Entries by Elissa Tobin

Fall 2020 -Getting started

Tech 4 U

Making Technology Work for You 

(Brightspace Newsletter, rebranded for YOU) 

 These past several months have put additional demands on all of you, including the need to make a rapid change to the way you deliver instruction or engage students. As your instructional technology support team, our job is to make sure you are aware of all of the resources available to you, and to provide you the support you need to feel comfortable introducing them into your classroom. 

New this fall: You have the opportunity to engage students in new ways with tools like VoiceThread, encourage academic integrity with alternative assessment ideas through tools like Turnitin and Respondus, or take advantage of the most recent updates in Brightspace. Whatever your goals, we are here to help you. 

Psst…hidden in this newsletter is an error, find it, share it with your Brightspace team, and you’ll be eligible to win a prize.  

What students say they need from us…. 

At the end of the spring semester, CCC surveyed our students on how they were coping with the challenges brought on by COVID19. We wanted to share the two key take-aways: 

  1. Students were anxious about what they needed to do to complete their work.
  2. Students desired recorded lectures.  

What we might do….

We have compiled the following resources to help you address these needs. 

Use checklists to help students keep on track  

How do I create a checklist?

Record your lectures on Zoom  

How do I create online office hours with my Zoom?

Engage students while saving yourself time and energy  

How do I set up Intelligent Agents (automated emails to students)?

Table of Contents

Course Shells in Brightspace 

Brightspace course shells are created on http://brightspace.ccc.edu before the beginning of the semester. Enrollment in Brightspace course shells corresponds to your assignment in my.ccc.edu. If there is an error, please contact the helpdesk at http://ccc.edu/help. Once a Brightspace course shell is created, students are automatically enrolled and dropped based on the records in CS9. 

You must be listed in CS9/my.ccc.edu as the instructor or you will not have access to your course shell. Check the waffle icon if you do not see all your courses on the homepage because they may be “unpinned”. 

  
Beginning of the Semester FAQs 

Below are direct links to the most common beginning of the semester issues: 

  1. How do I locate my courses? 
  2. How do I upload my syllabus?
  3. How do I change my course start and end dates? 
  4. How do I copy a course? 
  5. How do I email my students? 
  6. How do I use Grades? 

For more help, visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu 

What’s New in Brightspace? 

VoiceThread 

Voicethread with Brightspace and Zoom  

Do you know about Voicethread? VoiceThread is an interactive, collaborative, web-based tool that that allows user to communicate through images, audio recordings, videos, and text. People can use VoiceThread to set up a discussion board, record a lecture, or show images. Users can add text, audio, or video comments to a VoiceThread, so students can ask questions at a specific point in a lecture or respond to discussion prompts. In addition, instructors can have students create their own VoiceThread presentations as part of an assignment.  

 Voicethread is integrated into Brightspace (Existing Activities > External Learning Tools). You can even pull in a Zoom meeting recording directly from the platform. 

To find out more, visit HOW DO I USE VOICETHREAD WITH BRIGHTSPACE?  

VoiceThread Resources: 

Respondus 

Respondus Lockdown Browser and Monitor are now available in all Brightspace courses as optional settings when creating Brightspace Quizzes for those faculty who wish to use them.  

*Please note, Respondus lockdown browser is not yet supported for students using Chromebooks. The company is looking to add support for Chromebooks this fall but no firm date has been given. 

HOW DO I PROCTOR A REMOTE ONLINE EXAM WITH RESPONDUS? 

Respondus also has a lot of great resources including live webinars  

TA/Tutor Request Form 

If your substitute, tutor, or intern need Brightspace access, Please click here to request TA/Tutor access to your online classroom. 

Discover Tool 

Allows students the opportunity to choose to connect to Student Services and more at their own discretion. 

 

Release Notes 

Every month Brightspace releases a video of new features. Keep informed and watch below! 

May 2020 Highlights 

June 2020 Highlights 

 

 

July 2020 Highlights-no video 

August 2020 Highlights-no video 

All Release Notes 

 

Training Options 

Training course description 

 Synchronous Assistance 

Workshops for Registration Week 

MONDAY 8/17 GETTING STARTED SERIES 

 Brightspace Bootcamp (2 hours) – overview of all tools 

Course Copy, Cleanup and Management to Start the Term off Right 

Designing Elements in Brightspace 

Teaching with Zoom 

TUESDAY 8/18 ASSESSMENT SERIES 

 Assignments and Discussions in Brightspace 

All About Quizzes 

Course Reporting Tools 

All About Grades 

WEDNESDAY 8/19 ENGAGEMENT SERIES 

 Communication Tools in Brightspace 

Teaching Effectively with Zoom 

Break Brightspace Burnout 

Engagement Tools in Brightspace 

THURSDAY 8/20 GRADES AND FEEDBACK 

 Full Grades Training – Part 1 

Full Grades Training – Part 2 

Brightspace Feedback Tools 

ZOOM Room used for all trainings above 
Drop-in  
Zoom Room used for all drop-in help 

