Faculty Spotlight
Introduction (con't)
Having witnessed the effectiveness of this technique, Dr. Costen
continued to structure her class in this manner after coming to the University of Tennessee. She continued to post reading materials—now using the
Blackboard course management system—and to require discussion board
activities prior to class sessions, but found herself facing another
problem: an incredible volume of class-related email. It was at this
point that Dr. Costen discovered and began implementing Blackboard's
Message Tool.
The message tool functions as a sort of intra-course email system, but
all messages and related attachments are resident within a particular course site—they do not actually mail to an external email account. This virtual course email box is only accessible from within the course site, and all
course materials as well as course-related communications were now resident within a single site.
The next step was training students to use this and only this tool for
communication, which required a bit of discipline on the instructor's
part, also. Students were required to check for new messages at LEAST twice
daily, even on days when class did not meet. The results for Dr.
Costen? "I probably check Blackboard messages five or six times a day, even
weekends." It has become her class' primary way to communicate, except in cases of emergency, and also provides a means for students to communicate with each other. Another benefit of implementing this system has been greater student accountability, as the system provides dated proof of when information was posted, and when assignments were submitted.