Exploring Active Learning in Large Academic Spaces
Mike Forder, Director of eLearning for VCU Nurse Anesthesia, created this resource when he worked at the VCU Alt lab. The purpose of the site is to provide instructors of large classes with tools that can be used to integrate active learning technologies. Visit the site to learn about instructional applications and best practices for engaging students […]
Coming soon in Blackboard! Remind students of missing coursework.
VCU will be upgraded on May 16, 2017 to the Bb Learn 9.1 Q4 2016 release. This new version will give instructors the ability to send reminders from the Grade Center to students and members of groups who have missing coursework. The reminder tool is accessed from the gradebook by clicking the chevron associated with the gradebook column […]
Technology options for student multimedia assignments
There are so many ways for students to create multimedia assignments that deciding what to have them use can be overwhelming. View the video below for an overview of 3 free options: Kaltura, VoiceThread and Adobe Spark. Created by SON IT using Adobe Spark Video
Teaching and Creating APA-Formatted References
APA Style Publications The copyright for the APA Sixth Edition is 2010. Since 2010 there have been a number of changes to how people are collecting research information. There has been an increase in the number of high quality online resources and more and more libraries are making information like dissertations and theses available online. […]
Free online VoiceThread workshops
VoiceThread is now integrated in Blackboard and can be used to upload, share and discuss documents, presentations, images, audio files and videos. Instructors and students can comment on VoiceThread slides using a microphone, webcam, text or phone. Interested in learning more? Voice Thread is offering interactive hands-on sessions in December and January. VoiceThread at SON […]
Faculty Focus Newsletter
A great free resource to help with teaching is the Faculty Focus newsletter by Magna Publications. It is available for free and is delivered via email. Topics include: blended learning faculty development online education teaching and learning …and so much more! Highly recommended…sign up today!
Quickly and easily update all dates in your copied course
Updating dates after you copy a course for the next semester can be very time consuming and result in risk of error. Blackboard’s Date Management tool simplifies this process by making all due dates and content availability dates visible and editable on a single page. Try it! Open your course and go to Control Panel […]
Lynda@VCU
VCU now subscribes to Lynda.com. Lynda.com is available for use by VCU faculty, staff and students. Lynda is a leading online learning company that has thousands of tutorials aimed at teaching management skills, software, and creative skills to allow its members to achieve personal and professional goals. After completing a Lynda course, users will receive a […]
Collaborate Ultra
Blackboard Collaborate had an overhaul and the new interface is called ultra. The new interface is more intuitive, easier to use, and much easier for student and faculty collaboration. To get the full benefit of the Ultra Experience, it is recommended that users use Google Chrome for their web browser. More information about ultra is […]
Use VoiceThread in your Blackboard Course
Dr. Mary Kay Goldschmidt used VoiceThread in her community health course over the summer to enhance conversation and engagement in her class discussions. Dr. Goldschmidt stated that using the technology seemed to add to increased interactions within the class and an increased sense of community. When asked about the technology, she was quite enthusiastic. If […]
