Blackboard Ultra (Faculty) - Journals: Using Journals

Creating a Journal

Journals are personal, online spaces for students to reflect on course material, discuss ideas, and pose questions about course-related topics. As an instructor, you can create one or more journals in your course and set up the journal to be graded or not graded.

Steps to Create a Journal

1. Navigate to your Blackboard Ultra course.
2. In the Course Content area, click the plus sign.
3. Select Create.
4. In the Create Item panel, click Journal.
   
   
   
   
5. Type a descriptive Title. If you do not add a customized title, the default title will be "New Journal" and the date it was created.
6. Add Instructions for the journal assignment in the text box. Provide students with clear prompts or guidelines for their journal entries. Use the text editor toolbar to include hyperlinks, attach other relevant items, or add audio/video components.
7. New journal items are hidden from students by default. Use the drop-down menu to change the visibility settings or to set release conditions.
   
   
   
   
8. (Optional) Under Journal Settings, you can:
   • Add a due date.
   • Set availability dates.
   • Grade the journal:
     1. Select Grade journal.
     2. Enter the Points possible.
     3. Add a rubric.
     4. Choose grading settings, such as allowing anonymous grading or parallel grading.
9. Click Save.

Accessing Student Journals

Once students have submitted journal entries, you can access and grade them (if applicable) by taking these steps:

1. Navigate to the journal in the Course Content area.
2. Click on the journal title.
3. Click on the Grades & Participation tab.
4. Student submissions will be listed, and you can click on a student's name to view their journal entries and provide feedback.

Need Additional Support?

This guide aims to provide useful information, but as technology changes, interfaces or steps might vary. Please use the Comment button to let us know if anything differs from your experience. Your feedback helps us keep this information accurate. Thank you!

Accessing the Journal

To access a student's journal for grading:

1. Navigate to the course in Blackboard Ultra.
2. Locate the journal you wish to grade. There are several ways to do this:
   • From the Course Content page, locate the journal.
   • From the Gradebook, find the journal under the "Gradable Items" list.
3. Click the journal title.
4. Use the Journal tab to edit the topic or journal settings.
5. Select the Grades & Participation tab to see a list of students who have submitted entries.

Grading the Journal

Once you have accessed the journal:

1. Select the Grades & Participation tab to see a list of students.
2. Click on a student's name to view their journal.
3. Review the student's journal entries.
4. Type the grade in the white pill at the top of the page.
   
   
   
   
5. Click the Comment button (looks like a speech bubble with a plus sign) and type your feedback in the text box.
6. Click Save. 
7. (Optional) Use the rubric, if one is associated with the journal, to assess the student's work.
8. The grade will automatically save but is not visible to students until you post it. 
9. On the Grades & Participation page, click the Post button at the end of the student's row. To post all grades at once, click the Post all grades button in the top-right.

Navigating Between Students

After grading a student's journal, you can easily navigate to the next student:

• Use the navigation arrows (< and >) at the top of the screen to move to the previous or next student in the list.

Additional Notes

• Students will be able to see their grades and feedback once you post them.
• Ensure you have a clear grading rubric or criteria to provide consistent and fair assessment.

Need Additional Support?

This guide aims to provide useful information, but as technology changes, interfaces or steps might vary. Please use the Comment button to let us know if anything differs from your experience. Your feedback helps us keep this information accurate. Thank you!