Ed Tech Q & A

[downer]

Question about Blackboard Learn.

I've been trying to allow students who missed a test to do it late. So obviously I've been using the make an exception part of test options, giving them a later test due date than the main test takers. But they still get "this is past the due date" error.

Any ideas what I might be doing wrong? (Or what is wrong with the software?)

[Aster]

I have always had problems with this.

In most cases, I ended up just extending the deadline for the whole assignment, and not telling anyone that I did it except for student who needed it.

[downer]

I have always had problems with this.

In most cases, I ended up just extending the deadline for the whole assignment, and not telling anyone that I did it except for student who needed it.

I've also done that. But then I get a bunch of emails from students who want to be able to also take it or get confused about the changed deadline, which is exactly what I want to avoid.

[Aster]

I have always had problems with this.

In most cases, I ended up just extending the deadline for the whole assignment, and not telling anyone that I did it except for student who needed it.

I've also done that. But then I get a bunch of emails from students who want to be able to also take it or get confused about the changed deadline, which is exactly what I want to avoid.

I keep my announcements intact with the original deadlines so they look the same to casual users. You'd have to click on the assessment itself to see the new due date. But yeah, a couple of "leakers" still get through sometimes. But most of my classes have less than 30 people in them, so it's not a big deal. I'd imagine that with classes much larger (50+ students), it could get bad.

I wish that BlackBoard was less of a kludge.

[Aster]

This might help. I'm going to try this out myself today.
Blackboard Tip: Use Adaptive Release to Grant a Deadline Exception
https://ideasfromthesandbox.wordpress.com/2014/10/21/blackboard-tip-use-adaptive-release-to-grant-a-deadline-exception/

So far, this is the #$%&* "workaround" that I have ever attempted to use on an LMS. Trying to use this method to give an extension to a student has currently resulted in the exam vanishing for everyone else *except* for the person wanting the exception. I have been cursing for over 10 minutes trying to fix this.

[Cheerful]

Question about Blackboard Learn.
...
Any ideas what I might be doing wrong? (Or what is wrong with the software?)

What is wrong with Blackboard?  Oh, where to begin?  The list runs pages, nay volumes.  Alas, the question with the much shorter answer is "what is right with Bb?"

Still amazed that Bb is so bad after so many years.

Good luck!

[spork]

Question about Zoom:

My internet scrapings imply that the meeting host can record the main meeting; if the host leaves the main meeting then a blank screen without audio is recorded until the host returns. Breakout rooms can be recorded by participants, but these recordings reside locally. A breakout room recording would have to be sent to the host and shared for all students in the class to have access to it. Is this correct?

I ask because I've got students scattering hither and yon for the holiday break and they won't be returning to campus. Some are now asking for recordings so that they don't have to participate from different time zones. My attitude is that if I'm inconvenienced by having to teach a synchronous online course, then the students should be inconvenienced too.

[sinenomine]

Yes, it's my experience that the breakout rooms aren't recorded by the host of the overall meeting.

[spork]

Question about free note software that has a web clipper tool: is there a good alternative to Evernote? I have an Evernote folder for every one of my courses and used to to post a URL to the relevant notebook so that all the students in a course could view the readings in it. Evernote's version 10 has done away with the "share notebook" feature. I'm not going to send hundreds of separate links for webpages I've clipped to Evernote to a hundred or so different students every semester.

Please don't recommend One Note. All Microsoft products are controlled by my university's IT department, which greatly diminishes their utility.

[polly_mer]

Does Google Suite (or whatever they're calling it this week) have good enough share capabilities for your needs?

[OneMoreYear]

I suppose this is the correct thread for this question.
Does anyone have experience using GoReact? https://get.goreact.com/
We are considering adopting it for a few skills courses and just thought I'd see other's experiences if any.

[downer]

Has anyone used Piazza with Canvas. Right now the school with Canvas offers no training in Piazza, so I'm not very tempted, but I am curious.

[spork]

Has anyone used Mural? It looks like a whiteboard tool for online collaboration. Students in my courses do a lot of team projects and I'm wondering if this product does anything that Google Slides can't.

[doc700]

We are using the Google Jamboards as a whiteboard for online collaboration.  I teach physics and the students use the jamboard during class and office hours to work on problems collaboratively.  Its been working great for us.  I think Jamboard is the "whiteboard" analogue for Google, not slides, if that is what you are looking for? 

Has anyone used Mural? It looks like a whiteboard tool for online collaboration. Students in my courses do a lot of team projects and I'm wondering if this product does anything that Google Slides can't.

[spork]

We are using the Google Jamboards as a whiteboard for online collaboration.  I teach physics and the students use the jamboard during class and office hours to work on problems collaboratively.  Its been working great for us.  I think Jamboard is the "whiteboard" analogue for Google, not slides, if that is what you are looking for? 

Has anyone used Mural? It looks like a whiteboard tool for online collaboration. Students in my courses do a lot of team projects and I'm wondering if this product does anything that Google Slides can't.

Interesting, did not know about Jamboard. When teaching, I find it easier to just write in a screen-shared Google or Microsoft file than to use Zoom's whiteboard feature because I can save it if needed. Also, if I'm jotting down more than just a few words, I can keep writing on a new page/slide if needed. Maybe there is an easy way to do this in the Zoom whiteboard, but early on I found it awkward. As for collaborative student projects, I've been setting up Google files for student teams. But IT doesn't like this, because Google is "unsupported."