Tutorials and Tip Sheets

Table of Contents

These free self-study materials were developed by Blackboard's Learning Services team to encourage faculty use of the Blackboard e-Education Suite. They supplement the official Instructor Manual and Administrator User's Guide. If you have suggestions for additional materials, please email learningservices@blackboard.com.

About Animated Tutorials…
The Animated Tutorials take you through each step of a specific course-building task. To watch the tutorial now, click on the link. Please note they require the Flash Player plug-in.
Get the Flash plug-in

About Tip Sheets…
Tip sheets cover a variety of topics, from best practices advice to quick reference guides for specific tasks. Tip sheets are available in PDF format.

Announcements [Back to top]

Creating an Announcement (Flash 250 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how to create an announcement in a Blackboard Learning System (Release 6), course Web site.

Assignments [Back to top]

Creating an Assignment Tip Sheet (PDF 174 KB)
Ways on creating creating, reviewing, and grading assignments are all available in this tip sheet.

Creating an Assignment (Flash 291 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how to create an Assignment in a Blackboard Learning System (Release 6) course Web site.

Completing and Submitting an Assignment (Flash 307 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn students complete and submit an Assignment in a Blackboard Learning System (Release 6) course Web site.

Grading an Assignment (Flash 339 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how to retrieve and grade an Assignment in a Blackboard Learning System (Release 6) course Web site.

Course Development [Back to top]

Where do I start? 10 steps to taking your course online (Word 49 KB)

Instructional Design Tips (Word 53 KB)

Getting Started in Your Release 6 Course (PDF 147 KB)
This tip sheet was designed for students who have never used Blackboard before.

Modifying your Course Design (Flash 409 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how add a course banner and customize your Course Menu.

Course Roles (PDF 232 KB)
This tip sheet defines the privileges associated with each Course Role in Blackboard. Familiarity with these privileges is useful for Instructors who have TAs, Graders, or student assistants.

Building a Learning Unit (Flash 1,000 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how to build a Learning Unit, which encourages your students to view content in a specific, predetermined order.

Field Lengths (PDF 20 KB)
This tip sheet lists all of the text fields in Blackboard, and the number of characters you can input into each one.

Communication and Collaboration Tools [Back to top]

Eight ways to get students more engaged in online conferences (Word 43 KB)

Creating and Managing Groups (Flash 413 KB)
In this tutorial, you will learn how to create and manage a collaborative group in a Blackboard Learning System (Release 6) course Web site.

Creating a Discussion Forum (Flash 420 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how to create a Discussion Forum, and modify Forum and User Settings in a Blackboard Learning System (Release 6), course Web site.

Archiving Discussion Board Threads (Flash 746 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how to create an archive, move threads to an archive, release threads and remove archives in a Blackboard Learning System (Release 6) course Web site.

Working with Discussion Board Options (Flash 859 KB)
In this animated tutorial, you will learn how to access and utilize the Discussion Board options.

Digital Drop Box [Back to top]

Digital Drop Box (PDF 56 KB)
Provides the ins and outs of the Digital Drop Box. You and your students will find this tip sheet to be a valuable resource.

Digital Drop Box vs. Assignments (PDF 69 KB)
In this tip sheet, you will learn how the Assignment content type varies from the Digital Drop Box, and review some scenarios where one tool is more appropriate than another.

Gradebook [Back to top]

Creating Quarterly Grades (PDF 125 KB)
Modify your Gradebook in Blackboard Release 6 and create grades by the Quarter. This tip sheet shows you how!

Gradebook Icons and Definitions (PDF 147 KB)
This tip sheet will teach you how to interpret the Gradebook Icons to ensure an easy grading process in Blackboard 6.

Weighting Grades by Category or Item (PDF 165 KB)
The Release 6 Gradebook contains a grade weighting feature that allows an instructor to determine how the software calculates the final grade for a student. There are two options: Weight by Item and Weight by Category...

Gradebook Weighting by Category (PDF 144 KB)
This tip sheet walks you through considerations and tasks for implementing accurate grade weighting.