Blackboard offers a variety of features which grow with each upgrade. Many staff only use Blackboard to the extent of uploading their material and making their course available. Often “real life” then gets in the way and despite noble intentions time is not always found to explore some of the other features which could greatly enhance a course. As more and more features are added it can be hard to keep up and get a feel for “what’s possible”.
We thought it may be useful to provide a summary of features that some staff may not have used or even have been aware of before and show a list of useful features that do not involve simply adding content items, folders, and announcements. Each feature listed has a link to our step by step guide on how to use it.
We have also added a column to indicate which of these features you can use right now, and which features ought to be considered at a teaching team, academic unit, or faculty level before implementation, in order to offer students a consistent and congruent experience.
Let us know your feedback, things we’ve missed, and tips for improvement in the comments.