Instructional Technology @ PhilaU provides faculty with news, information, resources,
and tips for using technology and integrating it into their curricula.
Instructional Technology @ PhilaU is published monthly by the Paul J. Gutman Library.

Welcome Back!

The past few months have been very exciting around this office. We've rolled out two major software upgrades, Blackboard 6.1 and ERes 5.0, and held two very successful Teaching with Technology workshops for 23 members of our Adjunct Faculty.

Given our recent software upgrades, I've decided that for the Fall Semester I'm going to focus each issue of this publication on one or two of the new features available in Blackboard and ERes. You'll still find some of your favorite sections (e.g., Workshops Announcements, Links of Interest), but the bulk of the issue will focus on these new features.

Remember that if there is a topic you'd like to see investigated here or a website you'd like to share, send me an e-mail and we'll include it in an upcoming issue.

                                                                                                           Kristopher Wiemer
                                                                                                            Instructional Technology Specialist

Table of Contents

• Instructional Technology News
• Blackboard News
• October/November Workshops
• New Features in Blackboard and ERes
• Web Sites of Interest
  • Into the Blogosphere
  • Dreamweaver Fever
  • Atomic Learning - Blackboard 6.x Tutorials
• Requests for Information
• Contact Information

Instructional Technology News

As a result of our new software rollouts, the Instructional Technology Support Website (http://www.philau.edu/ITS) has undergone some changes. The Blackboard Resources sections have been updated to reflect the new version of Blackboard. You will also notice a new section for ERes Resources. In both cases you will find written and video tutorials on the most common tasks. Some of the video tutorials are still be updated, but the steps in the video are the same, only the screen shots need to be changed to match the look of the new software. If you find that a tutorial is missing or if you find an error, please let me know.

For quick access here are the links to the new Blackboard and ERes resources:

• Blackboard Resources for Faculty - http://www.philau.edu/ITS/bbfac.htm
• Blackboard Resources for Students - http://www.philau.edu/ITS/bbstud.htm
• ERes Resources for Faculty - http://www.philau.edu/ITS/eresfac.htm
• ERes Resources for Students - http://www.philau.edu/library/eresguide.html

Blackboard News

Blackboard Upgrade Update
The Blackboard Upgrade has been completed. During the process we lost very little data, most student submitted work and a few announcements. Reports from the field have indicated that users are pleased with the changes and the new features. We are aware of a few bugs and hope to have these fixed when we install the next Application Pack later this semester. If you are experiencing issues with Blackboard, please let me know so that we can address them as soon as possible.

As part of our upgrade, we have evaluated all the policies and procedures that we worked under last year. We have stopped those that weren't working and have implemented some new strategies that we hope will make the use of Blackboard more efficient and useful for all of you. You can review these new policies and procedures at http://www.philau.edu/ITS/bbfac/bbpolicy.htm. If you have any questions about our new policies, please let me know.

October/November Workshops

Following is a list of workshops that are being offered during the month of October and early November. Descriptions can be found at http://www.philau.edu/ITS/workshops.htm.

Please note that two of last Spring's most popular workshops are returning this Fall: Integrating Technology Through the Creation of a Hybrid Course and Integrating Atomic Learning and Other Multimedia Resources.

To register for any of these workshops, go to http://www.philau.edu/ITS/register.htm.

New Features of Blackboard and ERes

For users of Blackboard, you may remember that when you created a course page your ability to create a course menu was limited a small selection of titles. In addition, you were limited as to what types of content you could post in certain areas of the course. One of the most anticipated and potentially most beneficial new abilities of Blackboard 6.1 is that of designing your course in a manner that best suits your course objectives, from the menu to the location of your content. This is made possible with two new features in Blackboard 6.1:

1. Menu Style and Design

Blackboard 6.1 gives you the ability to make two significant changes to your menu. First you have the option to use either buttons or text links. As in the previous version, you can select one of dozens of button styles. A few additional patterns and styles have been added to the already vast collection. If you prefer to not use buttons, you can switch your menu to a text-based model. In this format you can choose the background color and the text color of your menu listings. The benefits of this change are not only cosmetic, but it also allows for easier navigation.

The second change to the menu is the ability to rename the menu items. In the previous version you were limited to a selection from a drop-down box of up to 15 items. You can now choose to use the name suggested in the default menu or you can rename it to better fit your curriculum. For example, if you teach a Religious Studies course you may create menu items that list the various religions you will be covering (e.g., Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Taosim, Hinduism) or you may choose list create menu items according to the types of material being used (e.g., PPT Slides, Lecture Notes, Assignments, Projects). The potential is limitless.

Below are some examples of the new menu format and the old menu format.

Blackboard 5.5 Menu	Blackboard 6.1 Button Menu
Blackboard 6.1 Text Menu 1	Blackboard 6.1 Text Menu 2

2. Content Anywhere

Blackboard 5.5 limited the location of much of your content. For example, links to web resources needed to be placed in the Resources, External Links, or Links content area; quizzes and surveys were limited to content areas; and student tools (e.g., View Grades, Discussion Board) were limited to the Communication or Tools areas. Now you can place any type of content in any area that you have created.

For example, suppose that you are teaching a Religious Studies course. You establish content areas for each of the religions you intend to cover. Within each religions content area you could include lecture notes, PowerPoint Presentations, Quizzes/Surveys, assignments, links to the Discussion Board, and multimedia pieces that coincide with the topic. You can organize these items in folders to keep like materials together (e.g., Lecture Folder, Assignment Folder, Image Folder) or you can organize these items in sequential order according to how and when they will be used.

Below are a couple of examples of courses using the content anywhere feature.

This example includes files, folders, links to web resources and a link to the relevant Discussion Board.

This example includes files, images, link to ERes and lecture notes.

This example includes lecture notes, assignments, and audio clips.

For more information on these features and tutorials on using them, go to Blackboard Resources for Faculty (http://www.philau.edu/ITS/bbfac.htm) and click on Blackboard Course Design (for Menu Style and Design) or Blackboard Course Content (for Content Anywhere) or contact me (wiemerk@philau.edu, 215-951-6332)

Web Sites of Interest

Into the Blogosphere (http://blog.lib.umn.edu/blogosphere/)
This site explores, investigates and discusses the uses of blogs from a multidisciplinary approach. Essays are presented, with the opportunity for feedback, based on examples from actual blogs and blogging communities. This site is a great way to introduce yourself to blogs. Hosted by the University of Minnesota.

Dreamweaver Fever (http://www.dreamweaverfever.com/)
This is an excellent site for tutorials and tips on using Macromedia Dreamweaver, one of the best web design software packages on the market.

Atomic Learning - Blackboard 6.x Tutorials (http://www.atomiclearning.com/blackboard_6)
Atomic Learning has recently posted video tutorials on using Blackboard 6.x. These tutorials cover most of the basic features of Blackboard 6.x and are a nice supplement to the materials found on the Blackboard Resources for Faculty site.

Request for Information

What are you doing in your classes? Do you have a technology strategy/tool that has worked well for you and your students? Are you doing something innovative with Blackboard? Do you have a tip or trick for making Blackboard easier to use? Is there a topic you’d like to see investigated in this newsletter?

Send your ideas, questions, comments, concerns, best practices, etc. to wiemerk@philau.edu.

Contact Information

Kristopher Wiemer, Instructional Technology Specialist
Paul J. Gutman Library, Room 111
(215)951-6332
wiemerk@philau.edu
http://www.philau.edu/ITS (click on IT@PhilaU for archives)
http://staff.philau.edu/wiemerk