Here is my news for this week:
CampusPack transition to Blackboard blogs and wikis
We've had Campus Pack blogs and wikis as an add on to Blackboard since 2007. At the end of the Spring 2014 semester, UAA will be transitioning from CampusPack Blogs, Wikis and Journals to the native tools now available within Blackboard. The ability to create new CampusPack Blogs, Wikis, and Journals will be disabled soon. If you have used CampusPack tools, please copy your data to the Blackboard tools soon. Here are the details on the transition from CampusPack to Blackboard tools and how to export any Campus Pack blog, wiki or journa you want to keep. There is no easy migration path from CampusPack to Blackboard. CampusPack has not been widely used and costs the university about $20,000/year.
Grades due
Grades must be posted in UAOnline by 11:59 pm on Wednesday May 7. See this page in the adjunct orientation site about grading and this FAQ from the registrar about entering grades into UAOnline. Talk to your department administrative person or to the Eagle River adjunct coordinator if you have any questions.
Robert Talbert continues his series on flipping his math classes. All of the posts have been excellent. I particularly like the clarity he brings to the learning objectives in this post - and that some of his objectives are not just about getting the right answer, but about the process to get to the answer. Read this post before you do my suggested reflection.
Reflect on the semester
Before you file all your papers (virtual and real) and leave for the summer, take 15 to 30 minutes and reflect on what went well and what you would change next time you teach the course you just finished. If you read Professor Talboert's article, are there pieces that you want to incorporate into your course the next time you teach? One of the marvelous aspects of teaching is that we get to tweak and improve on what we did last time around. So, I encourage you, take a few notes now before you head out for the summer.
Internet Explorer
Last week there was a major security bug discovered in Internet Explorer. It's been fixed - so like taking medicine, you have to do your Windows Updates to keep your computer healthy. Please, please, take time to do this important update if you use IE.
