Blackboard record usage chalks it up to progress

--February 27, 2004--

By Tim Chamberlain

As the University grows, so do its class sizes. But an electronic collaboration space known as Blackboard continues to help minimize the effect of UT’s burgeoning growth in the classroom.

The Blackboard course management software tool, which allows any class at UT to have an online Web presence, brings large groups together with its real-time chats, threaded discussions and e-mail and online file exchanges. And as Blackboard’s popularity and usage increases, so will its features.

Blackboard 6 will debut this summer, keeping many Blackboard 5 features intact, while offering several new features. Additions will include an assignment drop box, the ability to import from spreadsheets to the grade book, more control over look and feel, and the capacity to copy courses from one semester to another. The new release will also feature more integration with the Class Information Pages System (CLIPS). CLIPs, a centralized suite of online UT class services and information developed by Student Information Systems, allows faculty to manage their administrative class information. Often this information can affect what is displayed in Blackboard.

Carolyn Wikoff, senior systems analyst with the Division of Instructional Innovation Assessment (DIIA), Center for Instructional Technologies (CIT), said she will be looking for faculty testers for version 6 during the spring semester. CIT will also schedule preview sessions for faculty toward the end of spring.

The move to a later version with more features is driven by increasing use of Blackboard, said Wikoff. Since Blackboard began as a pilot project in the fall of 2000, usage has grown each semester with new records being set last fall.

Records show that 44,559 students, faculty and staff logged into Blackboard during the fall 2003 semester. On the busiest day, over 80,000 files—more than 18 gigabytes of data—were downloaded. A sixth server was recently brought online to help handle the increased usage.

“Last fall we were experiencing average days that were higher than our peak usage days from the spring,” said Mike Cerda, head of the Information Technology Services Unix group responsible for the servers, the installation of software and general system maintenance for Blackboard.

A rule of thumb for Cerda is that Blackboard is not busy when it gets less than 10,000 Web hits in an hour. When class is in session, that usually only happens between 4 and 6 a.m., with peak usage usually being around 2 p.m. One of the reasons for increased usage, notes Cerda, is because students, familiar with the site from previous classes, are asking more professors about Blackboard.

“Part of the goal early on was to provide a consistent interface for all the classes so that students wouldn't have to learn a completely new site for every class they take,” Cerda said. “That has actually come to fruition. Students are saying, ‘I know how to use Blackboard. Could you please put your information on Blackboard?’ And professors are largely going along because it is easier.”

Blackboard is not only popular with students — UT faculty are also embracing the course management tool.

Andrew Dell’Antonio, an associate professor in the School of Music, said the online discussion boards available through Blackboard have added value to his classes, especially his large classes. “I do get the sense that the students are more engaged this semester than they were in the past because of the possibility of online discussions,” Dell’Antonio said.

The assessment tools of Blackboard also proved useful to Dell’Antonio. When he considered changing a scoring policy in a course, he surveyed his students through Blackboard for input -- a task which would have been very cumbersome to execute. Furthermore, the results were completely anonymous.

Also, by checking to see who is participating on Blackboard, and how much they are participating, Dell’Antonio said he is getting a much better sense of who is really working hard and who is not. “I was initially concerned whether the students would be freaked out by being watched as they talked, as it were,” he said. “But that doesn’t seem to have bothered them. They know that I have access to the discussions, and some of them clearly relish being able to get stuff out, which they might not have the chance to do in a 90-person lecture hall.” Dell’Antonio said online discussions also help shy and non-native English speakers to contribute more to the class in a way that is comfortable for them.

Another fan of Blackboard's online discussion feature is Glenn Griffin, an assistant professor in the Department of Advertising. He teaches an American culture course that usually has 200 or more students, and he said that Blackboard is giving him capabilities he has not had before in a class this large.

“Blackboard helps me make the course more interactive than most large classes. For example, one of the things I use Blackboard for are discussion boards, and I’ve been amazed at how engaged the students become in the material if they can discuss it amongst themselves and debate things,” Griffin said. “Blackboard gives you capabilities that make the room smaller in a big class. It helps the students get to know each other through the online interactions.”

Will O’Hara, a lecturer hired in the Department of Accounting last spring, learned about Blackboard at a faculty seminar. His experience with the CIT staff was so positive that he took seven other CIT seminars during the summer.

“I thought Blackboard was easy to pick up, and I really liked the way [CIT] taught it,” O’Hara said. “They’ve really got a mindset in CIT of really wanting to help you do this, and they really want you to use their system.” O’Hara uses Blackboard to gives his accounting students lecture slides, definitions, announcements—basically anything he thinks could help enhance their class experience—and he wants to expand his Blackboard usage in future semesters.

“To me, it’s really helping me to help the students to learn, and to manage my classes effectively, and I’ve only begun to scratch the surface,” O’Hara said. “I think we’ve got a combination here of a great product and a great group of dedicated people down at CIT that try to make it work for you. What else could you ask for? The rest is up to us.”

ITS News > Features > Blackboard record usage chalks it up to progress