School of Dental Blackboard Introduction Course (DentalBlackboard)

Recommended to all

• Understand the importance of using the best web browser to deliver successful sessions
• Implement best practices for facilitating effective sessions
• Develop interactive sessions to engage participants into active learning
• Locate resources for Moderators and Participants

• Develop an understanding of the functionality within Collaborate and how these can be used to develop your teaching sessions
• To build a range of skills to help engage trainees in teaching sessions
• To develop your confidence in using the Blackboard and Collaborate systems

• Run regular polls; general practice in this area suggests one every 10 minutes
• Design break-outs into your teaching to explore questions, case studies, practice sharing and hold a plenary to collate the output
• If delivering via a Blackboard Course run a diagnostic quiz before and after to choreograph the experience which interaction
• In the same way, the before-diagnostic quiz could be used by competent SME’s to shape the direction of their teaching
• Reinforce the behaviour of using chat by making shout-out’s to those participants who model valued contribution
• Avoid talking to PowerPoints ad infinitum
• Where possible, use imagery rather than bullet points
• If using PowerPoint, share on the whiteboard (as a Shared File) and use the whiteboard annotation tools to make the content come alive
• Where possible, encourage participants to share their thoughts on the Whiteboard
• Modulate your voice so as to avoid monotone delivery
• Evolving Teaching
• Teachers must model good practice to facilitators
• Participants must expect to be taught not to be trained – or at least that the training will be interactive not simply knowledge transfer
• Start simple with polls and create a culture of interaction
• Build to using breakout groups as confidence amongst facilitators and participants builds
• Start breakouts with an orientation exercise that simply moves people into-and-out-of a breakout group. This helps to diffuse anxiety about the process.
• Keep the first breakout activity simple and low-stakes
• Educate participants on how to save content whilst in breakout groups
• Allow returning participants to upload and share their work (with the Presenter role)
• Tackling Low Engagement
• Giving credit for more than attendance
• Creating healthy competitiveness amongst learners through recognition