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Whether classes are postponed due to weather, illness, utility and infrastructure, or other emergency, DoIT offers many resources beyond Blackboard to support academic continuity. Know which instructional technologies you can use in your Go Online (GO) Kit to maintain academic continuity when your class cannot meet in person. Get more tips about transitioning your course to an online environment at our Academic Continuity site. |
Blackboard Learn
Blackboard Learn is the University's learning management system. It is hosted by Blackboard to ensure a stable and reliable environment 24/7. The Blackboard system offers three core platforms:
Upload syllabus, course materials & handouts
Post presentations
Share links & resources
Embed YouTube videos
Communication, Collaboration & Engagement
Facilitate & continue course discussions
Send email & messages
Post announcements
Manage small group activities
Distribute & collect assignments
Grade electronically and provide feedback
Post grades & maintain a digital gradebook
Deliver tests
Score with rubrics
New to Blackboard? Try Ultra!
umbc.edu/go/ultra
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REMEMBER: 1. Courses designated as "lab, lecture or discussion" and their enrollments into Blackboard are fully automated through the registration process.
2. By default, courses are "unavailable" meaning students cannot access them. It's up to the instructor as to when they would like their course to be made "available" to the enrolled students. |
Additional instructional technologies:
Blackboard CollaborateBb Collaborate supports live, real-time lectures, presentations, and conversations with a wide range of tools such as 2-way audio; interactive whiteboard and desktop sharing; breakout rooms; video feeds; and session recording. Use Collaborate to deliver live lectures or study sessions, host virtual office hours (VOH), demonstrate software such as SPSS or Photoshop, host guest speakers, and more. Import PowerPoint or images with easy to use tools. You can later convert your recordings to MP4 to upload to YouTube, or leave the recordings in place for students to stream from their desktop or mobile device. Broadband internet is strongly recommended to enhance the Collaborate experience as well as a microphone and/or headset. However, both faculty and students can access a live Collaborate session via mobile browser via wifi or cellular. | |
Blackboard Mobile AppsBoth faculty and students can access their courses using the the corresponding role-based mobile app for iOS and Android. Faculty can upload media such as images or video, add documents from Google Drive, and create content by simply typing on the touch interface on the mobile device. Users can maintain communication on the go or out of town. For example, instructors can post announcements while students can check their grades. Instructors and students can both follow and participate in discussions. UMBC is pleased to offer the Blackboard's mobile apps at no cost to UMBC faculty and students for our Blackboard site.
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Google Apps for EducationGoogle offers a cloud-based solution for email, calendar, video streaming, create/edit documents, spreadsheets and presentations in a collaborative, real-time editing environment. There is no cost to faculty or students to use Google. Users receive unlimited space. | |
Office 365Through a partnership with Microsoft, UMBC offers online access to all Microsoft Office products, including Word, PowerPoint and Excel. UMBC students, faculty and staff also have access to 1 terabyte of cloud storage through Microsoft Office 365 and its related OneDrive. Additional tools include Sites, Delve, Sway, and OneNote. | |
OneNote Class NotebookThe OneNote Class Notebook is an app that will create a class notebook, which includes three types of sub-notebooks:
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PanoptoSometimes it’s just easier to show than tell. Panopto is a lecture-capture/screencasting software that allows for easy recording and sharing of course lectures and presentations in a video format. Recordings in Panopto are viewable on most web browsers and mobile devices. Click here for a webinar overview of the platform (1:02:47). | |
Respondus LockDown BrowserRespondus LockDown Browser secures the testing environment within the Blackboard. Students cannot print, copy, visit another website, or use other programs when they are using the secure browser. Once the test starts, students cannot leave until they submit it for a grade. If students try to take a test without the secure browser, they are blocked. DoIT has provided a specific download link for faculty to give to their classes, which is unique to UMBC’s license. | |
Respondus MonitorRespondus Monitor works with the LockDown Browser. It uses a student’s webcam to record the assessment session. Respondus Monitor enables online exams to be taken in non-proctored environments and deters students from accessing other resources during an exam (such as a phone, a second computer, etc.). It also ensures the right student is taking the exam, and that the student isn’t getting help from others. | |
RespondusRespondus is a powerful tool for creating and managing exams that can be printed to paper or exported for use in Blackboard. With Respondus, an instructor can create exams and assessments offline using a Windows interface. The application supports up to 15 question types, including calculated and algorithmic formats, and allows for the import of questions from MS Word. Respondus can be downloaded through the UMBC software downloads page. NOTE: Since Respondus is a Windows-only application, Mac users can use virtualization software such as VMWare or Parallels. | |
UMBC BoxBox is an online file sharing system that you can access from multiple devices (computers, smart phones, and tablets). Box also allows you to share your files and folders with others easily. Faculty, staff and students can access UMBC Box through myUMBC -> Apps or through the direct link. UMBC Box is especially useful to distribute or receive very large files from students. Users receive 25 GB of space and files as big as 5 GB can be uploaded. | |
VoiceThreadVoiceThread is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate slides and leave comments in several ways – text, voice, audio file, or webcam. Faculty can create and share a VoiceThread with students and colleagues for them to review in presentation mode or to record comments for increased engagement and feedback. | |
WebExWebex is a video conferencing and collaboration platform available to all UMBC faculty, staff, and students. You can use it on your computer or on your cell phone with the WebEx mobile app. The app features video and chat as well as presentation and desktop sharing, online whiteboards, and annotations. Recording the session is also available. |
Learn more about all third-party tools for Blackboard and other software available at UMBC.