As part of our migration from Blackboard to Brightspace we plan to turn off access to Blackboard on June 1 so that we can ensure we get the most up-to-date course archives and to pull data from the system that we want to retain. If you have a student in a spring 2021 course on Blackboard that needs to take an incomplete what will they do?

LIT & O has been discussing this possibility with Academic Affairs to determine how to accommodate this need. We’ve come up with a plan based on the following:

• All spring 2021 courses were created in both Blackboard and Brightspace to accommodate instructor choice.
• Students are enrolled in spring 2021 courses in both systems.

Our plan starts with a report from the Registrar’s Office listing who has incompletes and in which courses. LIT & O staff will determine where the course was taught, Blackboard or Brightspace. For courses taught in Blackboard, we will create an export package and import it into the corresponding site in Brightspace.  LIT & O staff will clean up any Blackboard specific content and will contact the instructor to determine which assignments/quizzes, etc the student needs to complete and will ensure the needed activities are set up and working correctly for the student.

The role of the student who has the incomplete, will be changed to “IC Student” to allow them to access the course after the close date for the course (automatically set for 28 days after the term end date in Banner). Only students with incomplete grades will have access to closed courses. When the final course grade is recorded, the student’s role will revert back to “Student” and the student will lose access to the course.

This summer will bring a few changes to the digital learning environment at Wentworth. Our recent shift in learning management systems has changed how often we will see changes in our environments. Brightspace is a SaaS (Software as a Service) deployment and updates every month. We review the announced changes at the start of each month and will make every effort to delay the significant changes until the beginning of a semester. Minor changes or ones that we can’t override the settings, we’ll notify users before the changes go live. Our production environment for Brightspace updates mid-month and we see changes in our test environment earlier so we can judge how they will affect the community.

So what are the changes?

First, this semester will be the first that all courses will be on the new learning management system, Brightspace. With the retirement of Blackboard, we will be simplifying or shifting our integrations with a couple of tools. Panopto, our video streaming platform, has been connected to both Blackboard and Brightspace, causing a few usability problems due to multiple accounts created when accessing the system from the two LMS’s. On May 3rd, we’ll disable the integration in Blackboard, and on May 4th, we’ll be working with Panopto to consolidate the accounts. One LMS, one Panopto account. You should see all your content in one account. We’ll be reaching out to users and programs about better approaches to managing/using video content in the LMS as we move forward.

At the same time, we’ll be migrating our NuVu connection to Brightspace. Currently, Architecture courses using the tool have had to remain on Blackboard due to design constraints limiting us to one connection into the system. On May 3rd, we’ll disable the current integration with Blackboard and on May 5th, we’ll be enabling the connection on Brightspace.

There will also be some more minor changes. Brighspace has implemented new assignment and rubric workflows that have been in opt-in status. Users could opt-in to use the new interface. This opt-in option creates unnecessary complexity for supporting the tool because we have to support two interfaces. We’ll be turning both the new workflows on for the assignment and rubric tools for all users on May 3rd. For those not familiar with the new interface watch this video on the new assignment experience:

A change to note in Brightspace is the introduction of Accommodations settings via the class list tool. This feature will be useful if you have students that receive accommodations for quizzes/tests. The tool allows instructors to set allowable time for individual students across all quizzes/tests as a multiplier (1.5 X or 2 X, etc) of the time allowed for other students. Instead of having to set special access rules for every quiz/test, instructors only need to enter the information once. Accommodations will be made available on May 3rd.

Another change in Brightspace is the new WYSIWYG editor in most of the tools. The editor is changing for the Assignments and Rubric tools and is available for other tools, if we choose. For consistency, we are turning this on, so that most tools will use the same editor. There are a few exceptions, those tools that use pop-ups will use the old editor through the summer when the full conversion will be complete. The new editor will look like this:

The most notable change in this tool is the “Insert Stuff” button no longer looks like a gray version of the YouTube icon but has changed to suggest multiple insertion options:

 

A final Brightspace change that will be welcomed by students, the Work To Do widget. This new widget that students will see on their Brightspace home page lists any content items or activities with due dates. The widget shows upcoming dates and overdue work. All the more reason to add due dates to content and activities to help keep your students on track. This change occurred on May 20th after the monthly update.

