back to FAQs About CSUEB BB

A. 1) Go to your course
2) Click “Control Panel”
3) Click “Settings”
4) Click “Course Availability”
5) Click “Yes” and Submit   back to questions

A. Login to your course, click on Control Panel, Settings, Course Availability, Yes to Make Course Available, and click on the Submit button.    back to questions

A. If a new section is created for your class, a Blackboard course shell populated with students will be generated within 24 hours of the time that the new section is entered in the SAIL database. When the new section is ready, it will appear in both faculty and student “My Courses” modules.     back to questions

A. Instructors are automatically assigned in courses in which they are the instructor of record on SAIL. If you know you are teaching a course and it does not appear in your Blackboard list, contact your department office and verify you are listed in SAIL as the instructor of the course. You may need to be added as an instructor by your department administrative staff.  If you need additional assistance, call the Instructional Technology Service Center at 510-885-4872 or send an e-mail to bbhelp@csueastbay.   back to questions

A. If you need to be added as a Leader in an organization, call the CSUEB Computing Help Desk at (510) 885-4357 during business hours, 8 AM to 4 PM, Monday - Friday, closed Saturday, Sunday, and holidays or send an e-mail to helpdesk@csueastbay.edu   back to questions

A. The process of adding users to a course site is totally automated so the individual faculty is not able to add users. Once the student has been added in the SAIL program, it takes 24 - 48 hours excluding weekends for them to appear on your course roster in Blackboard.

This means it is extremely important that adding users from the Waitlist or Open University is done immediately since the student will not have access to the discussion forums or any other secure areas on your course site until they have been added through the SAIL system.   back to questions

A. 1) Go to your course
2) Click “Control Panel”
3) Click “List/Modify Users”
4) Click the “Search” button once.
5) All users enrolled in your course (including instructors) will show up in a list.

You can print this list off or copy and paste it into another application. If the course has more than 25 students it will be necessary to view the course roster in pages. You can select the page to view at the bottom of the screen.  back to questions

A. To add content to your course site first select the course you want to work in. This will place you in your course site. Now select "Control Panel" from the list on the left side of the screen. At the "Control Panel" screen, select "Manage Course Menu". Click on "Content Area". Select an area name by clicking on the down arrow or type in a name in the field below the down area. To make it available to students, check the box next to "Make available for Student/Participant users", and click "Submit".

For example, to add an Assignment area/button, select "Assignments", check the box next to "Make available for Student/Participant users" and click "Submit". To add content to the "Assignments" area, click on "Assignments" under Content Areas in the Control Panel, click "Item", select a "Name" or type one in, type or copy/paste information in the Text box, and click "Submit".

You must make the additional buttons and the information under those buttons available to your students. See the question below for how to make additional buttons available.   back to questions

A. From the Control Panel, select "Manage Course Menu". This will take you to a list of areas to post material in or that you have already posted material. To add other buttons, including the "Assignments" button, click on "Manage Course Menu", go to the top of the screen and click on Add "Content Area", select one from the drop down menu or type in text under "Area Name", check the box next to "Make available for Student/Participant users", and click Submit. The new button (function) now displays and can be edited. Under "Content Areas" in the Control Panel, click on the area and upload your files or add content. To edit the settings for an existing button that does not display (This item is currently unavailable.) click the "Modify" button next to the area. Click "Make available for Student/Participant users" and "Submit" . This means that the button for that area will appear on your course website.  back to questions

A. This usually happens when the areas you posted the material in (represented by buttons called Assignments, Course Material, Course Documents, etc.) are not made available. To remedy this:

1) Go to your course
2) Click "Control Panel"
3) Click "Manage Course Menu"
4) Click the "Modify" button next to the area you posted material in.
5) Click "Make available for Student/Participant users". This means that the button for that area will appear on your course website.
6) Click "Submit"   back to questions

A. There are two options.
#1 Option: Use the Course Copy feature in the instructor's Control Panel

Please proceed with caution and read all the screens and follow these and on-screen directions carefully. If you have any questions, call Bernie Salvador at x2562 or the ITSC at x4872 before proceeding.

1) Go to the course that already contains the original content you are going to copy.
2) Click on "Control Panel" and "Course Copy".
3) Click "Copy Course Materials into an Existing Course"
4) Type in the "Destination Course ID" or click on "Browse" button, click on "Instructor", and type in your instructor name. Click "Search", locate the course you want the content copied into, and click "Select" button.
5) Select the areas to copy: Announcements, Assessments and Pools, Gradebook, Calendar, Categorical Information, Content, Discussion Board, Users and Groups, Settings, Staff Information
6) Click “Submit”
7) You will see a message: This course copy action has been successfully queued. You will receive an email when the process has been completed.
8) Check your email for confirmation of the course copy.

