If I allow guest/observer access to my course, who will be able to view it?

Olivet's policy is not to allow guests and observers into Blackboard.  If you need to give someone from off campus access to Blackboard, talk with Marsha Smith in Information Technology.

Why don't my browser's navigation buttons (Forward, Back, etc.) work all of the time?

Blackboard offers its own navigation to give more control of the environment. The navigation is designed to keep you inside Blackboard and keep you from getting confused. If you use the browser's navigational buttons, many times you will get an error or a Page Expired note. Remember to stay inside Blackboard in order to keep things clear.

Students are having problems with a timed quiz. What could be the problem?

When a student is taking a quiz, and the quiz is NOT set to Allow Multiple Attempts, the student must be very careful when taking the quiz. Anything that occurs that causes the quiz window to no longer be the active window, even for a second, will kick the student out of the test. So, students should be wary of things like clicking around in other areas of the course, or sitting idle until their browser times out or screen saver comes on, or even getting a pop-up email notifier. Automated functions of that nature should be turned off during testing time.

Can I look at email messages from inside Blackboard?

No, the email system inside Blackboard will send but not receive email. You will receive email in your normal Olivet email account.

If I put an exam on Blackboard, will students have access to printing it out?

Since Blackboard works inside of a browser, it takes on all of the functions of that browser. Since browsers offer the option to print pages they display, students can print out anything they view, including the quiz. There are a few ways to combat this:

1. Set the quiz to display only one question at a time.
2. Provide a random block of questions that pulls 20 questions out of a possible 40-50 randomly, meaning that students will receive different versions of the test.
3. Only allow for a short amount of time to force them to spend all their time on the actual test, quiz, or survey.
    

When will the fall/spring/summer courses be created so I can start work on my courses?

Blackboard courses are usually available a month or two before the beginning of the next semester. If you have a course that you would like to begin working on, you can request that the course be made available to you by contacting the Help Desk.

Why aren't some of my students listed in Blackboard?

If a student is not listed in Blackboard either in your Roster, Email, or Grade Center, that student is not officially enrolled in the course. They may have pre-registered but have not finished their registration with the Registrar's Office. Contact that student and make sure they finish registering and have enrolled in that course. Blackboard is updated three times a day so if someone adds or drops a course, they should appear in Blackboard within 12 hours.

Can you make a student in a course a TA as well?

It is impossible for a student to be both a Teaching Assistant and a student in the same course. In the past some faculty have requested that a TA account be set up for them so a student could log in separately to grade assignments, add documents, etc. To make this request, contact the Help Desk.

Can I change the email address of a student from their Olivet email address to another one?

It is a policy for both undergraduate and graduate students now to require the use of Olivet's email for course-related communication. Students should be made aware that any communication from the professor will occur in their Olivet email and they should be checking that just as regularly as their other email.

How do I see the results of a survey/course evaluation I posted in Blackboard?

To see the results of a Blackboard survey once it has been completed:

1. Enter your course
2. Click Control Panel
3. Click Evaluation, then Grade Center
4. Find the column for your survey and notice the following:
   • Each person who has taken the survey will have a checkmark in that column
   • You cannot see results for one person (it is an anonymous survey) but it does allow you to see who has taken it
5. To see the results of the survey, click on the column heading (the name of the survey)
6. Click Attempts Statistics
7. Click OK