 

And finally, another workflow change to a tool integrated with the LMS, VoiceThread. This summer the assignment workflow is scheduled to shift to a new interface. We have the option to turn this workflow on for all users before that date and will make the change ahead of the current semester, on May 3rd. Learn more about the VoiceThread New Assignments tool.

Let us know what you think about these changes and the scheduling of changes to our digital learning environment. We welcome your feedback.

As the summer semester quickly comes into view with the promise of colorful flowers, beach days, glowing sunsets, and the transition back into the classroom, many might feel that it’s time to pack up the online learning system and move back to the trusty paper and pen. Let’s not be too hasty. The new learning management system, Brightspace, can truly enhance the amazing information you’re teaching in your classroom.

Continued use of a Learning Management System (LMS), even when fully face to face, can personalize student learning to help meet their diverse needs and reinforce learning outcomes for them to achieve mastery. Brightspace can provide a clear roadmap of course content for students to understand expectations, requirements, and assignments. An LMS allows you to efficiently distribute class materials from a centralized source and therefore students will have access to the lesson videos, notes, resource guides, instructions, etc to read or watch as many times as they would like.

Benefits for Students

1. Unlimited access to course content 24/7.
2. Diverse formats of course material for students to learn from at their own pace.
3. Easy collaboration with group members for projects via discussion boards, lockers for file uploads, and assignment uploads.
4. Organization of their work through the LMS system, checklists, and calendar tool.
5. Ability to check their grades.
6. Notifications to remind them when assignments are due.
7. Ability to upload work and projects they complete to their individual E-portfolio via Brightspace.

Benefits for Professors

1. Organized course content with access to all deliverables in one singular location.
2. Consistent and scalable content delivery.
3. Easy collaboration between faculty members that teach the same course.
4. Easily embed or upload videos, images, documents, and external websites for diverse resources on a topic or skill to help students understand context in the best way that suits them.
5. Easy distribution of grades and feedback to students using dynamic rubrics created in Brightspace.
6. Track student progress and performance through analytical data via Brightspace.
7. Create Intelligent Agents to automate email communications based on individual student progress.
8. Create and automatically grade quizzes/exams with various question types that can be randomized, shuffled, or taken from a pool of available topic questions.
9. Set up groups for students based on diverse needs of students, for specific project topics, or create groups for collaboration online.
10. Create exit tickets or surveys to gauge student understanding using the likert question type.

Blended learning or a flipped classroom can improve student comprehension and success. This teaching method gives the professor ample time during face to face sessions with students to reinforce concepts and ideas when information is provided before class time. When students have access to course content before the face to face class session, shorter lectures are possible. This results in more time for students to work in groups, problem solve, generate creative ideas, have meaningful discussions, and work on prototypes. Brightspace is a helpful technology tool that, when integrated, can benefit both the professor and the students.

 

By Lindsay Schubert, Instructional Designer

Of all the tools in my Instructional Designer (ID) toolkit, TILT might be my favorite. It has the greatest impact and it takes the least amount of time and effort to implement.

TILT stands for Transparency in Learning and Teaching. It is a student-centric way of writing out assignment instructions. We’ll get to the details in a bit. For now, let’s take a look at what problems TILT solves.

Imagine a generic assignment from the perspective of a student. The key things that students want to know are: “What do I have to do? Why am I doing this? How do I get a good grade?” Those are the exact questions that TILT answers.

“Why am I doing this?” = Purpose

“What do I have to do?” = Task

“How do I get a good grade?” = Criteria for success

TILT distills these essential components into a template. The rest is as easy as filling in the blanks. This Transparent Assignment Templates for Faculty tells us exactly how to fill in these sections.

This is straightforward for simple assignments. I worked with one instructor at another institution who used a TILT assignment in a Research Methods course, where each part of the research paper (introduction, methodology, conclusion, etc.) was chunked into its own assignment submission. For example…

Lit Review

Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to help you practice research methodology and critically assess literature study. These skills are essential for your success in understanding and writing research papers in this class and beyond.
Task: Complete the literature review section on the approved topic of your choosing. Convert your paper to a PDF. Submit your paper here.
Criteria for Success: Your Lit review should explore existing information in the field of research that you have chosen. Find the main ideas and show the relationships between studies to establish similarities and differences. Include a minimum of 5 peer-reviewed sources, and use APA 7.

