As the end of spring semester approaches, many faculty begin turning their attention to preparing for Maymester or the summer sessions. Converting 15 week courses into 8 week or 4 week format, however, presents a unique challenge. How can faculty nurture student understanding and provide meaningful feedback at such an accelerated pace?
Continue reading “Effective Strategies for Maymester and Summer Course Preparation”
AI Spark Tips: AI Conversations for Students
Guide students to prepare for interviews, debates, or meetings with marketing clients, patients in healthcare settings, or other professionals in your discipline using artificial intelligence. The AI Conversation tool, built into your Blackboard course, enables students to work with AI in a controlled environment. You set the topic, you define the conversation persona, select Role Play and read a record of your students’ chat.
Bonus: Your persona may be instructed to speak in languages other than English, and you may give them location-specific backgrounds to support learning in world language courses.
At the end of their chat, students respond to a reflection question you design to help them apply critical thinking and ethics to their AI use.
Learn More at Blackboard.
Get Started with the ACUE Learning Lab Today!
What is the ACUE Learning Lab? USC Upstate’s year-long partnership with the ACUE Learning Lab provides faculty with access to 11 evidence-based Quick Study Courses, offering best-practice guidance to enhance student success and engagement.
What are Quick Study Courses? Quick Study Courses are comprised of short, effective videos and implementation guides collaboratively developed with subject-matter experts. Once faculty have engaged with the content, they are prompted to complete a short reflection.
How long does it take to complete a Quick Study Course? The courses are self-paced, and can be completed in 1-2 hours.
Continue reading “Get Started with the ACUE Learning Lab Today!”
Contract Grading Increases Student Engagement and Reduces Anxiety
Have you ever had a student approach you and ask, “Dr. Reeves, what do I need to do to get an A in your course?” I have. I often suggest reviewing the syllabus and the percentage points associated with each grade category. I suggest reviewing the rubrics, planning ahead for upcoming due dates, and working with a partner to stay motivated and in conversation about course topics. While these are useful suggestions, they don’t necessarily address the quality or quantity of work students must create or give them the autonomy and choice they crave to build the knowledge and skills necessary to take their thinking to the next level. One way to better answer this familiar question and increase student motivation, autonomy, and responsibility (Hiller and Heitapelto, 2001; Strong et al. 2004; Danielewicz and Elbow, 2009; Bonner 2016; Litterio 2018) may be to adopt contract grading. Though many of the contract grading studies have been designed for and implemented in courses with a writing component, the models are easily adapted for other types of courses, as well. If you’re interested in exploring some examples of contract grading, check out the 3 models below.
Continue reading “Contract Grading Increases Student Engagement and Reduces Anxiety”
Winter Break Wellness: You Deserve It
After an equally rewarding and challenging semester, unexpectedly interrupted by a hurricane that many in our communities are still suffering from, we hope you’ll find some downtime for yourselves over the winter break. Whether you’re traveling or staying local, check out the resources below if you’re looking for the perfect, lowkey escape to unwind and relax.
Continue reading “Winter Break Wellness: You Deserve It”Blackboard Day 2025: Reaching Greater Heights with AI and Universal Design
Join us for our 5th Annual Blackboard Day in the College of Arts & Sciences Building, by accessing Zoom in the CAIFS PD Course, or by using the Zoom Link!
9 am to 9:30 am
Welcome and Blackboard Learn Ultra Updates
Join the Blackboard Support Team to learn what is new in the Blackboard Learn Ultra Road Map for Spring-Fall 2025.
Look for new release conditions, AI Debates, Achievements, Competency-Based Learning, and much more!
9:45 am to 10:30 am
Blackboard Learn Ultra Instructional Materials
Let’s dive into Ultra and learn our way around the updated content design options. Use blocks to place media and text side-by-side. Or explore Knowledge Check features that can keep students engaged with course content. Facilitator: Jennifer Bland, Learning Experience Designer.
10:45 am to 11:30 am
Grading and Plagiarism Checking in Blackboard Learn Ultra
Looking for your Needs Grading list or how to drop the lowest quiz grade? In this session, we’ll get to know the Ultra Gradebook and where to find all the features you need. We’ll also explore a range of question analytics, plagiarism reports, and student support features for accommodations, extensions, and exemptions in the Ultra Gradebook. Facilitator: Celena Kusch, Executive Director, Academic Innovation & Faculty Support.
11:45 am to 12:30 pm
Using Activity Reports for Student Success
This presentation will look at the Blackboard Ultra features, like progress checking and activity reports, that allow faculty to easily monitor student engagement and performance in real-time. By regularly reviewing student course participation and performance and communicating with students about how they’re doing, instructors have a strong opportunity to foster student success and persistence. Facilitator: Lillian Reeves, Director of Transformative and Inclusive Pedagogy.
12:30 pm to 1:15 pm
Lunch
Take a break, and drop by CASB, Room 117, with your laptop for lunch, brainstorming and troubleshooting within your course.
Do you need a sandbox course for playing around in Blackboard Learn Ultra Course View? Email academicinnovation@uscupstate.edu.
1:15 pm to 2:00 pm
Course Design in a GenAI Learning Environment
Anthology, Blackboard’s parent company, has partnered with Microsoft Artificial Intelligence (AI) to develop easy-to-use tools enhanced by generative artificial intelligence and large language models. In this session, we will go over several key AI Design Assist tools and AI-based assignment options. Facilitator: Yamil Ernesto Ruiz, Director of Online Learning and Program Support
2:15 pm to 3:00 pm
Let’s Talk Teaching: Blackboard Course Design Q&A
Share your question, ideas, and course design dreams. How can the USC Upstate Syllabus Template help you streamline your course setup and conversion to a new term?