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Add Personalized Audio or Video Feedback for Assessments

Recordings can help you connect with students in courses with little to no face time. When paired with text feedback, video and audio recordings can help provide students with useful, actionable, and more personal feedback regarding their submissions.

Audio and video feedback isn’t supported in grading with rubrics at this time. This feature isn’t supported on all browsers. For the best experience, use Chrome or Firefox.

You can start grading attempts multiple ways. Find the attempt you want to grade and open the Grade Details page.

Setup to Record 

In the Grading sidebar, select the down arrow to expand the panel. Select the editor icon represented by the letter A at the bottom of the Feedback to Learner box. The editor opens in a pop-up window. 

In the Feedback to Learner window, select the microphone icon in the last row of the editor. You need to give the browser permission to use audio and video the first time you open the recording window.

Feedback recordings are unique to each student’s submission. You can’t download, share, or reuse recordings created in the feedback editor.

Start, Stop, and Save  a Feedback Recording

In the window that opens, select the camera icon on the recording interface to enable your camera. Without the camera enabled, the tool only records audio when you begin. When you’re ready, select the Record button to capture your audio and video feedback.

  1. Get ready to record as the tool counts down. You can make a recording up to five minutes long.
  2. Select Pause recording to stop and resume recording your feedback or select Stop recording to review the recording and save or discard. You can delete the recording and start over if you want to re-record.
  3. Select Save and exit if you’re satisfied with the recording and want to share it with the student.
  4. Next, rename the recording and add alternative text to make it accessible to all users. The system uses the recording time and date for these fields by default.
  5. Select Insert recording to finish the process and insert the feedback into the editor.

Feedback recordings are unique to each student’s submission. You can’t download, share, or reuse recordings created in the feedback editor.

Want to access a recording you sent to a student? From a student’s cell in the Grade Center, select View Grade Details.

 

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This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Creating Journals

  1. Go to Control Panel > Course Tools > Journals.
  2. Click Create Journal.
  3. Enter a Name and add Instructions.
  4. Set Availability and Date and Time Restrictions if needed.
  5. Select Journal Settings as appropriate.
  6. Determine if journal is to be graded or not. If grading, enter the number of Points Possible; a column will be automatically created for it in the grade center.
  7. Click Submit.
  8. You must create a Tool Link to the journals page or deploy journals to a Content Area for students to access them.

Contact Support

This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Viewing or Running a Test Question Item Analysis

Item analysis is a tool to evaluate the effectiveness of test questions and overall test performance data to improve your tests. The test/exam must be deployed (i.e. available to students) and must have student responses.

View Item Analysis: There are three different ways to access the Item Analysis:

  1. Go to deployed test in a Content Area > click the action button next to the test name > select Item Analysis.
  2. Go to Control Panel > Tests, Surveys, and Pools > Tests > click the action button > select Item Analysis.
  3. Go to Grade Center Column > click the action button in the column header > select Item Analysis.

Run Item Analysis

  1. Open the Select Test dropdown menu > select a test > click Run > under Available Analysis, click the link for the test’s item analysis.
  2. The Item Analysis will display test summary, individual question data, and indicate with a red dot questions that may need review/edits.
  3. To edit questions that have been flagged by the item analysis, click on a question to open it for editing > make appropriate changes > click Submit and Update Attempts. You will receive a warning that submitted tests will be regraded in accordance with changes you have made. A green bar across top of page indicates success of regrading questions. Click OK to return to item analysis.
  4. Complete all test question changes in the same way. Run Item Analysis again to reflect change(s).

Watch the demo

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This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Rating Posts

If you selected “Allow Members to Rate Posts” when creating a Forum, follow these steps to rate posts:

  1. Open a forum and click on the Name of a post to view it.
  2. Look for the Your Rating: stars.
  3. Select the number of stars appropriate to the rating you want to give.
  4. Click Submit.

Contact Support

This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Grading Forums

If you enabled the “Grade Forum” option when creating the forum, follow these steps to grade posts:

  1. Blackboard will collect all posts within the Forum for each student, allowing you to provide an overall grade for each student’s participation in the discussion.
  2. Go to the graded Forum > click Grade Discussion Forum. The Grade Forum Users page will appear, displaying a list of students.
  3. Click Grade to review a student’s posts and enter a grade.
  4. The Grade Discussion Forum page will appear. All posts the student has made in the forum are collected on this page.
  5. Click Forum Statistics to show details on the student’s forum activity (date of last post, average, minimum, and maximum post length).
  6. Enter the Grade, Feedback (shown to student), and/or Notes (private to instructor).
  7. Click Submit when grade has been entered.
  8. Click OK to return to the Grade Forum Users page. Click Grade again to edit the grade or comments.

Contact Support

This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Setting Up VoiceThread Links

  1. Select the VoiceThread link you just created in Blackboard to finish setting up your VoiceThread.
    Note: If you want VoiceThread integrated with your gradebook, you must use the Assignment Builder.
  2. Select one of these options:
      1. Course ViewDisplays the collection of VoiceThreads that have been shared with your course. This allows students to find and comment on each other’s work or allows students to review all course materials prior to an exam.
        1. From this window, you can select “+ Add Your Own.”
        2. Choose “Create a new VoiceThread” or “Select from My VoiceThreads.”
        3. You can select a previous VoiceThread from a search window.
        4. Select “Share.”