#2 Option: Send an  Email "bbhelp@csueastbay"  and request a “Course Copy.” You need to provide the number of the Source course (the course that contains the material you want us to copy) and the Destination course (the course you want the copied material to end up). We can copy Content, Users and Groups, Assessments and Pools, and Discussion Boards.  back to questions

A. 1) Click “Add Item”
2) Fill in the Name of an assignment, choose an item type, and assign points
3) Click Submit

After the first item is added, your students will appear in the Grade book Spreadsheet view.  back to questions

A. To set up a test do the following

• Go to the Assessment section of the Control Panel.
• Select the Assessment Manager.
• Select the type of assessment you want to create (Add Quiz/Exam or Add Survey)
  • Quiz/Text: these assessments are graded
  • Survey: these assessments are not graded
• Enter a name for the assessment.
• Enter a short description of the assessment.
• Click on Submit.
• Enter a set of instructions for the students.
• Click on Submit.
• Begin entering the questions. Questions can be Fill in the Blank; True/False; Matching; Multiple Choice or from a pool of questions you have previously created.
• Enter the question, the answer choices and any feedback comments.
• Make the selection to either Preview the assessment; Add New Question or Cancel that entry.

Once the test is created you can set the parameters for accessing the assessment. These can be

• Limit the time a student has to take the assessment
• Require a student to enter a password
• Limit the days of availability

Students cannot see other students' assessment results; they cannot re-enter the assessment unless you give them access.   back to questions

A. Your Grade book is not created until one of two things happens. First, if you create an online assessment or survey, a Grade book is automatically created and it is populated by the students registered in your class. Second, if you want to include assessments from outside of Blackboard in your Grade book you must manually enter these assessments. The steps to do this are:

• Go to the the Assessment section of the Control Panel and select Online Grade book.
• From the list of options select the Spreadsheet View option.
• Click on the Add Item button.
• Enter the information requested:
  1. Name of the assessment
  2. Type of assessment. Options include Assignment, Paper, Exam, Project and Extra Credit.
  3. Indicate the number of points the item is worth.
  4. Indicate whether you want to make the item visible now or not.
• Click on the submit button.

A. If a student’s connection is interrupted, his/her test will be recorded as being taken and will not allow the student to re-take the test until the prior attempt has been cleared. You can clear their attempt by following the instructions below, so that they can retake it.

When logged in and in your course:

1) Click “Control Panel”
2) Click “Online Grade book”
3) Click “Spreadsheet View”
4) Find the test that needs to be cleared on the spreadsheet, click on the icon that appears in the cell. This takes you to the student’s test page.
5) Click the “Clear Attempt” button located at the top right of the page. 

Inform the student that s/he can re-take the test.  back to questions

Q. What is a survey and how is it different from an assessment?

A. Blackboard’s survey tool is very handy for conducting periodical “how’s it going” polls of your class. Surveys and assessments are created with the same tools, just a different starting point (Add Quiz/Exam vs. Add Survey) in instructor’s control panel. The important difference between a survey and an assessment is that a survey is anonymous and an assessment is not, which makes the survey a great tool for getting honest feedback about your course from students. The only tracking available for surveys is via the Online Gradebook. Instructors can see who took the survey, but not any individual student’s answers. Answers are compiled and reported in percentages.   back to questions

Q. I have added information to my course site but it is not in the right order. How do I rearrange the information?

A. When you access the information from the Control Panel, there is a number listed to the left of each individual item. Those numbers are listed in a drop down box. To rearrange the order of the information, use the drop down box and select the number associated with the final order of the item. This action will not affect items higher up on the list but will move all later items in the list down one number. To effectively rearrange things you should start with the smallest number being effected and move down in the order.   back to questions

A. When you add content to your course site you have several options that can control student access to the material (The one exception is the Discussion Board area.). One option is to make the buttons available or unavailable to students. To do this, go to the Control Panel, select Manage Course Menu, click on Modify, go to Set Area Properties and check or uncheck the box next to Make available for Student/Participant users. If you uncheck the box, the button is not made available to the student. To make the button available to students you must check the box. Another option is to make the specific content that is listed under each button visible or not visible. You answer Yes or No to the question, Do you want to make the assignment visible?. A third option is Availability Dates. This allows you to set the window of availability by setting the beginning and ending dates of availability.   back to questions

Q. I notice the Blackboard pages are missing items and things on the pages are not displaying properly when I click on them. What can I do?