In this example, a student paper from a previous semester would work well to demonstrate the quality of work you are looking for. A rubric would also help shape the quality of the completed work. And last but not least, a reflection at the end of the course would be a nice fit to allow the student to close the learning loop.

Transparent Assignments work just as well for the more hands-on, technical assignments. One faculty member I befriended a few years ago used TILT in an ESRI GIS Mapping software assignment, with slight modifications.

Intro to ESRI

Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to introduce you to Esri and the available Esri training resources. In this assignment, you will learn the fundamental concepts of GIS mapping that you will use in the field.
Task: Follow the walk-through in the attached worksheet. You will note that step 7 is deliberately vague- this is so you can practice troubleshooting and utilizing the Esri Training academy. Export your map and insert into the Module 1 Discussion Board. Provide feedback to a minimum of two peers’ maps.
Criteria for Success: Your completed map should be easy to read and include the following: imagery, basemaps, elevation, demographics, and landscape layers.
<<Worksheet attachment would go here>>

The worksheet attachment is a modification for these more text and image-heavy assignment instructions. That way, the student will be introduced to the assignment’s purpose, task, and criteria for success before they even open the longer document. They will be set up for success from the get-go, and have the added benefit of student-student interaction with the discussion component of the assignment.

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If you are interested in trying out a TILT assignment in your class, www.tilthighered.com has more than everything you need. I recommend starting with the TILT Higher Ed Examples And Resources. And if you need any help, contact us at lit@wit.edu. We are always looking for faculty to partner with. Whether we serve as a second pair of eyes to look over your assignment instructions or as a thought partner to create something new to increase student learning, we are here to help.

References

Winkelmes, Mary-Ann. “Transparency in Teaching: Faculty Share Data and Improve Students’ Learning.” Liberal Education 99,2 (Spring 2013)

Zakrzewski, T. (2018, July 27). Enhance Student Success with Transparency: purpose, task, criteria. Perspectives in Teaching & Learning. https://sites.wit.edu/lit/enhance-student-success-with-transparency-purpose-task-criteria/

You set up your grade book but the grades don’t look right. How can you find out where the problem occurred?

Sometimes the problem may be settings. For example, I recently reviewed a problem grade book where the total points for a category were not what was expected. The category was made up of four items:

• Outline 12.5 points
• Draft 12.5 points
• Review of Draft  12.5 points
• Final Draft 12.5 points

The grade book was displaying the category grade out of 38 points, not 50 points which were expected. A check of the settings showed that the grade book was set to drop ungraded assignments and display 0 decimal places. Increasing the decimal places to 1 changed the points possible to 37.5 points. This change helped explain what was happening, 12.5 x 3 = 37.5 points (which rounded to 38 points with no decimal places), the missing 12.5 points was due to the assignment not being graded yet, so it was dropped from the calculation.

In other cases, the problem may be elsewhere in the grade book. If you use a weighted grading system using categories sometimes the problem may be that some activities are not connected to grade items so not included in the grade calculation. The manage grades tab is useful to use to track what grade items are in each category – is something missing? The association column indicates if there is an activity tied to the column. If not, should the grade item be tied to an activity or will the grade be entered directly in the grade book because the activity is in class (paper-based exam or presentation)? If there should be an activity feeding the grade, then check the activity and ensure that it is connected to the correct grade item. If a connection is missing it can be made at any time:

Another scenario is that the points in the grade book are not adding up based on what the points are for each assignment. Because Brightspace allows you to create assignments that are graded but not included in the grade calculation, assignments have points associated with them and grade items have points associated with them. The assignment and grade item points may not match. Check both in the assignment in the grade book to make sure that they are the same.

A final (but certainly not the last) problem is when a points-based grade book doesn’t add up to the correct points possible for the course. Again, reach for the Manage Grades tab in the grade book and check to see if what you see matches what you have told your students. You may have a missing grade item or missing connection or you may have entered the points incorrectly in creating the grade item. All things to check.

If in the end, you can’t find the problem, don’t hesitate to reach out for a Grade Book Consultation with a member of the team.