{"id":1204,"date":"2018-03-09T09:20:47","date_gmt":"2018-03-09T15:20:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.msudenver.edu\/sips\/?p=1204"},"modified":"2019-09-10T17:17:36","modified_gmt":"2019-09-10T23:17:36","slug":"sip-7-8-creating-comfortable-relationships-with-blackboard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.msudenver.edu\/sips\/sip-7-8-creating-comfortable-relationships-with-blackboard\/","title":{"rendered":"SIP 7.8 Creating Comfortable Relationships with Blackboard"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Many of us\u00a0<\/span><\/span>earned\u00a0<\/span><\/span>our degrees\u00a0<\/span><\/span>B.G. (Before Google),<\/span><\/span>\u00a0when computers served the function of word processors rather than a gateway to infinite amounts of information<\/span><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Now technology and the internet ha<\/span><\/span>ve<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>opened up<\/span><\/span>\u00a0new and different ways to teach, including online\u00a0<\/span><\/span>education<\/span><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>H<\/span><\/span>igher education\u00a0<\/span><\/span>and K -12 settings are both seeing a<\/span><\/span>\u00a0sharp increase in\u00a0<\/span><\/span>the adoption of online\u00a0<\/span><\/span>courses<\/span><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Ac<\/span><\/span>cording to a new report\u00a0<\/span><\/span>from\u202f<\/span><\/span>Digital Learning Compass<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0(<\/span><\/span>http:\/\/digitallearningcompass.org\/),<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>over<\/span><\/span>\u00a06 million students took at least one online course in 2015, representing more than a quarter (29.7 percent) of all higher education enrollments that year<\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span>\u202f<\/span><\/span>\u00a0With\u00a0<\/span><\/span>an increase in<\/span><\/span>\u00a0online classes being offered, more students are enrolling in these courses<\/span><\/span>, but not all of them will be comfortable or familiar with the learning management system\u00a0<\/span><\/span>used here<\/span><\/span>\u00a0at MSU\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Denver<\/span><\/span>:<\/span><\/span>\u00a0 Blackboard<\/span><\/span>\u00a0Learn<\/span><\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Take a SIP of This: Creating Comfortable Relationships with Blackboard<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The first step to helping your students develop a comfortable relationship with Blackboard is\u00a0to\u00a0understand or experience\u00a0online instruction from a student’s\u00a0point of view.\u00a0\u00a0Most of us have probably taught an online course, but few of us have\u00a0actually taken\u00a0a course online.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0When you\u00a0teach an online course, you become intimately familiar with the layout.\u00a0 You know where everything is and how to access it.\u00a0 The class makes perfect sense to you. However, for an\u00a0outsider,\u00a0your course may appear to be\u00a0a complicated\u00a0and\u00a0irregular network of passages\u00a0that\u00a0is difficult\u00a0to understand and navigate.\u00a0\u00a0For this reason, it\u00a0is a\u00a0good idea to take an online course\u00a0(and get those professional development bonus points!)\u00a0or at the very least, look at some of your\u00a0colleagues\u2019\u00a0courses.\u00a0 This will give you a sense of what it is like to try to navigate unfamiliar\u00a0layouts.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Other suggestions for helping students become more comfortable:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n