A. There are software programs such as Norton Internet Security (N.I.S) and other similar software that have an ad-blocking feature that cause intermittent delay of loading frames/buttons and other display problems in Blackboard. Turn off the ad-blocking option and the pages should display properly and the missing items on the pages should be fully functional again.   back to questions

Q. Can I change the button names on the left side of the course page?

A. Yes, you can change the button names on the left side of the course page and also create new buttons with your own names. To change an existing button name, go to the Control Panel, select Manage Course Menu, click on the modify button, change the button name in Area Name, and click Submit.   back to questions

Q. Do I have to use all the buttons listed on the left side of the course page?

A. No, you don't need to use all the buttons listed on the left side of the course page. If you are not going to use a button during the course, it is recommended that you go to the Control Panel, select Manage Course Menu, click on Modify next to the course area (button) and uncheck the box next to Make available for Student/Participant users.   back to questions

Q. How do I create a Discussion Forum?

A. Click on the Control Panel button, go to the Course Tools section, click Discussion Board, and Add Forum button. Type a Title and Description. You can select options in Forum Settings to allow different ways for people to post, and select options in Forum User Settings to block or unblock people from posting. Click the Submit button.   back to questions

Q. How do I post documents in Blackboard?

A. You can upload a file or add an item that is linked to a URL. You can also upload your files using the Assignment feature. You can upload files as Attachments in several areas, including when you respond to a message in the Discussion Forum. You can upload a picture file in several areas, including under the Tools section in Edit Your Homepage.   back to questions

Q. How do I upload documents to my course site? How should I name my documents?

A. Files are uploaded to your course site through the Course Content areas in the Control Panel. When you select the "Add an Item" option you are given the option of loading files through the "Content Attachments" section. In this section you will do three things:

1. Browse your local PC for the file you want to upload.
2. Indicate a name you want associated with the file. It is recommended that you include in the name an indication of the file type such as adding in parenthesis the type. (Such as Word or Excel.)
3. Tell Blackboard how to process the action. In most cases you will choose the "Create a link to this file" option.

Any time you use text characters other than numbers and non-accented text characters in your document name, you are asking for trouble. Do not leave spaces in your file name; instead replace the spaces with an underscore or a dash. Do not use illegal characters.

Do not use the following Illegal filename characters:

spaces  \   /   :   ;   *   ?   "   <   >   |   %   ,   #   $   !   +   {   }   &   [   ]   •   '

Description of Illegal filename characters:

avoid spaces in filenames
\ (backslash)
/ (forward slash)
: (colon)
; (semi-colon)
* (asterisk)
? (question mark)
" (double quotes)
< (left angle bracket)
> (right angle bracket)
| (pipe)
% (percent)
, (comma)
# (pound or number)
$ (dollar)
! (exclamation)
+ (plus)
{ ( left bracket)
} ( right bracket)
& (ampersand)
[ ( left square bracket)
] ( right square bracket)
• (bullet = ASCII #149)
'  (apostrophe)

It is recommended that if you are creating a link to a file, that you include the .dot extension in the file name (Example: Syllabus.doc). This will tell Blackboard what application to open the file into when the file is being accessed.   back to questions

Q. What kinds of documents can I transfer, download, or print?

A. The documents can be HTML, graphic files, or application types such as MS-Word, MS-Powerpoint, or MS-Excel.   back to questions

Q. How do I get my syllabus on my Blackboard course site?

A. If you have your syllabus online in another location, you can add a link to that location on the Syllabus page. The Syllabus page is accessed through the Control Panel. If you have your syllabus in a Word document, you can either create a link to that file or you can copy and paste the document into the Syllabus text window. If this is the first time your syllabus will be online, you can enter the different areas of your syllabus as separate items. The Faculty Development Department has an example of a detailed online syllabus for use with Blackboard if you are interested.   back to questions

Q. How do I post documents for all my students to access?

A. It is recommended that you post documents for all your students to access in the Course Documents area. Click on the Control Panel button, go to the Content Areas section, click Course Documents, and Add Item button. Type a Name and Text to describe the document. Click the Submit button.   back to questions

Q. How do I upload documents for my students using Assignments?

A. Click on the Control Panel button, select the course content area, for example, Course Documents, click on the down arrow to get the dropdown list, select Assignment, and click on the Go button. Type in the Name of the assignment, Points Possible, and Instructions. Click Yes if you want to make the assignment visible. Click on the Browse button, select the document and then click the Submit button. Your students can get the document when they login to the course and access the course content area, for example, Course Documents.  back to questions

Q. How do I get a graphic on the Announcements or Faculty Information page?

A. To add a graphic on the Announcements page, go to the Control Panel and click on Settings in the Course Options Section. Then click on Course Design and Course Banner. You are prompted for the location of the file containing the graphic. After locating the file, upload it. The graphic will appear across the top of the Announcements page. To include a graphic in a specific announcement, include the link to the graphic in your announcement text window and select the html option for the announcement.

