Instructional Support

This section of the Teaching Hub provides guides and resources to support good pedagogy and instruction in all DWR Writing and Speech courses.

Instructional Designer

Make an appointment with Andrew Davis or stop by Lamar Hall Suite B, Rm. 22.

Blackboard Templates

The WRIT 100/101 Blackboard template provides a pre-developed course structure, major assignments, and grade center configuration for the standard, NYT, and NPR curriculum options. It is designed to accommodate face-to-face and web modalities and is fully customizable once added to a course.

The template is designed to save you time and headaches and to provide a consistent experience for students. If you would rather build your Blackboard shell from scratch, you’re free to do so.

Get the Template

Download the Blackboard package below. The package is a .zip file, and you should not extract it. Some browsers (like Safari), may extract the .zip file automatically, so if you see an extracted folder, try downloading the package using a different browser.

If you would like to be added to the Blackboard sandbox for the template instead of using the package, just contact Andrew Davis. This is a good option if you only want to use certain parts of the template.

Importing the Template

Log in to your Blackboard course. Below the main course navigation, select “Import Package/View Logs” from the Course Management Menu. On the next screen, click the “Import Package” button.

Important

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“Import Package” Button

Upload the .zip Blackboard package you downloaded earlier by clicking “Browse my Computer.” You’ll know you have successfully uploaded the package if you see the file name “WRIT100-101 Template.zip”

Important

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Attach the template .zip file that you downloaded earlier.

Click the check boxes next to the following items to import:

  • Content Areas

  • Announcements

  • Discussion Board

  • Grade Center Columns and Settings

  • Rubrics

  • Settings (automatically checks “Banner Image” and “Navigation Settings)

  • Tests, Surveys, and Pools

Click Submit when you’re done.

Cleaning Up

All of the Blackboard menu items in your course before the import will still be there when it’s finished. You should delete all menu items except the following:

  • Announcements

  • My Grades

  • Welcome

  • About this Course

  • Current Week

  • Course Content

  • Major Assignments

  • Reflection Blog

  • Additional Resources

  • Panopto Video

  • RhetLab Dashboard

  • UM Writing Centers

Feel free to reorder or rename these items as you wish.