Blackboard is a web-based course management system used to conduct a class entirely or partially online. Blackboard may also be used to supplement traditional classroom instruction with materials accessible over the Internet. Every Lehman College credit-bearing course section has a corresponding Blackboard course section ready to be used by the instructor.

The Department of Information Technology Resources, Professor Robert Whittaker of Languages and Literatures and Ursula Hoffmann, a retired faculty member in Languages and Literatures, (and maybe a few guests) are conducting four hands-on workshops on creating and maintaining Blackboard course content. Faculty and staff are invited to attend one or more of the sessions depending on their particular needs and interests.

Running concurrently with the workshops will be an online Blackboard course elaborating on the same topics covered in the hands-on sessions. The online class will expand on the topics covered in the workshops, introduce new topics and provide an opportunity to ask questions, obtain (and provide) assistance, and engage in discussions with colleagues.

The workshops will be conducted on the Windows platform.

Participants should be familiar with Blackboard, be able to add simple content to a Blackboard course (e.g. by entering an announcement in the text-entry box), have basic Microsoft Windows file management skills and be familiar with a word processor such as Microsoft Word. They should also bring along a zip cartridge on which to save their work.  All participants should register on the CUNY portal (http://www.cuny.edu) prior to the sessions and verify that they have access to their classes.

Register through the Information Technology Resources Help Desk by calling (718) 960-1111 or by sending email to helpdesk@lehman.cuny.edu

• Session 1: Creating Documents Using Blackboard Text Entry & Working with HTML
  Monday, October 4
  10:30 a.m. to 12 noon
  Location: 122 IT Center

  This session will cover the facilities within Blackboard itself to create content.   These include text entry boxes and the new text and equations editors.  The second main topic will be HTML, HyperText Markup Language, the language in which most web pages are written. Topics include the basic structural elements of a web page (e.g. headings, paragraphs, lists, links, and tables) and the HTML tags used to define these elements and to format text. Class exercises include direct editing of HTML and use of HTML editors such as Netscape Composer

• Session 2: Working with Special Document Types
  Tuesday, October 26
  10:30 a.m. to 12 noon
  Location: 122 IT Center

  Topics include converting PowerPoint presentations, Excel worksheets, word processing documents and other file types to a format suitable for attaching to a Blackboard course; use of Adobe Acrobat; creating file "packages" for uploading multiple files; importing an entire website; and obtaining and using viewers and browser plug-ins required for certain file types. Note that the workshop will not include training in the many software packages that can be used to create material for Blackboard. Rather the focus is on the incorporation of this material into a Blackboard course after it has been created. Participants are invited to bring along samples of the types of documents they would like to add to their Blackboard courses.

• Session 3: Working with Images
  Tuesday, November 15
  10:30 a.m. to 12 noon
  Location: 122 IT Center

  Topics include use of scanners and digital cameras to acquire digital images; locating suitable images on the Web; creating and editing images using painting and drawing programs; graphic file formats; graphic file attributes such as size and color; combining text and graphics; and adding images to your course website.

• Session 4: Sound and Video
  Thursday, December 9
  10:30 a.m. to 12 noon
  Location: 122 IT Center

  Topics include sound and video formats acceptable for use on the WWW; hardware and software for acquisition, editing and conversion of sound and video files; media players; sources of digitized sound and video on the WWW; performance issues.