Fall 2017 End-of-Semester Announcements
Dear Faculty and Staff,
As the the end of the Fall 2017 semester quickly approaches, Learning Systems would like to share some important eLearning reminders, resources and news with you.
December 20th at 10PM – Blackboard will be unavailable
The VCU Blackboard system will be upgraded to 9.1 Q4 2016 CU6, beginning Wednesday, Dec 20th at 10:00pm. Blackboard will NOT be available during the upgrade through 6:00am Thurs., Dec 21st.
The new version includes bug fixes, the new Crocodoc to Box transition tool, and updated Building Blocks (Pearson MyLab-Mastering, Partner Cloud, Blackboard Mobile Web Services, Collaborate Ultra).
Blackboard is Transitioning from Crocodoc to New Box View
In the current version of Blackboard at VCU, Crocodoc is used as the service for inline grading. Following the acquisition of Crocodoc by Box, Inc., Blackboard has made the decision to implement what they are referring to as their “New Box View”. The end-of-life date for Crocodoc is January 15, 2018, so we are working to update Blackboard to prepare for this update. The switchover to the New Box View will happen following the upgrade on Dec 21st.
New Box View offers several improvements over Crocodoc, including rendering fidelity and expanded support for new file types. Have a look at the Inline Grading (New Box) AskIT Page for more information.
Target Date set for the next major upgrade to eLearning at VCU
The VCU eLearning System will be upgraded to a new version May 15, 2018. Blackboard will be unavailable from 8:00pm on Tuesday, May 15th until 8:00pm on Wednesday, May 16th. More details about the upgrade and new features will be shared soon!
Top Hat announced as our new Student Response System
Top Hat is a cloud-based solution which offers many new features for classroom engagement. You can start using Top Hat as early as Spring 2018. Faculty are encouraged to attend a January online open Q&A session where questions will be answered and additional details provided. Servicedesk has been updated to reflect these changes. More information and a timeline can be found on the TS askIT Knowledge Base site.
Final Grades and Downloading the Blackboard Grade Center
Bb’s Grade Center is NOT the official source for grades. Grade sheets are available on faculty eServices. Final grades are due by noon on Wednesday, December 20, 2017.
Downloading the Bb Grade Center can be done at any time, but we strongly recommend faculty download the Grade Center in their Bb courses at the end of the semester, to retain the most accurate data for future grade references. Click here for download instructions.
Learning Systems is here to help!
Please remember to use the Learning Systems Web Site as a resource for all things eLearning, which includes centrally supported tools such as Blackboard, Echo360, Kaltura, Lon-capa, and VoiceThread!
Thank you and happy holidays!
Learning Systems at VCU
Categories Bb News, Bb9 upgrade, Blackboard Notice, Faculty, Staff