1:1 Assistance 

Please click here to schedule 

Department Assistance 

Please click here to schedule 

Asynchronous Assistance 

RECORDINGS 

Visit http://bit.ly/ccctube  – CCC Instructional Technology YouTube site 

ESSENTIALS SERIES 

Foundations (these are chunked in like 10 to 15 min increments) 

Keep Teaching 

Introduction to Teaching  

Zoom for Teaching (Basics) 

Course Copy, Cleanup, and Management 

  1. Designing Elements in Brightspace 
ENGAGEMENT SERIES 

Brightspace Engagement Tools Training (checklists, awards, intelligent agents) 

Break Brightspace Burnout with these Timesaving Tricks 

ASSESSMENT SERIES 

Turnitin & Grading 

Quizzes & Grading 

  1. All About Grades Training 

Rubrics 

 

LEARNER MANAGEMENT SERIES 

Reporting Tools 

 

Knowledgebase Articles 

Visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu 

Handouts 

Faculty Spotlight 

We are looking for innovative ways that instructors use Brightspace within their classes. Do you have an assignment that translates well to Brightspace? Have you incorporated some of Brightspace’s more advanced features? Do you have unique ways to communicate with students via Brightspace? We would love to showcase the great work that you’re doing. 

Doing something cool with Brightspace? Share it with us! 

Help and Resources 

  • Videos: Visit http://bit.ly/ccctube  – CCC Instructional Technology YouTube site contains CCC-created videos like a Foundations review, TII, Student overview, course copy and more for you and our students 

 

August 17, 2020 by

Summer 2020 -Midterm

Summer 2020 | Midterm

Spreading sunshine all over the place…

As midterms quickly approach, we continue to focus on students by informing them of their progress and grades. Empower your students by giving them access to their coursework, scores, and current grade through Brightspace.

 

Highlights in this Newsletter:

  • Midterm Frequently Asked Questions
  • Did you know?
  • What’s New?
  • Upcoming Training

 

Missed the last newsletter? Check it out here.

 

For more help, look below or visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu

 

 

Midterm FAQs

For more help, visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu   

Attention – Midterm grade entry

Don’t forget, my.ccc.edu has changed. Click the circle icon in the top right corner for a vertical graphical navbar and then select Faculty Center.

 

For more help, visit the Faculty Portal Help Guide

Did you know that you can…?

 


What’s New in Brightspace?

Every month Brightspace releases a video of new features. Keep informed and watch below!

June 2020 Highlights

 

Upcoming Training

Advanced Zoom for Teaching

Keep Teaching with Brightspace

Discussions

Reporting Tools

Grades

 

Looking for training on something else? Take 1 minute to tell us.

View all the trainings and register here

View the training catalog


Help and Resources
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June 29, 2020 by

Summer 2020 – Beginning of Term

Welcome to Brightspace Summer 2020!

As you prepare for the start of the term, keep in mind that how you use Brightspace is up to you. You may choose to include announcements, add content like videos or files, tests/ quizzes, virtual discussions, assignment submissions, grades and more!

Highlights In this Newsletter:

  • D2L | Fusion 2020 Conference is going virtual
  • Zoom replaces Collaborate Ultra
  • My Courses Widget gets a new look
  • Summer Training Schedule

For more help, look below or visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu    

Highlights

D2L | Fusion 2020 Conference is going virtual

D2L’s annual user conference, Fusion, will be held virtually this year, and is free of charge. This is a great opportunity for faculty and staff who would otherwise have not been able to attend. You can register at https://www.d2l.com/events/fusion/

Zoom replaces Collaborate Ultra

CCC’s agreement with Blackboard for the use of Collaborate Ultra ends on June 30th, 2020. Instructors should download any recordings they wish to save before this time, as we will not have access to the platform after June 30th. Zoom will continue to be available to all CCC students, faculty, and staff for the foreseeable future.

My Courses Widget is getting a new look

The My Courses widget has a new look starting summer 2020. Courses will be organized by term and will display alerts for assignments, discussions and quizzes. This will make it easier for students and faculty to locate their courses easily and keep their homepage clean. You can still pin courses, and you can find all your courses under the “All” tab or the course selector icon in the minibar.

image of new my courses widget

Summer Training Calendar

The instructional technology team is offering beginner through advanced Brightspace and Zoom training starting June 1st. For Brightspace, we have trainings covering each of our four series: Essentials, Engagement, Assessment, and Learner Management. Check out our training catalog for detailed course descriptions and sign up at our training calendar: https://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu/trainingevents/.