To add a graphic on the Faculty Information page, go to the Control Panel and select the Faculty Information option. Enter the "Add Profile" section and there is an option to include a photo on your Faculty Information page. Enter the location of the file containing the graphic. It is recommended that you make the picture 150 by 150 pixels. The ITSC staff can assist you in converting photos to digital formats. To include other graphics, include the link to the graphic in your text description window and select the html option.   back to questions

Q. How can I use documents in more than one class?

A. If you have documents that you want to use in more than one class, the easiest way to do that is to place the documents in "My Online Storage, give permission to the users to read the documents, and then place a link in your Blackboard courses to the documents.  back to questions

Q. What is a linked file?

A. When you upload a file you are given an option to Create a link to this file. When you select this option, the file is copied from your computer and placed on the Blackboard server. It then creates a link to that file, which is stored in the secure area of the server. Students do not have access to the actual file but instead access a copy of the file. Also if you edit the file on your local machine, those changes are not automatically applied to the file on Blackboard, you must upload the file each time you modify it.   back to questions

Q. How can I include PowerPoint presentations in my course site?

A. There are three ways to include PowerPoint presentations in your course site. They are:

1. Simply upload the PowerPoint file (include the .ppt extension).
2. Convert the presentation to HTML.
3. Use the "Unpackage these Files" option.

The first way requires the user to either have the PowerPoint application or viewer installed on their machine in order to view the file. The second way is to save the PowerPoint file as HTML. See the Unpackage These Files tutorial for additional details in using this option.   back to questions

Q. How do I include video or audio information in my course site?

A. To include video or audio information in your course site it is recommended that you contact Faculty and Digital Video Production Services for assistance and suggestions in getting started. That department can be reached at (510) 885-2595.   back to questions

Q. How do I enable the Digital Drop Box?

A. It is recommended you use the new Assignments feature instead of the Digital Drop Box, however, if you prefer to use the Digital Drop Box, here are the instructions to enable it in for students to access (Bb Version 6.1.5.5). Contact Bernie Salvador in Faculty Development at (510) 885-2562 for further assistance in using these features.

1) Click the Control Panel button
2) Click “Manage Tools” under Course Options
3) Click Tool Availability.
4) Scroll down until you see "Dropbox" on the right side.
5) Check the Available box on the left side of "Dropbox".
6) Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click "Submit" button.
7) Return to the Control Panel.
8) Click on "Manage Course Menu" under Course Options.
9) Locate "Tools" in the first column.
10) On the right side of "Tools", click on "Modify".
11) Scroll down and locate "Digital Drop Box" in the first column.
12) Click "Available". Scroll down and click "Submit" button.  back to questions

Q. How can I batch delete documents in the Digital Drop Box, instead of deleting them one at a time?

A. If you have a lot of documents in the Digital Drop Box, you can use a bookmarklet to batch delete all of them instead of removing the files individually. A bookmarklet is a tiny piece of javascript code that can be placed in your Favorites, Bookmarks or Links in your internet browser. Contact Bernie Salvador in Faculty Development at (510) 885-2562 for the program, installing it and procedures.    back to questions

A. Click on the "Update BB E-mail" tab. Click on the link. Then complete and submit the form to update your e-mail address. The update may take up to 6-18 hours to be reflected in Blackboard. The update process occurs three times a day, Monday through Friday. No updates are processed on the weekends.  back to questions

Q. How do I set up my course e-mail list? How do I send e-mail to my entire class?

A. There is nothing special you need to do to use e-mail in your Blackboard course. If you select the Communication button and then select the Send E-mail option you will see a list of e-mail options. You can select specific students to send e-mail or you can select to send you e-mail message to the entire class.   back to questions

Q. I don't receive e-mails sent to me through the Blackboard system. What's wrong?

A. Blackboard puts e-mail addresses in the "BCC:" (blind carbon copy) field, not the "TO:" field, in order to protect the privacy of e-mail addresses. Some free e-mail account providers consider e-mail sent from the Blackboard system as "junk mail" or they are deleted immediately.

