Student Home Pages
From TeachToolsWiki
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What is this?
In Blackboard, Student Home Pages are course specific pages on which students can provide information about themselves. They are particularly useful as community building tools.
Why would I use this?
Rena Palloff, Ph.D. and Keith Pratt, Ph.D. in 'Social Presence' in Online Courses argue that
"Presence online can be defined as the way in which participants present themselves as real people. In a face-to-face situation, we are able to convey in a multitude of ways who we are as people. How does one do that online? How do we help the other participants get to know us; likewise, how do we get to know them so that we have a sense of the group with which we are communicating?
Online, there is greater possibility for a sense of loss among learners – loss of contact, loss of connection, and a resultant sense of isolation. Consequently, attention should be paid to the intentional development of presence. Recent research regarding online teaching and learning is pointing to the critical component of faculty presence in an online course and its relationship to successful course outcomes and learner satisfaction. The development of a sense of presence increases participation in the online course, increases learner satisfaction, and increases the likelihood that learners will feel a sense of accomplishment and a sense that they have learned."
Whether the course is fully online or face-to-face encouraging members of the course to establish an online presence as a member of a learning community is critical. Individual student home pages within the Blackboard class site help establish that presence.
Who is using this?
Dr. Mary Ann Allison, Assistant Professor in Journalism,Media Studies and Public Relations in the School of Communication, recently taught Mass Media: History & Development as a fully-online course....To help get the students to know each other and create a sense of community, Professor Allison asked her students to each create a personal homepage within the Blackboard course.
How do I use this?
For Instructors
Within a course, follow the links:
> CONTROL PANEL > MANAGE TOOLS > TOOL AVAILABILITY
and make sure that Homepage is checked (enabled)
Then follow the links:
> CONTROL PANEL > MANAGE COURSE MENU > + (add) "Tool Link"
and select "Homepage" and click Submit
Tell your students to follow the Homepage link and fill in the blanks to create a Homepage.
Only users with a role of Student can create homepages.
The member's name in a Group is a link to her or his homepage.
For Students
Follow the Homepage link and fill in the blanks to create a Homepage for your Blackboard Course.
If your instructor has not added a link to Homepage on the left-side navigation, try looking under "Course Tools."
On the Homepage tool, you can fill in an Introduction and Personal Information, and then browse to and upload an image. You can also provide links to and information about your three favorite websites.
The information you provide on a class website is private to that class. If you create a Homepage in your Spanish course and another one in your English course, the members of the English course will not have access to the Spanish site and vice-versa.
Where can I find additional resources?
This wiki has a ton of information on all sorts of tools within Blackboard.
Where can I get help?
Faculty Computing Services is here to help you. Please contact us:
- Email: [FCSHelp@Hofstra.edu]
- IM Username: HofstraFCS
- Phone: 516-463-6894
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