Blackboard Information

FACULTY FAQ's

1. The semester is about to begin, what do I do?
2. How do I send an email?
3. How do I update the course menu?
4. How do I enable communications and email?
5. How do I post an announcement?
6. How do I post information about me?
7. How do I add a syllabus?
8. My students cannot see the class. How do I make it available?
9. How do I add or remove students from my class?
10. Why do the students listed in my Blackboard class not match my PeopleSoft class roster?
11. How to access my PeopleSoft class roster?
 

1. The semester is about to begin, what do I do?


The Office of Distance Learning or Instructional Support should be notified that you will be using Blackboard with your class.

FCC will create in Blackboard a shell for your fall course with the current class roster and your name as the instructor. There will be no content. You will be responsible for copying the content with one command from your old course into the new shell. Click here for instructions.
 

2. How do I send an email?


From Within a Course:
  • Click on the Communication or Email button.
  • Click on the Send E-mail link.
  • Choose the group or individual(s) to send email to.
  • Fill in Subject and Message fields.
  • Add Attachments if desired.
  • Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the Submit button

3. How do I update the course menu?

  • Click on "Manage Course Menu" in the Course Options section of the control panel.
  • Keep the first menu item "Announcements".
  • Click on "Modify" beside the second menu item labeled "Course Information."
  • Use the drop down menu to change the name of a menu item or Type in a name for the menu item in the text box if none of the options seems appropriate
  • Hit Submit or OK for any changes you make in Bb.


To hide a menu item from student view

Remove the check from "Available for Student/Participant users" for each menu item that you want to hide from student view once the course is available to student view.

4. How do I enable communications and email?

  • Click on "Manage Course Menu" in the Course Options section of the control panel.
  • Click on "Modify" beside the second menu item labeled "Communication."
  • Make unavailable all menu items that you will not be currently using.
    • Designate the Collaboration (the chat room), discussion board, group pages and roster unavailable unless you are ready to use these functions in Bb.
  • Make available the Messages
  • Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the Submit button

5. How do I post an announcement?


Click on "Announcements" in the Course Options section of the control panel.
Click on "Add Announcement."
Enter the announcement subject and message details.
Choose to always have the announcement appear by selecting Yes or leave No selected to have the message go to the 7-30 day messages after 7 days.
or Choose the date range to specify which dates the message should appear.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the Submit button

6. How do I post information about me?


Click on "Staff Information" in the Course Options section of the control panel.
To begin a new profile, Click on Add "Profile" to enter information regarding you, your title, office hours, background, etc.
Under Options, designate an image to be uploaded.
or
Choose Modify to update a pre-existing profile.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the Submit button

7. How do I add a syllabus?


Click on "Course Information" in the Content Areas section of the control panel.
Choose Add "Item". Choose "Syllabus" from the Name dropdown or choose "Add text below" and enter text of your choosing.
Enter or paste text in the text box for the syllabus content
or
Upload a document. Enter text into the "Name of Link to File" to specify the text the student will click on to access the syllabus.
Specify the availability of the syllabus.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the Submit button

8. My students cannot see the class. How do I make it available?


Once you have updated the course for the semester start, make the class available.
Click on "Settings" in the Course Options section of the control panel.
Click on "Course Availability".
Choose "yes" and click on the Submit button

9. How do I add or remove students from my class?


To add a student to your class
  • Click on "Enroll User" in the User Management section of the control panel.
  • Enter the student's last name and click the "search" button. If you are having trouble verifying the student, perhaps because of multiple students with the same name, verify the student's emplid listed on the PeopleSoft class roster . The PeopleSoft roster will help identify the student by providing their emplid. The student's Blackboard username will be a capital "W" followed by their emplid.

To remove a student from your class
  • Click on "Remove Users from Course" in the User Management section of the control panel.
  • Enter the student's last name and click the "search" button. If you are having trouble verifying the student perhaps because of multiple students with the same name, contact us.
  • Click the checkbox under Remove. Type the word "Yes" in the textbox. Click the Submit button.

10. Why do the students listed in my Blackboard class not match my PeopleSoft class roster?


FCC loads the Blackboard classes for each semester from PeopleSoft. This process begins after the last date to pay when students are dropped for non-payment. Students that register and subsequently drop after the expunging for non-payment up until one week after the semester start date may appear on your Blackboard roster. At this time Blackboard does not offer functionality to automatically remove these students from the Blackboard class. Therefore, it is necessary for you to compare the class roster in PeopleSoft with the students listed in Blackboard and the students that attend your class.

Additionally, after pre-registration the upload process from PeopleSoft to Blackboard happens weekly. During the week prior and after the semester start date, the upload process is run daily, Monday-Friday. Therefore, a student enrolled in PeopleSoft will not instantaneously be enrolled into Blackboard. For example, during the daily upload period a student registering for a class on Wednesday will not be loaded into the class until Thursday morning. You may add the student manually if necessary. Otherwise, they will be enrolled during the next upload.

Verify the students with access to your Blackboard class
  • Click on "List/Modify Users" in the User Management section of the control panel.
  • Click the "search" button. The students enrolled in your Blackboard class will be listed .

To add a student to your class
  • Click on "Enroll User" in the User Management section of the control panel.
  • Enter the student's last name and click the "search" button. If you are having trouble verifying the student, perhaps because of multiple students with the same name, verify the student's emplid listed on the PeopleSoft class roster. The PeopleSoft roster will help identify the student by providing their emplid. The student's Blackboard username will be a capital "W" followed by their emplid.

11. How to access my PeopleSoft class roster?


Log on to PeopleSoft (userid is All CAPITAL LETTERS)

Navigate to SA Self Service > Learning Management > Management > Access Class Rosters
or Choose "Access Class Rosters" from the Learning Management page, Management section

Select the term containing the roster for your class

Click the Course Title to view the roster for your class. The enrolled students appear.

To print the roster, Choose File > Print from the Internet Explorer browser. Click the "preference" button. Choose the "Basics" tab. Click the landscape button. Click "OK", then "Print".

Select "Dropped" in the Enrollment Status dropdown to see students who have dropped after the first week of classes.
 

Access the Class Roster Tip Sheet for more details.