Blackboard Tips and FAQ for OISE Instructors

Getting the most out of Blackboard

If you need assistance with any of the Blackboard 9.1 fixes, please do not hesitate to contact us - portal@oise.utoronto.ca.  Just indicate your course ID and the location of any of your files you are having difficulty with.

Current issues with Blackboard as a result of the version 9.1 upgrade in May

As of June 1st, there are still a few outstanding issues that may affect your current course.  Any new courses or Fall 2011 courses may not be affected by these, as the Blackboard administrators are working on system wide fixes for these issues. 

The following 3 issues have been discovered by OISE faculty and may be affecting your current course (Spring or Summer session):

1. Some course files are no longer available and/or your students are indicating they cannot access some or all files in your course.
    
2. If you use "reusable objects" in the content collection, there may be an "Â" character showing up throughout your files/document.
    
3. The Performance Dashboard does not display student discussion posts (FIXED).

We have come up with the following fixes / work-around for these issues:

1. File permission errors

This process seems to repair the problem.

Step 1.
- Enter your course, in the Control Panel select "Packages and Utilities" and then "Move Files to Course Files".
- Check the box in Select Course, "Selecting this option will add all content in this course to Course Files."
- In the "Select Destination", leave as the default destination.
- Click Submit
- You should get a green status bar indicating Success, and you will receive an email when you can proceed.

 Step 2.
- In the Control Panel select "Packages and Utilities" and then "Check Course Links".
- Click "OK" to start the course link checker.
- Most files should have Valid Link icon , but if they have the Repairable permission error, check and repair.

2. Reusable Objects showing an "Â" character.

This affects only those instructors using the "reusable objects" in the content collection.  The A character has to do with an encoding issue.  To fix the file, you can insert some HTML into your reusable object.

Step 1.
- Locate the original reusable object file.  This will generally be saved in your Personal Content Collection, or one of the shared content collection folders.
- Click the double down arrow beside the reusable object and select "Overwrite Reusable Object Content".

Step 2.
- Click the Toggle HTML Source Mode button in the text editor.
- Scroll up in the text box to the top of the source code to enter a new line.
- Copy and Paste the following code:

- The code in your text box should look something like the example above.
- You are done editing the code. Click the blue Submit button.

It may append your reusable object file with ".html". This is ok, and will not affect the content in your file, nor the ability for your students to view the file contents.  This can be verified by going back into your course and viewing from where students would normally access it.

Fixed issues with Blackboard as a result of the version 9.1 upgrade in May

Performance Dashboard

An easy way for instructors to lookup Discussion Board posts of specific students is to use the link created in the Performance Dashboard.  Unfortunately, this results in time-out errors or does not load the page when clicked.  There is another way to view all of the entries by a specific student.

Enter the main discussion board area, or a specific forum that you which to lookup a particular student's posts.  Click the "Search" button, which is beside the Discover Content button.

In the search field, enter the student's full name in quotes.  For example, "Mary Smith".  Choose either the specific forum you are viewing, or all Forums, and then click the "Go" button.