Navigate 3.1.2 Creation and Investigation into Courses

I am familiar with Moodle and Blackboard as LMSs. This post will address Blackboard.

Blackboard's key features as an LMS are (1)its user friendly intuitive design and (2)regular program updates. Newer versions of the platform tend to offer more "spiderweb-like" navigation instead of the original strictly tiered navigation of the course's functions. An example is in former versions, when a teacher wanted to post a video clip, an audio file, a MS Word/Excel/PowerPoint/Publisher document or a pdf, she had to click several times to get to the proper "tier" within the course to upload the learning object.  Now, the same "tier" is "reachable" via 1 click on the updated navigation bar.

When creating a course within the Blackboard LMS, a teacher is given a "shell" upon sign-in. A downloadable guide is immediately provided and there are Youtube video tutorials available, also. Most areas of the platform are customizable such as button design and color. Blackboard is compatible with most multimedia formats If not, conversion into an accepted format is always an option. The LMS houses its own grading system, internal e-mail, discussion board and  assessment component allowing teachers to create quizzes/tests that are multiple choice, short answer or cloze questions. Immediate feedback with comments for correct and incorrect answers can be created. Assessments can be randomized, given multiple attempts and time-released. Additionally, previously created quizzes and tests can be uploaded.

Comments from students make me believe that they like Blackboard and find it easy to navigate especially since it is accessible outside of the classroom. As a Georgia Virtual Learning teacher, I look forward to learning more about Blackboard's fuctionality and exploring other LMSs.