Exemplary Uses of
Blackboard
Greg Reihman
Lehigh University
Blackboard, like any teaching tool, works best when used in accordance with sound teaching practices. This document is designed to help faculty think through their approaches to using Blackboard, independently of the technical details surrounding its use.
Before
thinking specifically about using Blackboard, it may be helpful to
consider the
following characterization of effective learning:
People tend to
learn most effectively (in ways that make a
sustained, substantial and positive influence on the way they think,
act, or
feel) when (1) they are trying to solve problems or create something
new that
they find intriguing, beautiful, and/or important; (2) they are able to
do so
in a challenging yet supportive environment in which they feel a sense
of
control over their own education; (3) they can work collaboratively
with other
learners to grapple with the problems; (4) they believe that their work
will be
considered fairly and honestly; and (5) they can try, fail, and receive
feedback from expert learners in advance of and separate from any
summative
judgment of their efforts.[1]
How then can we use Blackboard in a way that matches up with this model of effective learning? Some suggestions:
1)
Decide what you
want your
students to be able to do as a result of taking your course; design
activities,
projects, assignments, and assessments that will help them learn what
you want
them to learn and do the things you want them to do.
2)
Learn about the
many possibilities
Blackboard offers so you can make informed choices about which
Blackboard
functions align with your course goals.
3)
Carefully
integrate
Blackboard with other elements of your course so it is not isolated
from other
course activities, conversations, assessments, etc.
4)
Customize
Blackboard so
students can easily find and use those functions you want them to use;
disable
those functions you don't use; customize your content so it is
appropriate to
the Bb environment; expand course content to take advantage of the web
environment (e.g. incorporate links to web resources, use a variety of
media,
etc).
5)
Set expectations
for student
use: explain to students what role Blackboard will play in your course;
tell
them whether work done in Blackboard will be evaluated and, if so, how.
6)
Choose
appropriate modes of
communicating with students from among the many Blackboard offers;
communicate
regularly.
7)
Give students
opportunities
to discuss and collaborate; provide guidelines on how to discuss and
collaborate effectively online; give feedback on how theyÕre
doing.
8)
Use Blackboard
assessment
tools to help students gauge their progress, to free up class time, and
to
simplify grading.
[1] Ken Bain, What the Best College Teachers Do (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2004) pp. 108-109.