This Week’s Offerings:

  • MONDAY 6/1
    • 9:00-1:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 1:00-2:00pm Zoom for Teaching-Basics (Essentials Series)
    • 4:00-5:00pm Course Copy, Cleanup and Management for the new Term (Essentials Series)
    • 6:00-7:00pm Drop-in Help for any questions related to Brightspace or Zoom
  • TUESDAY 6/2
    • 9:00-1:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 1:00-2:00pm Advanced Zoom for Teaching (Engagement Series)
    • 2:00-3:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 4:00-5:00pm Keep Teaching with Brightspace (Essentials Series)
    • 6:00-7:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
  • WEDNESDAY 6/3
    • 1:00-5:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 5:00-6:00pm Brightspace Assignments (Assessment Series)
    • 6:00-7:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 7:00-8:00pm Brightspace Quizzes (Assessment Series)
  • THURSDAY 6/4
    • 1:00-5:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 4:00-5:00pm Brightspace Grades (Assessment Series)
    • 5:00-6:00pm Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 7:00-8:00pm Brightspace Engagement Tools (Engagement Series)
  • FRIDAY 6/5
    • 10:00-11:00am Designing Elements in Brightspace (Essentials Series)
    • 12:00-1:00pm Course Copy, Cleanup and Management for the new Term (Essentials Series)
  • SATURDAY 6/6
    • 9:00-10:00am Drop-in Brightspace or Zoom Help
    • 10:00-11:00am Keep Teaching with Brightspace (Essentials Series)

View all the trainings and register here

Beginning of the Semester FAQs

Below are the most common beginning of the semester questions and the answers from our knowledgebase:

  1. How do I find my courses?
  2. How do I copy a course from last semester to this semester?
  3. How do I upload my syllabus?
  4. How do I change my course start and end dates?
  5. How do I email my students?
  6. How do I use Grades?

For more help, visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu

Help and Resources

 

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June 2, 2020 by

Fall 2019 – End of Semester

Every ending is a new beginning…

Whether you’re focused on wrapping up the current semester, or getting ready for the next, we have the tools to guide you on your way. Spring 2020 courses are already loaded in Brightspace. New courses can be found in your course list. Course not on your homepage? Learn how to pin it. Use the knowledgebase articles to:

Wrap up the fall semester

Prepare for the start of next semester

For more help, look below or visit the knowledge base.

Psst…Find an error? share it with your Brightspace team, and earn a badge.
 
 

Attention – Final Grade Entry

Don’t forget, my.ccc.edu has changed. Click the circle icon in the top right corner for a vertical graphical navbar and then select Faculty Center.

For more help, visit the Faculty Portal Help Guide

Did you know that you can…

Upcoming Training

Brightspace Assessment Resources

Farewell, Maureen!

As my time at CCC comes to an end (12/27/2019), I wish you well. My 22 wonderful years at Wright have been filled with laughter and tears, boldness and fear, ease and frustration, triumphs and try agains. I have been librarian, webber, program director, instructional support, and TIS. All these different hats have enabled me to serve our students alongside you. Thank you for allowing me a glimpse into your classrooms. It has been inspiring to work with you.

I am confident that your dedication and commitment to your students will assist you in overcoming the pesky technology issues that will arise with grace and patience. Be kind and care for yourselves. Help one another. You are the best resources you have. You know more than you think.

It has been a pleasure working with you and I hope to see you in the future.  Please feel free to contact me via LinkedIn.

Thank you,
Maureen Boland, Technology Integration Specialist, Wright College

Help and Resources

December 5, 2019 by

Fall 2019 – Assessments

Assessments

Tests and Quizzes, Assignments, TurnItIn and Rubrics are tools within Brightspace you can use to evaluate students and measure student learning. Use the knowledgebase articles to:

For more help, look below or visit the knowledge base.

Psst…Find an error? share it with your Brightspace team, and earn a badge.

Did you know that you can…

Upcoming Training

For these trainings, bring your questions regarding the assessment tools. We will review common issues and help to make your use of these tools more effective.

Brightspace Assessment Resources

Faculty Spotlight

Sherece Thompson (Dental Hygiene, MX) is using Brightspace Quizzes to regularly assess her students’ learning and ensure they are keeping up with the material. She uses a variety of question types including multiple choice, true/false, matching, ordering, and written response. Every quiz is an opportunity for students to assess their own learning, and an opportunity for her to gauge how students are grasping the material in addition to identifying learning-gaps in the subject. One of the unexpected benefits of the Quizzes tool was in her ability to view question statistics and identify questions where the majority of the class was answering incorrectly. Upon reviewing this she was able to consider whether she wanted to change the wording of a question, throw out a question completely, or re-affirm the question despite the low achievement. This practice of assessing, evaluating, and then adjusting–either the exam or her instruction–has made closing the assessment loop in her courses quick, efficient, and meaningful.

