Contents
- Replacing Blackboard in 2025
- Humanities eLearning staff training and development
- Video tutorial (repeat): Using Outlook "Bookings with Me" to schedule meetings (e.g. with students)
- ITL Open Workshop: Developing Student Understanding of Assessment Criteria through Peer Marking
- Workshop: Education enhancement in the Faculty of Humanities
- eLearning Team staff changes
- Blackboard homepage change for Semester 2
- 2-factor authentication (Duo) for students
- SoSS eLearning Twitter account
- SoSS T&L website
- How to get help from the eLearning Team
Replacing Blackboard in 2025
Testing of the three potential new Central Learning Environment (CLE) systems has now been completed. The systems tested were Blackboard Ultra, Canvas and Brightspace.
The panel is expected to announce the result in November following the official contract acceptance, with a view to the system being fully implemented by September 2025.
Humanities eLearning staff training and development
Visit our Training & Development page online to get up-to-date details on upcoming instructor led sessions.
NEW! - Introduction to Padlet - Learn how to use Padlet effectively in your teaching.
Introduction to Blackboard - Explore the basics of navigating courses and communities within Blackboard.
Introduction to Feedback Studio - Discover how to access and grade Turnitin assignments via Feedback Studio.
Introduction to Learning Design - Learn how to begin developing or re-working a course based on tried and tested methods.
Accessibility in Online Teaching - Discover how to enhance the accessibility of your digital course content.
Using Camtasia in Your Teaching - Learn how to use Camtasia to create professional screencasts and videos.
Using Outlook "Bookings with Me" to schedule meetings (e.g. with students)
A repeat - for the benefit of new staff - of the video first included in our last newsletter.
IT Services recently implemented "Bookings with Me" as part of Outlook, which is a scheduling tool that enables staff and students to book meetings by checking your availability against your calendar.
This short video shows you how to request access and get started: https://video.manchester.ac.uk/embedded/00000000-42f0-2e9c-0000-018bfbf55040
Institute of Teaching and Learning Open Workshop
Developing Student Understanding of Assessment Criteria through Peer Marking
Thursday 26th October 2023, 12:00-13:00, led by Professor Dan Rigby
Student dissatisfaction with assessment and feedback is a recurring problem.
Many students (say they) have a poor understanding of marking criteria and some only engage with the criteria ex-post, when engaging with staff regarding disappointment with their mark.
We reported on an initiative to increase student understanding of marking criteria in which first year UG students:
- mark sample essays prior to attendance at a writing/marking workshop.
- use the feedback structure they will receive on their subsequent essay
- can only book into a workshop if they have uploaded marks/comments into Bb
For more info and booking, please visit the Training Catalogue.
Further events can be found on Institute of Teaching and Learning's website
Workshop: Education enhancement in the Faculty of Humanities
How should we support education enhancement in the Faculty of Humanities?
How are academics supported to - and rewarded for - improving education in the Faculty of Humanities at Manchester? How should they be? Whether you are a seasoned innovator with well-practiced approaches or have less experience but want to explore what we could do, please come along.
Sarah Dyer (Associate Dean Teaching & Learning) will be hosting a 1.5 hour workshop over lunch where we will explore what is in place at the moment and our aspirations for what we would like to be.
Register to attend on Eventbrite on either 8th November, 11am or 9th November, 12noon.
eLearning Team staff changes
We are pleased to welcome back Rachel Willder from maternity leave, although this also means we are sad to lose Lauren Starr who returns to her role in the Faculty eLearning Team.
Also absent from SoSS is Elsa Lee, who is currently acting as interim Assistant eLearning Manager. We are pleased to announce Stuart Phillipson as the new eLearning Manager for Humanities, replacing Anna Verges Bausili who left the University in July.
Learn more about the SoSS eLearning Team on the SoSS website.
Blackboard homepage change
Just a quick note to inform staff that the Blackboard homepage will be upgraded to Blackboard Ultra for the start of Semester 2. The homepage will look different, but all courses and community spaces will remain the same.
More information on this will be communicated nearer the time.
2-factor authentication (Duo) for students
On Tuesday 10th October, IT Services made a change affecting how students log in to Microsoft 365 services with the Duo Mobile app.
Full information for students is here.
SoSS eLearning Twitter (X) account
We have made the decision to close the SoSS eLearning Twitter (X) account, as engagement was small and our newsletter is reaching many more people. Thanks to all those that followed over the years that it was active.
The Humanities eLearning Twitter account still remains active.
SoSS Teaching & Learning website
Don't forget to visit the SoSS T&L website - we welcome contributions to the blog about all aspects of Teaching and Learning.
Please send us your news, articles, publications and suggestions by email to: sosswebteam@manchester.ac.uk.
How to get help from the eLearning Team
You can find the different ways in which to contact us - regarding issues and requests big or small - on our Get Help page on Staffnet.
Remember that eLearning cannot add staff or students to Blackboard courses, however if your school admin team is struggling with technical issues we can assist with these (see Get Help page for details). (We can add users to Bb Community spaces.)
Please do not email the generic eLearning email address for help and advice - that email address goes to the Frontline IT Services Team and can take many days to reach us.