CUNY Blackboard

The Blackboard 9.1 upgrade is CUNY’s upgrade from the current LMS (Learning Management System) 8.0 to 9.1. Each college of The City University of New York will be part of the upgrade from 8.0 to 9.1.

CUNY is upgrading to version 9.1 of Blackboard in order to keep pace with the update and expansion of Blackboard’s services.  The new version will provide us with many new features such as flexible course menus, expanded Group capability, improved grading and assessment, multi-media mash-ups, and a new look and feel.

The upgrade is scheduled to take place beginning on May 18, 2012. On that date, all courses except Spring 2012 will be moved to the new Blackboard environment. Spring 2012 courses and organizations will continue uninterrupted in the original Blackboard 8.0 environment. For a detailed timeline, click HERE.

The main effects on faculty will be learning how to use the many new features and getting accustomed to the new look and feel of Blackboard 9.1. In addition, courses other than Spring 2012 will be unavailable between May 18 – May 24. Spring 2012 courses will then be unavailable starting June 15th and will be brought over to the new Blackboard 9.1 environment between June 19th and July 31st.

Students will notice a more graphical interface and more features in the upgraded version of Blackboard 9.1. Students will still be able to upload assignments, participate in Discussion Boards, and view Course Documents as in the previous version.

A task force of Blackboard Administrators from across CUNY has been formed. Members of CUNY-CIS are also on the task force. The job of the task force is to provide information to the individual college campuses. Information at the campus level has been and will continue to be provided on several platforms: e-mail, posters, workshops and training seminars for both students and faculty.

A task force of Blackboard Administrators from across CUNY has been formed. Members of CUNY-CIS are also on the task force. The job of the task force is to provide information to the individual college campuses. Information at the campus level has been and will continue to be provided on several platforms: e-mail, posters, workshops and training seminars for both students and faculty

Yes! Training courses and workshops are being offered at your college now. You will learn about some of the new features of Blackboard that will make building your course easier and more efficient. Please check with your school’s Blackboard Administrator or http://www.cuny.edu/blackboard for dates and times at your school.

The upgraded version of Blackboard 9.1 will provide all of the features of the current Blackboard system and more too!

A great place to start learning about Blackboard 9.1 is right from the source! Blackboard. Visit the Blackboard On-Demand Learning Center at: http://ondemand.blackboard.com/ The Blackboard On-Demand Learning Center features videos showing step-by-step use of the features in Blackboard. If you would rather read about Blackboard 9.1, you will find all the documentation at the On-Demand Learning Center. Links to CUNY-specific documentation and training materials can be found here.

A great place for students to learn about Blackboard is: http://ondemand.blackboard.com/students.htm Students will be able to view videos on the new features of Blackboard 9.1.

Some of the new features in Blackboard 9.1 are:

• New Home Page and Course Page interface with faculty Control Panel functions upfront
• Drag and Drop file upload and course menus
• Mashups with the ability to integrate rich media using YouTube, Slide Share, and Flickr.
• Blackboard Learn Toolbar for Firefox and Internet Explorer
• Course Files Storage Structure
• Improved grading with more options
• Interactive rubrics

Faculty can go to http://www.blackboard.com/Platforms/Learn/Products/Blackboard-Learn/Teaching-and-Learning/Feature-Showcase.aspx to explore the highlights of the new features in Blackboard 9.1. These features will be displayed more fully during the campus training sessions.

The following building blocks will be available in Blackboard 9.1 at the time of the upgrade: Browser Tester; e-readers (Nook/Kindle); iTunes U; Learning Objects (Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts); Link Checker; Mash-Ups for Word, Flickr, SlideShare and YouTube; MERLOT Search; SCORM; and Blackboard Collaborate. Several other building blocks are being reviewed. Other building blocks will be added in the future.

Since March 2012, faculty have had access to a test server that has been upgraded to Blackboard 9.1. The test server is located at http://cunyuat.blackboard.com You can access this server with your usual CUNY Portal username and password, and your courses from previous semesters are located there so that you can begin becoming accustomed to the new interface. When you attend training sessions for Blackboard 9.1 on your campus or on another campus, you will use your courses on this test server.

The office on your campus that has been providing Blackboard assistance will be the one you should turn to for upgrade information and assistance. Training on Blackboard 9.1 for support personnel from the CUNY campuses took place at the end of October 2011.

A team consisting of representatives from CUNY CIS, CUNY’s Blackboard Subcommittee of the Committee on Academic Technology, CUNY’s Blackboard Management Council and Blackboard Inc.’s Managed Hosting group have been planning and executing the Blackboard 9.1 Upgrade Project activities. CUNY is working with Blackboard Inc. to ensure the system is fully tested and will perform well. CUNY Project Task Forces for Training and Communications are also working to update Blackboard training materials and get information out to the CUNY community about the upgrade to Blackboard 9.1.