Learn how to take advantage of all the Quizzes features in Brightspace using the links in this newsletter, the knowledgebase, and the Brightspace team!

Doing something cool with Brightspace? Share it with us!

What’s New In Brightspace?

Every month Brightspace releases a video of new features. Keep informed and watch below!

November 2019 Highlights

Help and Resources

November 25, 2019 by

Fall 2019 | Mid-Semester Reminders

It’s beginning to look a lot like midterms

As midterms quickly approach, we continue to focus on students by informing them of their progress and grades. Empower your students by giving them access to their coursework, scores, and current grade through Brightspace.

For more help, look below or visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu

Psst…Find an error? share it with your Brightspace team, and earn a badge. Congratulations to some of our Brightspace Blunder Finders, Naomi Brack and Mohamed El-Maazawi.

Midterm FAQs

Below are direct links to the most common middle of the semester tasks

  1. How do I locate dropped students’ grades?
  2. How do I create a midterm grade item or a calculated midterm grade?
  3. How do I show the “final calculated grade” column to students?
  4. How do I preview a student’s grade?

For more help, visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu

Attention - Midterm grade entry

Don’t forget, my.ccc.edu has changed. Click the circle icon in the top right corner for a vertical graphical navbar and then select Faculty Center.

For more help, visit the Faculty Portal Help Guide

Did you know that you can...?

Help and Resources 

October 10, 2019 by

Fall 2019 – Student Engagement

Engagement

More and more research in the instructional technology field shows that retention and completion rates increase when instructors maintain an online presence in their class, engage regularly with students, communicate often, and provide clear instructions and expectations. We all want to reach each and every one of our students individually, but it can be time-consuming. Brightspace makes it easier!

Engage them and guide them.
Show them the way.
You’re off to great places.
You’re off and away.

-Dr. Seuss

Did you know that you can…

Upcoming Training

In this training you will learn about the engagement tools in Brightspace. Learn how you can personalize and direct learning, keep your students on task, and connect with them.

Engagement topics include:

  • Replace Strings
  • Release Conditions
  • Awards and Badges
  • Checklists
  • Intelligent Agents

Engagement Training (virtual) – Register Here

  • October 22, 12:00-1:00pm (virtual)
  • November 14, 12:00-1:00pm (virtual)

Psst…Missed the Grades Training? There’s still time – Register Here

  • Oct 11, 1:00-2:00pm (virtual)
  • Oct 16, 12:30-1:30pm (virtual)

Faculty Spotlight

Rich Powers (English & Literature HW) on his use of Intelligent Agents:

“Intelligent Agents send out e-mails automatically to students when certain conditions are met or aren’t met. They save me at least an hour each week because I don’t have to send out reminders to students when their quizzes, assignments or discussion posts are late. Brightspace does that for me!

I also use an intelligent agent in my online course to notify students when they haven’t logged into the course in the last 5 days, prompting students to get their acts together and not fall behind.  

Intelligent agents are instructors’ and students’ friends!  They help with:

 –  class engagement
–   student motivation
–   students’ abilities to keep up with the course
–   fewer withdrawals
–   fewer e-mails reminding students about due dates
–   fewer e-mails asking about late assignments

Watch his tutorial on setting up an Intelligent Agent for “No Logins for 5 days”

Doing something cool with Brightspace? Share it with us!

What’s New In Brightspace?

Every month Brightspace releases a video of new features. Keep informed and watch below!

October 2019 Highlights

Help and Resources

October 7, 2019 by

Fall 2019 – Making the Grade

Grades. What are they good for? Absolutely everything! Rushing out the door fumbling for your keys, thinking of your next destination, juggling books and bags, a student asks you for his grade.  As the bags slip and a folder of papers sprays all over the floor, you struggle to find the book with the right […]

September 12, 2019 by

Summer 2019 | End of Term Reminders

It’s the end of Brightspace Summer 2019! As finals quickly approach, we reflect on the educational journey you guided your students on. Before you go, below are some reminders of common end-of-term tasks in Brightspace, as well as tips to help you prepare for fall. For more help, look below or visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu End of […]

July 26, 2019 by

Summer 2019 | Mid-Semester Reminders

It’s the middle of Brightspace Summer 2019! As midterms quickly approach, we continue to focus on students by informing them of their progress and grades. For more help, look below or visit http://brightspaceresources.ccc.edu Midterm Reminders Below are direct links to the most common middle-of-the-semester tasks: Create a midterm grade item or a calculated midterm grade […]

June 27, 2019 by