Technology and Resources | Education Technology

Faculty technology resources and documentation are listed on this page. Contact the Education Technology and Interactive Media Office team by email at eto@framingham.edu or call 508-626-4927 if you are interested in using any of the tools listed below or are experiencing a technical problem.

Academic Technology Resources

Blackboard Learn

Blackboard Collaborate

Respondus LockDown Browser

General Technology Resources

Percusion

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(learning management system connects students and faculty to courses online)

What's New in Blackboard

May 2015 Blackboard Upgrade

The Framingham State University Blackboard system will be unavailable May 14th and 15th while the system is upgraded to the latest version, Learn 2014. These upgrades focus on fixing bugs and enhancing existing features, so will not introduce any significant changes to the way the system currently looks and functions. The upgrade will also introduce a few new tools for faculty, including the ability to preview courses from a student’s point of view with just one click. To learn more about these exciting new and improved features, continue reading below or consider attending one of our upcoming workshops.

May 2015 Blackboard Upgrade Highlights & Features

Portfolio Improvements:
Portfolios are now accessed from the Blackboard Home Page and have a new authoring canvas. Faculty will experience a tighter integration with the course, including an option to issue Portfolio Assignments. Learn More
Calendar:
Individuals have more control over the Calendar format and display settings, including the ability ti display a consolidated calendar of events. Learn More
Student Preview:
Instructors may view any of their courses as a student with just one click. Learn More
Significant Figures:
Istructors will now be able to define significant figures for calculated forumla-type test questions. Learn More
Video Everywhere:
Blackboard Learn has integrated with OAuth 2.0. With this update users are able to record and upload videos more easily and with fewer authentication issues. Learn More
Blackboard Collaborate Launcher:
The Blackboard Collaborate Launcher provides a convenient and reliable way to launch blackboard Collaborate web conferencing sessions and recordings. Using Blackboard Collaborate will require far fewer steps for first time users. Learn More
Annonymous Grading:
Instructors can hide student names from submitted assignments for anonymous grading. Learn More
Delegated Grading:
Multiple graders may be assigned to grade your assignments to eliminate bias. Instructors can allow students to see feedback from more than one grader. Learn More
My Grades:
The look and feel of the student My Grades (gradebook) tool has been updated. Students may now view feedback by clicking a “View Feedback” button. Learn More
SafeAssign Integration:
The SafeAssign plagiarism checking service is now integrated into the standard file submission Assignments tool. The existing SafeAssign tool will continue to be available. Learn More

Is your course Blackboard ready?

Use these quick links:

Blackboard Support

Need more help? Visit the Blackboard Learn for Instructors support page or contact the Education Technology Office by email eto@framingham.edu, phone 508 626-4927, or walk-in HHG05, G09.

Navigating Your Course

Navigating:

Building Your Course

Personalizing Your Course

Communicating with Your Students

Creating Collaboration in Your Course

Assessing Your Students

Getting Started with Assignments (PDF)
Downloading Assignments for Grading
Using SafeAssign (Plagiarism Detection Software)
Creating a Rubric
Associate a Rubric with a Gradable Item
Creating a Test (or Survey)
Review Survey Submissions
Importing a Test or Survey
Getting Started with the Grade Center (PDF)
More Help Resources

Course Copy

To copy course material from a previous semester into the new course shell, follow the steps below. Have your new course ID ready (for example: F12.EDUC.987).

Begin from the Control Panel of the old course:

Select Packages and Utilities from the Control Panel
Choose Copy Course Materials into an Existing Course from the drop down menu
Enter the course ID of the new semester course (example: S15.EDUC.987C0A)
Select the content you wish to copy (Check all that apply)
Click Submit to copy your course content to your new course shell.
Remember to remove all of the old discussion forum posts from previous students, blog entries, and wiki details before you make the course available to your new students.

Making your Course Available to Students

If possible, try to make your course (especially online courses) available to students approximately two weeks before the beginning of the semester. The only items that need to be available to them right away is your syllabus and a welcome announcement. To make your course available:

Go to your course’s Control Panel, select Customization and then click Properties.
In the Set Availability section, click Yes.
Click Submit to make your course immediately available to students.

Merge Course Sections

If you want to merge courses, send a message to daymergecourses@framingham.edu with the course IDs.

Password Reset

If you or your students are having trouble accessing Blackboard or myFramingham, have them complete the following steps:

Go to http://password.framingham.edu.
Select the Reset Expired or Forgotten Password link and follow the instructions.

(platform designed specifically for web conferencing for faculty and students, allowing for real-time audio and visual communication)

Here you will find a wealth of resource to guide you when Moderating a Blackboard Collaborate session. If you are new to Blackboard Collaborate, it’s generally a best practice to create a practice session before you use the tool in your course.

What's New:

Moderator Guides:

Moderator Tools:

(app allows easy navigation of Blackboard on any device)

Framingham State University licensed the Blackboard Mobile™ Learn platform to give students and faculty access to their courses, content and organizations on a variety of devices including iPhone®, iPod touch®, iPad®, Android™, BlackBerry®, and Palm® smartphones. Anywhere, anytime access is a major benefit of the service.

Learn more …

New: Blackboard Grader app

(video sharing platform for lecture recording, screencasting and video streaming)

Panopto is the Lecture Capture solution we adopted in 2014. Students access recordings are through your Blackboard courses. If you are interested in using the Panopto recorder, email eto@framingham.edu. Below you will find resources for creating recordings and making them accessible to students.
Guides and Resources:

System Requirements and Install Instructions For Mac , For PC
Using the Panopto Recorder
Editing Panopto Recordings
Accessibility Features
Taking Notes in Panopto
Panopto app on Android, iPad and iPhone

(e-portfolio and assessment management web application)

LiveText is an Assessment and Portfolio tool accessible from your Blackboard course or by visiting https://www.livetext.com/. Below you will find faculty resources for using LiveText.

Registration:

(online resource for software and technology training tutorials)

Atomic Learning on-demand video tutorials provide faculty, students and staff with access to over 130 common applications and technology resources including Blackboard Learn, Windows 7, Podcast, Photoshop, iMovie, Office 2010, iPad training and many more.

Log in to Atomic Learning from https://framingham.blackboard.com to stay current with the latest technology applications and get answers to your common “how to” questions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – at your own pace. Give it a try! (Firefox is the preferred browser.)

(audience response solutions)

Below you will find resources for using Turning Technology Clickers or Mobile (ResponseWare) in your course.

Coming Soon

(helps prevent cheating in Blackboard by restricting students' access to other online materials while taking quizzes and exams)

Respondus Lock Down Browser is a custom browser that locks down the testing environment within Blackboard. Students are required to download software before the assessment is taken Learn more.

Begin by viewing the Respondus LockDown Browser Faculty Quick Start guide.
For more information please contact Education Technology and Interactive Media Office at eto@framingham.edu

Content Contributor Documentation