Blackboard Mobile
The University has recently purchased Blackboard Mobile Learn which is available to all students and staff. The app will work on iOS (iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad), Android devices and Blackberry devices.
To download please visit your App Store using the following links
Blackboard Mobile Learn is not intended to be a replacement for desktop / laptop computers, but give a convenient view into a number of areas. The key features for staff and students are listed below.
Student Features
Push Notifications sent to your device when there are new annoucements, grades, new pieces of content, new tests available (and overdue!). To use any of these you will need to have notifications turned on for your device. This means you no longer need to login to see if new content has been added, you will be informed!
View content. You can view any new content uploaded to your course, some content types are available within the app, depending on the platform, otherwise you can view it in your device's web browser.
Participate in Discussions. If your course uses them, the mobile app provides a very easy way to use discussions boards and blogs.
Set Favourites. Both Staff and Students can set favourite courses and organisations (e.g. to hide previous years courses). To do this press the star on the course menu, these will then show up in the favourites area.
Also, unless instructed to do so by your staff we recommend not using the Mobile App for high stakes assessments or assignments. Please continue to use a desktop browser for those.
You can see a demo of the App at http://www.blackboard.com/Platforms/Mobile/Resources/Demos.aspx or use the App's inbuilt help.
Staff Features
The mobile app is mainly aimed at students and viewing material, however some key features are available for staff. For more information on how you can make your Blackboard course site mobile-friendly please refer to Best Practices for Mobile-friendly Courses.
Mobile Tests. Within the main blackboard site, you can create mobile compatible tests for students to take within the app. Only certain question types are available at present and we recommend that only formative assessments are done via this method. The mobile tests can also be taken in a browser so students without compatible devices are not at a disadvantage.
Further information about how to create mobile-friendly tests can be found here: Faculty guide to mobile tests
Adding Content. You can add announcements via the app and add content. The latest release of the app integrates with Dropbox to get around the iOS 'sandbox' environment where apps cannot see each others data. Any of your course material stored in Dropbox can be added from there. When creating content it is useful to set the 'Description' field as this is used within the app before opening any content.
Tasks. You can give your students tasks to do, e.g. read a book, look at something new or meet with a group. Students can then use the app to confirm they have completed the task.