Make Learning More Effective with a Blackboard Template

Anyone who has taken course content and copied it into a file in Blackboard has probably been disappointed with the results. You get something like the following:

Text is shown without margins and does not draw the learner's attention to what you want the focus to be...the content.

You do not need to be a web designer to add simple elements to help your learners organize the content and maximize their learning. Compare the above example with this one:

The content is exactly the same. Using a table, you can create divisions in the content with titles, subtitles, and sections. You can visually make these divisions with cell color. You will also notice the addition of images and a YouTube video. This, of course, depends on your content. You will want images or videos that illustrate the content and help learners understand it better.

You can download a template ready for Blackboard here. Right click this link and choose "Save Target As" if you are using Internet Explorer or choose "Save Link As" if you are using Firefox. Upload that file to your Blackboard class and edit it to add your content. For help with this process or with creating your own template, contact the Instructional Technology Department at extension 229.