As we prepare for the retirement of BbLearn on July 31, 2016, it is important to keep in mind that some course components will not be accessible once BbLearn is retired. Instructors must consider whether these components are of value to them, and if so, are responsible for ensuring that they retain copies in their own records. This archival activity is a useful practice to undertake at the end of each term.
Only course content, materials and blank activity placeholders are migrated into Brightspace. No student-generated submissions, interactions, or external tools are migrated. For example:
- Assignment submissions and feedback: While blank assignment dropboxes do migrate, previous student submissions to those dropboxes cannot be migrated. If you wish to keep a copy of previous student submissions, you must export them from BbLearn – this can be done in bulk. If you used the inline annotation feature in BbLearn and wish to keep a copy of the annotated version, you must export the marked-up files individually.
- Discussion board postings: only empty discussion forums will be migrated to Brightspace. If you wish to keep the contents of a discussion forum/thread, you must export those into PDF format.
- Test/Quiz submissions and statistics: only the tests/quizzes themselves are migrated to Brightspace, ready to be re-offered. The student submissions and associated statistics from prior offerings are not migrated.
- To export test/quiz statistics:
https://dal.ca.campuspack.net/Groups/Instructional_
Technology_Resources/How_Tos_0#/page/41526454
- To export test/quiz statistics:
- Grades: only empty gradebook columns are migrated to Brightspace, with no individual values or feedback. You are able to export your entire gradebook, including feedback, into Excel format for safekeeping.
- Blogs, Journals, Wikis: the contents of Blackboard Blogs, Journals or Wikis do not migrate to Brightspace. CampusPack is integrated into Brightspace and provides a more powerful Blog, Journal, Wiki and Podcast tool. If you used CampusPack with Blackboard, the content is still available but it will need to be re-linked.
- Blackboard Collaborate recordings: links to archived Blackboard Collaborate recordings will not migrate to Brightspace and alternative methods of access will need to be discussed. Please contact us for more details.
- Other external tools: integrations with other external tools, such as textbooks and publishers, among others, will need to be re-created in Brightspace. Please contact us for more details.
- Files: file content does migrate to Brightspace and an archive of file content will be centrally maintained. However, it is recommended that instructors maintain their own copy of files outside of the LMS for safekeeping and backup purposes. We also recommend that files from previous terms be removed from the LMS and stored in another location, such as OneDrive.
If you would like assistance or advice on any of the above, or are concerned about any other aspect of the migration and what does or does not transfer, please get in touch with the Instructional Tech team via email to intech@dal.ca or phone 902-494-3456.