I delivered a presentation last night to teachers who work in a county that only allows them to use Blackboard.  Given that, I saw no point to going in and talking about the possibilities that other tools and services make available, or complaining about the limitations of Blackboard.¹  That’s a presentation for the administration.  Instead, I tried to think of some suggestions to help teachers get the most out of Blackboard.

I discussed forums, blogs, and wikis–first in general, then in Blackboard specifically.  My main point was that the two most powerful elements "Web 2.0" technologies bring to the classroom are audience and ownership.  It’s these elements, and not the tools themselves, that are significant and that can result in genuine learning if teachers know how to respect and protect these elements, take advantage of them, and guide students to opportunities for discovery.

The notes are available on my wiki: "Working with Blackboard."  Feel free to edit the pages or to argue/expand in the comments here or the discussion tab there.

1. Not to mention it’s questionable legal tactics. [back]