Original Course View

Blackboard Learn is the centrally-supported learning management system used by faculty and students at UIC. There are two apps for Blackboard users. The Blackboard app is available for students to receive mobile updates, participate in course-related activities, and view grades. The Blackboard Instructor app allows instructors to view the course content and grade assignments.

Opening courses to students is a one-step process through the ellipses menu under My Courses.

AVAILABLE TO: Faculty | Students | Staff

FUNDING: University

Course Creation

Blackboard course sites are created for most CRN-related courses 90 days prior to the start of every semester. Sites are made unavailable to students by default, and instructors determine when to make their courses available to their students.

Course Enrollments

  • Instructors are added at the time courses are created, 90 days prior to the start of the term.
  • Students are added two weeks prior of the start of the term

Student enrollments and faculty assignments are handled automatically by the system. It may take up to 48 hours for new student enrollments to be reflected in course sites.

Course Availability

Blackboard course sites are made unavailable to students by default, and instructors determine when to make their courses available to their students. Opening courses to students is a one-step process through the ellipses menu under My Courses.

Special Requests

Instructors can request the following services using the forms in the Blackboard service catalog page.

  • Course Site Copy – Request to copy Blackboard content from one course site to another.
  • Course Site Template – Request a template to help you start your Blackboard course with built-in best practices in instructional design.
  • Course Site Merge – Merge multiple course sites into a single Blackboard course.
  • Course Quota Increase – Each course site in Blackboard is restricted to a size limit of 2 GB for course materials. This quota is necessary to properly manage storage resources and ensure adequate system performance. If more storage space is needed, the quota can be increased in 1 GB increments by submitting a request here.
  • Request Ongoing Course Site – Courses with no Course Reference Number (CRN) in Banner.
  • Restoration of Archive Course Site – Under special circumstances, courses older than three years can be restored per instructor request.
  • LTI integration – Third-party tools can be integrated to Blackboard per request. The approval process for each tool will include reviews for functionality, accessibility, security, FERPA, legal, cost, as well as other factors as explained in the LTI Policy and FAQs document.

General Capabilities

  • Create or upload text, audio, video, and interactive content for students to access online. Content can be added using Blackboard Learn tools or using third party software that integrates with Blackboard. You should always create content that is accessible to all students.
  • Communicate, interact, and collaborate with students via course announcements, email, discussion board threads, blog posts, and other collaboration tools
  • Assess concept mastery through the use of tests , assignments , and other tools that enable instructors to record and assess students’ work in a variety of ways. A Grade Center column is created automatically when an assessment is created, and grades are populated as instructors grade assignments. The Grade Center can be configured to export final grades in the format required for the XE Faculty Grade module.

System Requirements

Web browsers used with Blackboard Learn must have Java and Javascript enabled, cookies and third-party cookies enabled, and pop-up blocker disabled. Firefox and Google Chrome are the recommended web browsers. Use the Blackboard Browser Checker to verify whether your browser supports the most recent release of Blackboard Learn.

Accessibility

Blackboard Learn offers accessibility features that allows users to easily navigate and read the Blackboard Learn web interface. The web interface supports screen readers for all available creator and viewer interfaces. The web interface also support keyboard access, allowing you to use the tab key to access all available functions. All sessions fully support adding and displaying captions. For additional information on Blackboard Learn’s accessibility features, please visit Blackboard Learn’s Accessibility Conformance Report (WCAG Edition).

Compliance

Blackboard provides secure, private, online communication of FERPA-sensitive information in addition to group spaces where students and instructors can interact and exchange information that is not FERPA-sensitive. Restrictions that apply to your classroom teaching also apply in the Blackboard Learn environment, such as not allowing students to see others’ grades or graded work and not using external email to communicate FERPA-sensitive information.

Blackboard does not warrant or provide any assurances that your use of the Products will comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. For more information, visit the Blackboard Terms of Use page or contact us at LTS@uic.edu.

To access Blackboard Learn, students and instructors must use their UIC NetID (do not append @uic.edu after the NetID) and password in the UIC Blackboard Portal: uic.blackboard.com

Most UIC courses get a course site by default:

  • If you are an instructor and your course site is not available, please contact CATE-Support team at LTS@uic.edu.
  • If you are a student and you don’t see a course in Blackboard, first consult with your instructor to ensure they will be using Blackboard and that the course has been made available to you. If you enrolled late and your instructor will be using Blackboard, please allow 24 hours to see your course.

The course shell created by CATE-LTS is a blank slate in which you can add content particular to the needs of your course. All course shells are created with the Original Course View in Blackboard. Content areas organize your content in the sidebar menu and make it easier for students to navigate the material. Create sections such as Announcements, Syllabus, Lectures, and Tests, as well as links to the teaching tools available in Blackboard.

Consult the tutorials in this page or register for training before start using Blackboard to manage content and other educational tools in your classroom.

Blackboard Original Guides

Add Content

Assignments

Discussion Boards

Tests and Surveys

SafeAssign
(Original and Ultra course views are discussed on the same page. Scroll until you find the section on the course view you are currently using)

Student Preview

Groups & Other Settings

Videos

Use the table below to guide your selection of complementary tools to manage content in Blackboard
Text, Audio, and Video Use the Blackboard Learn Content Editor tool to directly add any of these features into a content
Lecture Capture Record your lecture with Echo360 or Panopto
Multimedia Create videos using Echo360 Universal Capture or Panopto
Interactive Content Make interactive content using Camtasia, PowerPoint, Articulate, or Panopto
Webinar Use Zoom
Slides, Documents, Quiz Questions Use Google Drive or Box. Embed OERs. Link textbook material using course cartridges provided by your textbook provider

Showcasing 3 Well-designed Blackboard Courses (1 hour)

Real Engagement: Tips on Effective Use of Discussion Boards (52 min) | Alan Schwartz, director and faculty member for UIC’s online Master of Health Professions Education

Using Blackboard Annotate to Effectively Grade Online Students (43 min) | Jamie Chriqui from the UIC School of Public Health’s Division of Health Policy and Administration

Are Your Courses Exemplary?