Faculty Tools

Announcements

The Announcements tool lets you post time-sensitive information such as deadlines, changes, corrections, clarifications, and schedules. By default, your students will see this page first when they enter your Blackboard course, so it is a useful place to post important information.

Adding a New Announcement

From the Control Panel:

1. Click on the Announcements link in the Course Tools section.
2. Click on the Add Announcement button.
3. Type the announcement’s information in the appropriate Announcement Information fields.
4. Course Link, Click on the Browse button.
   a) Choose the link from the course map window.
5. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click on the Submit button.

Options:

• Permanent announcement – Yes, will make the announcement permanent and will always be viewable.
• Choose date restrictions– Enable both the Display After and Display Until options to control when your announcement is visible to your students.
• Link location – Use this option to add a link to a section of your Blackboard course in the announcement.

Modifying an Announcement

From the Control Panel:

1. Click on the Announcements link in the Course Tools section.
2. Click on the Modify button.
3. Modify the Announcement fields.
4. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click on the Submit button.

Removing an Announcement

From the Control Panel:

1. Click on the Announcements link in the Course Tools section.
2. Click on the Remove button.
3. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click on the OK button.

More Information

Q: How can I have another area be my course entry page?
A: In the Control Panel under the Course Options section, click on the Set Course Entry Point link to change the entry page.

Q: Can I change the order my announcements appear to my students?
A: Yes, however, you cannot change the order the same way you do with folders and items. You can change the order by modifying an announcement. The last modified announcement will appear at the top.

Q: How can I make an announcement always show up at the top for a student?
A: Enable the Permanent announcement option. This will make your announcement permanent. It will appear before all other announcements that have this option disabled. The last permanent announcement you modify will be the top announcement.

Q: How can I direct students to other sections of Blackboard from an announcement?
A: Use the Link location option and browse for the link in the course map that appears.