As part of the SHSU Online mission, we routinely review and make recommendation on instructional software applications for academic use in distance education programs and courses.
Blackboard Collaborate
Blackboard Collaborate is a webconferencing tool very similar to a virtual classroom that instructors may use to record lessons or provide realtime interaction with students. Live sessions can be scheduled and users can connect and interact using a large variety of functions including screen sharing, PowerPoint walkthroughs and a virtual whiteboard.
Resources
Toll Free, North America Phone: 1-877-382-2293
Self-Service Support: Click Here
TurnItIn
TurnItIn is a submissions tool for papers that checks against various databases and resources for plagiarism. This programs highlights for the instructor where content in the submission matches or could possibly have been plagiarized from the databases for easy review and provides a percentage of matched content present in the submission.
Resources
Self-Service Support: Click Here
Blackboard SafeAssign
SafeAssign compares submitted assignments against a set of academic papers to identify areas of overlap between the submitted assignment and existing works. SafeAssign is based on a unique text matching algorithm capable of detecting exact and inexact matching between a paper and source material. Submissions are compared against several databases:
- Internet: Comprehensive index of documents available for public access on the internet.
- ProQuest ABI/Inform database: More than 1,100 publication titles and about 2.6 million articles from 1990 to present time, updated weekly (exclusive access).
- Institutional document archives: Contains all papers submitted to SafeAssign by users in their respective institutions.
- Global Reference Database: Contains papers that were volunteered by students from Blackboard client institutions to help prevent cross-institutional plagiarism.
FacultyEnlight
FacultyEnlight is your source for researching, adopting, and sharing insights about textbooks and course materials. Use this tool to order the textbooks for your course.
Respondus Lockdown Browser
Respondus LockDown Browser® is a custom browser that locks down the testing environment within Blackboard. When students use Respondus LockDown Browser they are unable to print, copy, go to another URL, or access other applications. When an assessment is started, students are locked into it until they submit it for grading. Available for Windows, Mac and iOS.
Should you wish to enable the iOS version of Respondus Lockdown Browser for your exams, please note that this app requires iOS 7.1 or later and is currently compatible with the iPad only. For more information, please contact the SHSU Online Support Desk.
Resources:
Support: Click Here
Mashups
Mashups allow Instructors to add content to a course that is from an external website. This content is used in a variety of ways within a course: a standalone piece of course content, part of a test question, a topic on a discussion board or as part of an assignment. The content displayed in a course will still reside on the external website.
The default Blackboard Mashups include the following:
- Flickr: a site for viewing and sharing photographic images
- Slideshare: a site for viewing and sharing PowerPoint presentations, Word documents, or Adobe PDF Portfolios
- YouTube: a site for viewing and sharing online videos
- Voice Authoring: tool used to embed a voice message in other content by creating a voice authoring mashup in any content that uses the content editor
ExamSoft
ExamSoft Connect makes it easy for faculty who use Blackboard Learn, to create, deliver, score and analyze exams, and then share feedback directly with students. The ExamSoft Connect integration automatically synchronizes key pieces of data between Blackboard and ExamSoft to make daily administration seamless and information access simple. This integration is used only by certain SHSU Colleges.
TK20
TK20 allows for the creation of an integrated, assessment, planning and reporting system. Used in conjunction with Blackboard, TK20 offers faculty the option to...
- evaluate students on key assessments from within Blackboard
- send grades, scored as part of the Tk20 assessments, back to the Blackboard gradebook
TK20 integration also provides students the ability to submit assignments from within Blackboard. Currently, TK20 has been implemented by the College of Education.
Resources:
Phone: 1-512-401-2000
Email: support@tk20.com
Packback
Packback is an AI-supported online discussion platform that improves student curiosity, communication skills and critical thinking.
Resources:
Email: noah.kraulidis@packback.co
Schedule a consultation: CLick Here
Hawkes Learning
Hawkes Learning Systems is the only publisher that focuses solely on student success in mathematics education. The Hawkes LMS integration transfers grades from the Hawkes testing environment into Blackboard Learn. Currently, this tool is utilized by the Math Department.
Resources:
Phone: 1-843-571-2825
Chat/Email Support: Click Here
Self-Service Support: Click Here