Presenters: Danny Monaghan & Peter Mella, Organisation: University of Sheffield Description: This session will describe how we created a programme to help and promote development of quality course material in Blackboard Learn, by creating an exemplary course programme based on Blackboard’s. We will show delegates how we started this process, and how we are attempting to create a small and self-sustaining community of academics who are actively looking to develop high quality course content that don’t require large scale support, by using the tools available in Learn rather than relying on a high level of technical knowledge or external software packages to create rich content. We will conclude by looking to the future, and show where we would like this work to take us.

1. Driving Up Quality
Improving the quality of Blackboard Learn courses
with an Exemplary Course Programme

2. Driving Up Quality (Street…)
Improving the quality of Blackboard Learn courses
with an Exemplary Course Programme

3. Who we are
• Danny Monaghan
Senior Learning Technologist
d.monaghan@sheffield.ac.uk @Dan_LXIX
• Pete Mella
Learning Technologist
p.mella@sheffield.ac.uk @TheMella
• The University of Sheffield (South Yorkshire, UK)
Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) Team
Corporate Information & Computing Services
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5. 5
“It's not necessarily a technical issue, but some departments organise
MOLE better than others.”
“MOLE is not easy to use. I don't think this is necessarily ITs fault though-
information is put in different places and states opposing information about
the same things e.g. assignment deadlines; more of a tutor problem. There is
no consistency about how it is used across modules.”
“Teach professors how to better use MOLE as some of them use too many
links to get to work.”
“MOLE is such a mess and hard to use. All the lectures are just all over the
place and some not even updated.”
“MOLE is brilliant and the only way I can think of improving it involves the
departmental staff - some lecturers don't organise where they upload
files and it's frustrating to have a huge folder of random files.”

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7. 7
Introductory
presentation
Peer support
between sessions
Show and tell

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12. Before…
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13. After…
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14. Before…
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15. After…
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16. Before…
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17. After…
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18. After…
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19. After…
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20. After…
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“Really easy to access information; sorted into clear folders; just better
than all other modules on MOLE so far!”
“Easy to navigate – other MOLE pages can be tricky to navigate.”
“Miles better than any other MOLE pages I have previously used.”
“[The course pages] are easy to navigate and are interesting. Helps to
keep me engaged with the material.”
“The lectures slides were embedded in the page, with further explanations
around them. This is much better practice than other modules where
PowerPoints exist by themselves.”
“Pages were very interactive - this made understanding of material useful.
Also liked the inclusion of videos, sample field notes.”

22. Impact
• Improved courses!
• Great student feedback
• Greater consistency among lecturers’ courses
• Practice spreading among colleagues in departments
• Colleagues using their courses’ results as evidence in their
professional accreditation (FHEA)
• Increased awareness and appreciation for Blackboard Learn’s
capabilities
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23. Challenges
• Getting it off the ground
• Lack of initial institutional buy-in
• Staffing issues
• Some confusion as to purpose of programme
• Some departmental processes for course structure do not match
ECP rules
• Some peer review groups less engaged than others
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24. 24
Introductory
presentation
Peer support between
sessions (in pairs)
Show and tell

25. 25
Introductory presentation
Loosely structured
workshop
Peer support between
sessions (in threes)
Show and tell

26. What next?
• Use of alumni for feedback on future cohorts
• Promoting successes
• Faculty-focused sessions
• Implementing a new institutional course template using
Exemplary practices
• Institutional-level awards
• Putting colleagues forward for BlackboardAwards
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27. Any questions?
• Danny Monaghan
Senior Learning Technologist
d.monaghan@sheffield.ac.uk @Dan_LXIX
• Pete Mella
Learning Technologist
p.mella@sheffield.ac.uk @TheMella
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