Blackboard Release 9 - What's NEW?

Course Menu

Where do I find it?

What's new about it?

Instructors now have direct access to edit and organize their Course Menu from any screen. They also have the ability to add content areas, tool links, sub-headers, and dividers to the menu. The ability to rearrange the order of menu items using drag-and-drop or a keyboard accessible method of organization is also included.

In earlier versions of Blackboard, iinstructors had to view three screens to make even a simple change to the Course Menu, and then had to return to the student view of the course to see the change to the menu. Now all menu changes may be made on one screen.

Empty content areas (those that do not contain at least one visible piece of content) are automatically hidden from the student view of a course. These empty content areas will also not be visible to you when Edit Mode is OFF. When you are in Edit Mode ON, empty content areas are indicated by a dotted square icon to the right of the name. Because students do not see the empty or unavailable content folders, they don't waste time clicking on folders to see if it contains content (and they won't wonder whether the instructor forgot something!).

Finally, a new option to create menu Dividers is now available. It is a nice addition to visually organize your content.

How do I use it?

Make changes to the Course Menu from any screen.

• Start by turning Edit Mode ON in the upper right corner of the screen.
• Add items by clicking the plus sign (+) on the top left of the menu to access a list of possible links.
• To re-order items, click and drag the vertical two sided arrows (next to course menu item) and reposition to a new location. As you drag, a dotted rectangle will indicate where the item will be placed when you let go of the item.
• To edit menu items, click the double arrows ("chevrons") to the right of menu items to access contextual menus. You may rename, hide/show, or delete menu items.
• Add a divider by selecting this option from the drop-down list.

Also see Course Design Settings.

More

Changing the Course Menu (St. John Fisher College - 2 minute video )

Your Course Environment (Blackboard - 3 minute video)

Creating a Blank Page for Content (Blackboard - 1.5 minute video)

Creating a Tool Link (Blackboard - 3 minute video)

Making Tools Available to Students (Blackboard - 2 minute video)

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