In mid-May Blackboard was upgraded to version 8.0. The new version of Blackboard includes a completely redesigned grading area called the Grade Center, a self and peer assessment tool, and a social bookmarking service (Blackboard Scholar).

Returning faculty will notice the most dramatic changes within the new Grade Center which offers a number of improvements over the previous Gradebook:

• An Excel-like interface with in-line editing.

• "Freezable" columns (i.e. student name, ID) eliminate scrolling back and forth between the grade column and name column while inputting scores.

• New tools (Action Bar/Action Links) provide access to multiple functions via contextual pop-up menus.

• Customize, organize, filter and sort grade data in a variety of ways. Change layouts or column order by dragging and dropping into place.

• Create new grade center smart views based on group membership, benchmarks or grade performance criteria.

• Create new calculated columns to display average, maximum, minimum, total or weighted grades.

• Send e-mails to students directly from the Grade Center.

• Grade History tracks all grade assignments and changes that occur within a course – an especially useful feature for courses with multiple instructors.

While it offers greatly increased functionality, the Grade Center is not without its imperfections. For example, early users frequently experienced loading delays. Patches applied to the Blackboard system following the upgrade helped decrease the average load-time of Grade Center pages significantly. IT staff, in cooperation with Blackboard support, continue to investigate new ways to improve performance.

A complete collection of print tutorials, Flash videos and known issues regarding the Grade Center are available in the Faculty Tutorials area of the Bb@CMU Web site, www.cmich.edu/blackboard.

The IT Helpdesk is your first point of contact for questions, reporting issues and requesting assistance. The current hours are Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to midnight; Friday, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to midnight (Eastern Standard Time). Contact the Helpdesk by phone, on campus at extension 3662, local off-campus at 989-774-3662, or off-campus long-distance toll-free at 800-950-1144, extension 3662.

COM 560: Communication and Social/Organizational Change

Requirements: Ph.D. in Communication with a concentration in Communication or Mass Communication Theory

 

COM 561: Communication in Conflict Management

COM 665: Seminar in Communication and Negotiation in Employee Relations

Requirements: Ph.D. in Communication or Ph.D. in Communication with an optional specialization in Organizational Communication preferred

 

COM 667: Seminar in Intercultural Communication

Requirements: Ph.D. in Communication and either teaching experience in intercultural communication or appropriate graduate course work in intercultural communication

Locations:

     Lansing and Southfield, Michigan as well as other Michigan locations

     The Pentagon, Washington, DC

     Richmond, VA and other Virginia locations

The successful candidate will teach adult students in classes offered on alternating weekends or one night a week for eight weeks. A generous stipend is paid plus reasonable travel expenses incurred with the teaching of the course.

The University does not cover sponsorships to the United States and/or relocation expenses for temporary/part-time courses.

If you are interested in further information concerning these opportunities at CMU and how to apply please visit our Web site at www.cel.cmich.edu/faculty/opportunities/application.html. To view CMU's Off-Campus job postings please visit CMU's Web site at www.cel.cmich.edu/faculty/recruitment/job-postings.html. For additional information, contact Amy Courter at 800-950-1144 or court1al@cmich.edu. If you respond by e-mail please attach your curriculum vitae.

CMU, an AA/EO institution, strongly and actively strives to increase diversity within its community (see www.cmich.edu/aaeo).