MAIN CAMPUS CLASSES (FALL 2009)

Georgetown University's Blackboard support team offers scheduled training courses for faculty on Blackboard basics, communication and collaboration tools, assignments, and assessment tools. Faculty can also request customized training and individual consultations at any time through the Blackboard Help Request Form.

The Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS) offers scheduled Blackboard training courses at the beginning of the Fall and Spring terms. Dahlgren Memorial Library offers scheduled training courses to Medical Center faculty. Upcoming training courses are listed below. Registration is available on line through the links following each course.

Blackboard Basics

A broad introduction to Blackboard 8 for faculty who are new to Blackboard. Skills covered include configuring a course site, posting content, and using communication tools such as the discussion board. Several features will be explored in more depth in other workshops. Instructors: Susan Pennestri and Gorky Cruz.

Thursday, August 27th, 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM, ICC 227
Monday, August 31st, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM, ICC 227
Wednesday, September 16th, 2:30 - 3:30 PM, ICC 227

Effective Course Design in Blackboard

This workshop will introduce faculty to principles of instructional design in order to plan, design, and construct an effective Blackboard course site. A number of pedagogical strategies and best practices will be discussed. Participants will learn how to design and customize the navigation menu, enable and disable tools, organize course materials, and format content. Instructors: Susan Pennestri and Gorky Cruz.

Tuesday, September 1st, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM, ICC 227
Thursday, September 10th, 1:15 PM - 2:15 PM, ICC 227

Blackboard Communication Tools

An exploration of the communication tools in Blackboard, such as the discussion board and built-in email. Advanced discussion board features such as tagging, rating, and grading will be explained. Also includes an introduction to group creation and management and suggestions on how features available to groups can benefit student work. Instructors: Peter Janssens and Gorky Cruz.

Thursday, August 27th, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM, ICC 227
Friday, September 18th, 1:15 - 2:15 PM, ICC 227

Assignments & Assessment in Blackboard

An introduction to the test and grade management features in Blackboard 8. Blackboard allows instructors to dispense assignments and to create quizzes or exams that are integrated with the course Grade Center. The Grade Center and the Student Performance Dashboard offer ways to monitor student progress. Participants will learn how to create assignments and tests and learn how students can view their grades. Instructors: Susan Pennestri and Gorky Cruz.

Friday, August 28th, 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM, ICC 227
Tuesday, September 1st, 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM, ICC 227
Monday, September 21st, 12:15 - 1:45 PM, ICC 227

Blackboard 8's Grade Center

An in-depth look at how Blackboard's Grade Center can help instructors manage grades and assess students' performance. Participants will learn to set up the Grade Center in the way that meets their assessment goals, to weight grades, to customize the Grade Center, and to create grade reports. Important concepts such as "external grade", "calculated column", "grading schema", and grade "categories" will be explained. Participants are welcome to bring their own questions about the Grade Center. Instructors: Susan Pennestri and Peter Janssens.

Friday, August 28th, 2:30 PM - 3:30 PM, ICC 227
Tuesday, October 6th, 1:00 - 2:00 PM, ICC 227
Tuesday, November 17th, 3:00 - 4:00 PM, ICC 227

MEDICAL CENTER INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT CLASSES (FALL 2009)

For the description of classes offered at the Medical Center, go to the Dahlgren Memorial Library Workshops for Blackboard page.