Toolin’ Around: How do I upload my syllabus to Brightspace?

Welcome to another CTLE Toolin’ Around!

Brightspace makes it easy to upload a PDF or Word Document syllabus into your course. Use this guide to get your syllabus online and to your students in just a matter of minutes.

For information on writing your syllabus, you can view the syllabus template which can be found under resources and tools on the internal CPCC website (login required).

Uploading Your Syllabus:

We recommend you upload your syllabus to the content area of your Brightspace course. Below are steps to upload your syllabus!

Note: These steps assume that you have uploaded the RCE pack into your course.

Steps:

1. Enter your course and select Content Tab.
2. Select “Syllabus and Course Information” on the side menu.
3. Select “Add Existing.”
4. Drag/Drop your syllabus from your computer into the designated area in your course.
  - If you’d like to browse for your syllabus, select Browse, and select “Open.”
5. Be sure to move the “visibility” toggle at the top left from “Hidden” to “Visible” so that students can view your syllabus.

View the video below to see the steps in action!

Toolin’ Around: Google Docs Voice Typing

Welcome to another CTLE “Toolin’ Around”!

What are these posts?

They are brief, easy-to-implement tips involving the tools we use everyday with students to make our teaching lives, well, easier (and possibly even more effective).

Toolin’ Around Tip: Use the Google Docs Voice Typing tool to produce engaging Blackboard announcements for students.

Benefits?

By first producing a class announcement using the voice typing tool, an instructor can then use the transcript as a means to produce a composed, focused, and concise message for students. The resulting MP4 audio file can then be inserted into a Blackboard announcement (with the Google Docs transcript linked and attached as an accessible Word document).
Students may enjoy receiving a course update in a new way with an audio-only announcement this way. Audio-only can also amplify the human side of an instructor–tone, emphasis, well-chosen words, and personality–in a different way than text only announcements. And who does not appreciate a break from video overload right now?

Learn How Now!

Enjoyed this? Tried it out? Have another idea we can share among teachers at Central Piedmont? Let us know in the Comments section below.

Toolin’ Around: Discussion Originality

Welcome to another CTLE “Toolin’ Around”!

What are these posts?

They are brief, easy-to-implement tips involving the tools we use everyday with students to make our teaching lives, well, easier (and possibly even more effective).

Toolin’ Around Tip: Select from within “Forum Settings” to prohibit students from viewing other threads until they post their own.

Benefits? This simple setting can create big results: more original critical thinking in threads from each student prior to asking them to engage with and reply to one another’s threads! In turn, we as instructors may enjoy reviewing them for evaluation more too.

Learn How Now!

Enjoyed this? Tried it out? Have another idea we can share among teachers at Central Piedmont? Let us know in the Comments section below.

Toolin’ Around: Visual Rosters

Welcome to another CTLE “Toolin’ Around”!

What are these posts?

They are brief, easy-to-implement tips involving the tools we use everyday with students to make our teaching lives, well, easier (and possibly even more effective).

Toolin’ Around Tip: Create a visual roster for your class to set a more inviting and personalized learning environment.

Benefits? Faculty can use these to put a face with the name as they field electronic communications and digital grading. Students can enjoy this roster as they interact in online and hybrid learning exercises together. Remote learning can feel more rich, vibrant, and engaging when we better “see” one another.

Learn How Now!

Enjoyed this? Tried it out? Have another idea we can share among teachers at Central Piedmont? Let us know in the Comments section below.