Academic Technologies

Academic Technologies from IT Services

Blackboard Learn

UAA uses the Blackboard Learning Management System (LMS) to house course contents on the web. Users, courses, and enrollments are synchronized every day starting eight weeks before the first day of classes. Users use their UAA username and password to gain access to course contents and settings. Instructors can deliver curriculum to students online.

Students

Students will find out from their instructor whether the course will use Blackboard. Students might use Blackboard to download materials, upload assignments, collaborate with others, take tests, and view grades. Student resources are available via the online Technology Knowledge Base . Students can contact the UAA Service Center for assistance or difficulties using Blackboard.

Faculty

Faculty can use Blackboard to host their courses online. The core features used are generally emailing the class members, course handouts, discussion boards, graded assignments and online quizzes. Putting your course online allows students to learn anywhere and have ready access to course materials.

Faculty can make template courses that can be copied to all of their sections. Faculty can "stack" sections combining all there students for a particular level of course into a single Blackboard shell. Faculty can add and remove instructors, teaching assistants, graders, and other students to their online courses.

Faculty can call the Service Center for technical support using Blackboard. Additionally, Academic Innovation & eLearning provides support for instructional technologies and methodologies. Also see the faculty resources page.

Blackboard Collaborate

Blackboard Collaborate (formerly eLive) is an online collaboration tool that can be used by instructors to offer online, blended, and mobile learning. Instructors can use this tool as a meeting space to engage online students in real time discussion, use for online office hours, provide a space for students to collaborate, and open their virtual classroom to guest speakers. Some instructors use the tool to record lectures. Blackboard Collaborate is available for use from within your Blackboard course tools.

  • Getting Started with Blackboard Collaborate

Qualtrics Research Suite

UAA uses the Qualtrics Research Suite to provide unlimited surveys and survey responses to all staff, faculty, and students. Qualtrics includes full report building capabilities and collaboration tools. To learn more or to start using Qualtrics go to http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/surveys/.