        To locate your VoiceThread and edit it, select the menu icon (3 lines) on the left > select your view.

      2. Individual VT
        1. You can create a new VoiceThread or choose an existing one.
          The one you choose or create will be the VoiceThread that opens when the student selects the link in Blackboard.
        2. Select which one you want to share when the display opens.
        3. Make any needed edits.
    1. VT HomeDisplay all of a student’s VoiceThread content in a single view, to their home page.This includes all VoiceThreads and all courses that belong to them. This option is useful if you want to create a simple portal into VoiceThread without directing students to any specific content.You can create, browse or edit existing VoiceThreads from this page. You can also affect some VoiceThread settings from this page

Contact Support

This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Editing Your VoiceThread

  1. To edit any VoiceThread, hover your mouse over and select edit.
  2. If VoiceThread is already open, select Edit a VoiceThread from the menu on the left.

Contact Support

This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Grading a VoiceThread Assignment

  1. Click on the VoiceThread link in your Blackboard course. This will display the grader.
  2. Click on a student’s name on the right to see that student’s submission.
  3. You can click on each comment below his or her name individually to jump directly to it.
  4. Enter a grade on a percentage scale (0-100), and hit “Enter” on your keyboard.

This grade will immediately be entered into your Blackboard course gradebook.

* Note: If you have set the assignment to be worth less than 100 points, still grade it on a scale of 0-100, and the score will be adjusted accordingly in your gradebook.

If you have students who have not yet submitted their assignments, click on the “Remind” button to send them an email reminder. Click “Remind all students” to send an email to everyone who has not yet submitted.

View a demo tutorial that shows the entire process: https://fast.wistia.net/embed/iframe/syz3llfn8x

Contact Support

This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Creating a Graded VoiceThread Assignment

You can require students to Create a VoiceThread of their own to submit, Comment on a VoiceThread you’ve created, or simply Watch a VoiceThread from start to finish.
Assignment Builder
  1. Select VoiceThread from the Build Content Menu.Shows where to select voice thread under Build Content
  2. Enter in a title and description.
  3. To create a graded assignment, Check the Outcomes box in section 3 and Select Create a grade column in advance of first use to have a grade center column created.Screenshot of VoiceThread Services, with arrows indicating grading options
  4. Enter the number of points for your assignment (100 points is the limit).
  5. Select Submit and Launch.

Please Note: The Assignment Builder option will only appear if you have enabled grading for this VoiceThread in the Configure tool page in Blackboard. When you are done, the assignment will visible in the Assignments section of your VoiceThreads course site.

Select Assignment Builder on the page that opens.VoiceThread Setup screenshot with arrow indicating Assignment Builder action buttonChoose from one of the three options:

Submit a Comment: Students will be required to submit a comment on an existing VoiceThread.
  1. On the Select a type of assignment page, select Submit a Comment.
  2. When the assignment creation window opens select a VoiceThread from your Library (or create a new one by clicking on Create new VoiceThread).
  3. Enter a description of the assignment.
  4. Set the number of comments.
  5. Opt to share or moderate comments.
Create a VoiceThread: Students will be required to create and submit their own VoiceThread.
    1. Click on Create a VoiceThread.
    2. When the assignment creation window opens enter a description for the assignment.
    3. Click Create Assignment.
Watch a VoiceThread: Students will be required to watch an entire VoiceThread.
  1. Click on Watch a VoiceThread.
  2. When the assignment creation window opens select a VoiceThread from your Library or create a new one by clicking on Create a VoiceThread.
  3. Enter a description of the assignment.
  4. Click Create Assignment.

VoiceThread assignment types screenshot

View a video tutorial shows the entire process:
https://fast.wistia.net/embed/iframe/syz3llfn8x

Responding to Assignments for students:
https://voicethread.com/howto/blackboard-3/

Contact Support

This article was created and is maintained by the Office of Academic Technology.

If you have found an error in this article, or if you need assistance incorporating this article into your course, please contact the Faculty Instructional Support Specialist.

Creating Groups in Blackboard

  1. Go to Control Panel > Users and Groups > Groups.
  2. Click Create Single Group and select Self-Enroll (students sign up for the group) or Manual Enroll (instructor assigns students to the group).
  3. Group enrollment methods

    You can enroll students in groups in three ways. Students can’t un-enroll themselves from groups.

    • Manual Enroll allows you to assign each student in your course to a group. Manual enrollment is available for both single groups and group sets.
    • Random Enroll is available for group sets only. Random enrollment automatically distributes students into groups based on your settings for maximum members per group or total number of groups. Random distribution applies only to students who are currently enrolled in your course. You can enroll additional students manually.
    • Self-Enroll allows students to add themselves to a group with a sign-up sheet. Self-enrollment is an option available for both single groups and group sets.
  4. On the Create Group page, enter a Name and optional Description.
  5. Under tool availability, check the boxes for course tools you want to make available to the group, and set up grading options if appropriate.
  6. If you want to grade student submissions for blogs, wikis, and journals, select the Grade: Points possible and type in a number.
  7. Select the check box for Allow Personalization to let students add personal modules to the group homepage. Modules are only visible to the group member who added them.
  8. Click Submit.