The safest way to reconfigure mail is to turn off junk mail or filtering in your mail options. That way you will be able to manually delete the real junk mail that appears in your inbox folder.   back to questions

Q. How do I delete students from my course site?

A. The process of deleting students from a course site is totally automated so individual faculty are not able to delete students. Until students are dropped through the SAIL system they will remain on your course roster in Blackboard.   back to questions

Q. How do I request a student roster for my course?

A. It is no longer necessary to request a student roster because student enrollment in your course is automatic. The Bb system automatically enrolls students after the regular CSUEB system registration takes place. Blackboard will not enroll a student in the class until the student is ENROLLED on SAIL. Please allow up to 2 business days for your enrolled students to be added to the student roster in Bb.   back to questions

Q. How does the student roster for my course get updated?

A. There are regular updates to the student roster for your course through the last day to add or drop your course. The updated student roster is received from the Data Warehouse within 2 business days from the day the student has registered.   back to questions

Q. How do I add a student individually?

A. Check your roster in the Blackboard system before sending a request to add students individually because the students may already be enrolled in your course. The Bb system automatically enrolls students after the regular CSUEB system registration takes place. Blackboard will not enroll a student in the class until the student is ENROLLED on SAIL. Please allow up to 2 business days for your enrolled students to be added to the student roster in Bb. If the student registered at Contra Costa, there is a slight delay in enrollment due to additional processing time required. Open University students are added automatically to Bb after they get permission from their instructor to take the course and pay their fees.

If the student is not included in your Bb course roster and it has been more than 2 days since the student ENROLLED on SAIL, send a request to bbhelp@csueastbay. Also, if you need a student assigned a role of Teacher Assistant (T.A.), Grader, or Course builder, send a request to bbhelp@csueastbay.    back to questions

Q. How do I un-enroll a student?

A. Students don't get un-enrolled automatically from the course when they drop it; instead the Bb system automatically disables students in your course after the student is Dropped from the course in the regular CSUEB system.   back to questions

Q. Are waitlisted students listed on my Blackboard course roster?

A. No, students who are waitlisted will not be listed on your Blackboard course roster. They will only be listed in Blackboard once they are enrolled in SAIL. It may take up to 2 business days before waitlisted students appear on the Blackboard roster.   back to questions

Q. I like to separate my class into project groups. How can I use Blackboard to facilitate the use of groups in my class?

A. Blackboard gives the instructor the ability to divide their class into groups and to let each group have a separate discussion area, area to post documents and access to individual documents. To set up a group go to the Control Panel and select the Manage Groups option. From here you can create groups, populate groups and determine which features will be available to the individual groups.   back to questions

Q. How do I allow guests to access my course?

A. Click on the Control Panel button, go to the Settings section, click Guest Access. Click Yes to make the course available to guests and click the Submit button. Guests are not allowed to access secured areas and tools. The next step is to allow guest access to course content. You can also restrict guest access to specific areas of your course by not checking the boxes to allow guest access. Click on the Control Panel button, click on Manage Course Menu, select the specific area (button), check the box next to Allow guest access and click Submit.   back to questions

Q. How do I login as a guest to another course?

A. If you are a guest,
1) Click on "Guest Access to Courses" Tab (or Click on "Guest Access to Organizations & Clubs" Tab)
2) Type the Course (or Organization) ID or name, or Instructor name, under
"Course Search" (or "Organization Search") and click GO!
3) Click the "Preview" button on the right side of the course (or Organization)
name.
Keep in mind that only the portion of courses or organizations that has been made public will be accessible through guest access..   back to questions

Q. How do I customize the "My CSUEB" page to include special modules such as Career Development Center, New York Times, and Time Magazine?

A. In the upper right hand corner of your "My CSUEB" page are two buttons. The first is Content and the second is Layout. Clicking on the Content button lets you customize your page by choosing additional modules to display. Modules preceded by an asterisk must be displayed on the page: all other modules can be removed. The Layout button lets you determine where on the page a module will display and the theme used in your modules.  back to questions

A. The first step is to create a Turnitin assignment in your Bb course and then you can use Turnitin to check for originality. (Otherwise you will get an error message.) Click on this link:  http://CSUEBbb.csueastbay/bbfaqs/tii_blackboardlite1.pdf  to get the instructions provided by the Turnitin technical staff. Follow all the steps to add an assignment, submit papers, view results, and the last part includes logging into Turnitin to view submitted assignments in Bb.

A. To see the Early Alert Demo (Flash) demo, click on this link http://CSUEBbb.csueastbay/bbfaqs/early_alert_viewlet_swf.html. To see the Early Alert FAQs, click on this link Early Alert System FAQs.   back to questions