Sub sections:
Blackboard
Contents
Blackboard is one of two Learning Management Systems (LMS) that UNE uses to deliver its online course materials. Here you’ll find everything you need to complete your studies including weekly topic notes, lecture slides, lecture audio, online quizzes, discussion boards, and online chat.
You can access Blackboard units either via the myStudy tab in myUNE (click on the BB icon in the UNE Online column), or directly by going to: http://olt.une.edu.au
Every unit is subtly different, as your lecturer decides the look and feel of their unit. All units will have a menu on the left-hand side which looks like this:
And most will have links in the main body of the page (usually under the lecturer’s message, if there is one) which look like this:
A detailed overview of some of the commonly used features is below:
Common Features
Course Content
This is the home page for your unit. You can navigate back to it at any time by clicking on this link.
Discussions
This is the Discussion Board for your unit. Here you can interact with the other students in the course, answer topic questions, ask for help etc. Discussion boards are static, and it may take some time to get a response. Think of them like posting an email which everyone in your unit can see and respond to. Many lecturers now make participation in the online discussion boards part of your assessment, so don’t forget to check here regularly.
Announcements
This is where you’ll find any important announcements during the course of your unit. Many lecturers also design these announcements to appear in “popup” windows when you first log into the unit. If you miss these popups, or want to view the message again later you can click here to see all of the announcements for the semester.
Assessment
Sometimes found in the side-menu, but often found as a link on the unit home page this is where you will find details of your assignments and other assessments for the unit.
Mail
Blackboard has its own email tool. This is NOT the same as your regular UNE email. The Mail tool in Blackboard will only send to the people within that particular unit (eg LS100), and they will need to access these emails through the mail tool itself by logging into the unit. Mail sent using this tool will be lost once the semester is over, and the online unit is closed. In most cases, therefore, it is a much better idea to use your normal UNE email to contact people, rather than this tool. To avoid confusion many lecturers disable this function.
Chat
Unlike the Discussion Boards, chat happens in real-time. It is text-based, and much like MSN Messenger etc. You can only chat with people who are currently logged in, and who have also clicked on the Chat function. Chat uses Java, so you will need to make sure you have the latest version installed (www.java.com).
Web Links
Useful links for your unit. Some of them may be UNE links (e-Submission, e-Reserve, Webmail etc), and others may be specific to the course.
Who’s Online
This lists all of the people from your unit who are currently logged in. This is useful if you want to use the online Chat or Discussion Board features.
Audio Recordings
Also known as “podcasts”, these are the recorded audio from your weekly lectures. Where once they may have been sent on cassette or CD, you can now download them in MP3 format right to your computer.
To play them back you will need to install iTunes (you can download it for free from: http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/). Once you’ve done this there are 2 ways to save the files:
- One at a time by right-clicking on each lecture title (eg “Lecture 1”), and choosing “Save Target As...”, or “Download Linked File As...”. You can then play the files by going to where you saved them on your computer and double-clicking on them.
- By subscribing to the podcast. Simply scroll to the bottom of the list of lectures, and click on “Subscribe to this podcast”. You can then access the files by opening iTunes, and selecting “Podcasts” in the left-hand menu. New lectures will automatically appear in iTunes as they are released by the lecturer.
My Grades
This is where you will find the results of your online quizzes, and any assessments you have completed within Blackboard. Sometimes you will also find your assignment grades here, but more often than not these are found separately within the e-Submission system.
My Files and My Notes
You can store files and notes within Blackboard. Please note: you can only access these files if you are logged into that particular unit, and when the semester ends and the unit is closed you will no longer be able to access them. If you do use this feature, make sure you back your files up to your own computer as well.
Unit Information
Usually found as a link on the home page of the unit, this contains your unit handbook and general information for the unit.
Topic Notes/Lecture Slides
Usually found as a link on the unit home page, this is where you will find weekly notes, reading lists and lecture slides.
Troubleshooting
If you are having trouble accessing your online unit, here are a few things you can try:
- Check to see whether UNE sites are down for scheduled maintenance. Our Service Announcements blog can be found at: http://blog.une.edu.au/serviceannounce/category/itd-announcements/
- Run the browser test to make sure your web browser is configured correctly: http://www.une.edu.au/portal/browser_test/
- Make sure you have popup blocking turned off in both your browser, and your antivirus software
- Download the latest version of Java from www.java.com
- If you are behind a firewall (eg at work), or have antivirus software make sure UNE sites are in the trusted list
- Clear the cache in your browser, and try again
- Try using a different web browser. For instance, Firefox is free, works on both Mac and Windows, and can be downloaded from: http://www.firefox.com
- If you can, try accessing your unit on a different computer- does the problem still persist?
Getting Help
If you’ve tried the troubleshooting tips above, and you’ve checked the FAQ at AskUNE, and still can’t access your online materials you can contact the IT Service Desk at servicedesk@une.edu.au, or on (02) 6773 5000.