will download and read the file or assignment, do whatever the instructor has requested, than upload and submit it to the instructor using the Submit button.  There is also a save button, designed to let you work on a given assignment, save it for later, come back to it and complete it.  However, saving an assignment means it has NOT been submitted to your instructor.  You must use the Submit button to submit a completed assignment.

Find Your Assignment

·         Your professor will tell you where your assignment is located within your course.

·         Locate the assignment, click onto the “View/Complete” link.

Selecting the “View/Complete” link to download an assignment.

 

·         Within the next screen, you are given two options:

1.       Download the assignment file to your computer so you can complete it.

2.       Submit the assignment to your instructor (after completion).

 

Download Assignment File

·         To download the file your instructor has attached to the assignment, click onto the name of the assignment file (see below)

 

Selecting the link to the Assignment file to download.

 

 

 

·         Here are your download options:

1.       You can either download the attached file to your computer (if your instructor wants you to work on that file), or

2.       Open it, view it, and print it out.

·         OPTIONAL:  Use the save button only if the assignment is completely online (not an attached file).  Save indicates to your instructor that you are working on the assignment.  If you use this option, you MUST remember to later submit the completed assignment using the Submit button.

Submit Assignment to Your Instructor

  1. Return to the place within your course where your instructor placed the assignment.
  2. Select the View/Complete link.
  3. Get ready to upload your completed assignment.
  4. Find the Assignment Materials section of the page.  Do the following:

a.       Comments – Enter comments to your instructor about the assignment you are about to submit (required).

b.       Attach local file – attach your completed assignment file.  Use the Browse button to locate the file you want to attach.  To attach more than one file, click onto the “Add Another File” link. 

c.       Click Submit at the bottom of the page to submit the assignment to your professor.

 

 

Using Blackboard’s Collaboration Tools

From your Blackboard course, go to Communication à Collaboration.

 

There are two options within this area:

·         Lightweight Chat – using this tool, you can chat with your instructor and classmates.  This tool is similar to Instant Messaging features found within AOL, Yahoo, and MSN. 

·         Virtual Classroom – this tool allows you to interact with your instructor in classmates using chat tools, a group browser to view websites, and share class materials. 

 

NOTE:  You may be prompted to download the JAVA plugin.  This is necessary in order to activate the chat tools.  Turn popup blockers off as they will interfere with the Chat tools.

Lightweight Chat

1.       Select the Lightweight Chat tool

2.       The left part of the screen displays chat participants.  The right part of the screen displays Chat text.

 

3.       Type your message in the compose text box and then hit Send or Enter.

4.       Click on Private Message to send a private message to someone.

Accessing Archived Chat Sessions

Your instructor may archive (i.e. record) chat sessions that you can read later if you miss a chat.

To access an archived chat:

  1. Click onto the “Archives” button next to the Lightweight Chat tool

 

  1. A list of all available archives appears.
  2. Select the name of the archive you want.  You can now view the entire conversation.

Virtual Classroom

 

Main Areas

Map – Display a section of the Blackboard course (syllabus, assignment, etc.) to the class.

Whiteboard – draw graphics.

Group Browser – display websites to the class.

Ask Question – send questions to your instructor.

Chat – use this to talk to your instructor and classmates.

 

 

Group Browser

This feature can be used to display websites to the class.

  • Click onto “Group Browser.”
  • Enter the address of the website you wish to display and click “Go.”
  • The site will appear within the main window of the Whiteboard.

 

 

Ask Question

To ask your instructor a question during a Virtual Classroom session, click on the “Ask Question” button.  Type a question in the box and click “Send.”  The questi