Dear Students,

If you're in need of technology assistance or resources, please check out the links below:

The Division of Information Technology

Blackboard Predict (BB Predict) is a subscription-based predictive model designed to identify students at risk of receiving a grade of D or F in a course.  UMBC has a long partnership with Blackboard and had an active advisory role in the development of this tool.  While the product produced was high quality, it has been lightly used (although more recently DoIT has partnered with individual faculty and staff to explore ways to use it as part of our student success efforts and as a complement to our First Year Intervention Alert Program).  

Given current usage and financial constraints, we have made the decision to sunset BB Predict and will not renew our subscription.

One factor that limited the usefulness of BB Predict to improve student success through better early alerts is simple.  The model’s predictions only become precise enough to use with confidence at the semester's midpoint and are not “early enough.”  Recognizing that the earlier at-risk students can be identified with precision, the more time we have to help them and the greater the likelihood of their success, the Data Science Team within DoIT and supported by the Provost’s office constructed our own model, now called UMBC Predict.  The team’s goal was to increase the precision of the model’s estimates earlier in the semester, in this case, four weeks from the first day of classes, to allow for greater opportunities for students to seek assistance or change their approach to the class, and for these changes or assistance to have an impact.

UMBC Predict does not attempt to replicate the model and platform of our vendor partner.  The strategy employed by the Data Science Team was to focus on fewer courses in the initial stages of the work.  In particular, the team focused on courses with elevated DFW rates, large numbers of students, and importantly, courses where instructors make relatively heavy use of our learning management system (Blackboard) to engage students and to record assignments and grades throughout the semester.  It has always been true that instructors’ use of the learning management system provides valuable information to students about their progress in the course, but it is also the case that these interactions provide important information that the predictive model can use to sharpen predictions at an earlier point in the semester.

A second important factor underlying our decision to sunset BB Predict is pragmatic and necessary.  With the current pandemic and its associated negative effects upon the state budget, reducing our expenditure on a subscription-based model in favor of an internal model with equivalent or better performance for certain courses allows us to maintain our support for students while freeing up resources to support people and programs.

UMBC Predict is already being integrated into department-level enhanced early alert programs on a pilot basis.  This term, faculty in the Mathematics and Statistics Department and the Dean’s Office in the College of Mathematical and Natural Sciences plan to partner with DoIT and the Analytics and Business Intelligence Group to use targeted communications to students who may be at risk after four weeks.  The communication, delivered over the course instructor’s signature, encourages students to take advantage of their office hours along with other tips developed by the Academic Success Center to improve students’ chances of success both in the course and at UMBC.

The UMBC Instructional Technology Update is provided by the Division of Information Technology for students, faculty and staff. If you have questions or need help, please consult the Blackboard Help FAQs or directly at www.umbc.edu/blackboard/help.  You can also contact the Technology Support Center at 410.455.3838 or submit an RT (Request Tracker) ticket via the myUMBC Help Menu or directly at my.umbc.edu/help.

HEADLINES

What’s New

• UMBC faculty on a mission to prepare robust, high-quality online classes for fall 

• New PIVOT Site Launched for Faculty Professional Development

• Recommended Template Language for Inclusion in Syllabi on Blackboard for Fall 2020

• New Bb Annotate refreshes inline grading tool for SU2020   

• What’s new in Ultra for FA2020?

• Create a +1 strategy and support diverse learning styles  

• FA2020 Courses Created in Blackboard on July 27, 2020

Academic Continuity

• May 4-8 & August 10-14 PIVOT Live webinar recordings available [myUMBC login req’d]  

• Refresh & Expand PIVOT Knowledge with New Solo Lessons

• Effective practices for managing the live virtual classroom

• Using Respondus Tools to Address Integrity of Online Tests

• UMBC Online: By the Numbers

Training & Professional Development (view all events)

• Start of Semester Faculty Sprint: August 21

• Essentials Series: VoiceThread, Panopto, Bb Original 

• Skill Builder Series: Collaborate, Ultra

• Webex (Basics, Advanced, Teams, Events) & Virtual Desktop Environment 

Other DoIT News

• DoIT offers start of semester student technology sprints 
• USM sponsoring access to virtual lab environment - No cost to students!
• Free 3-day conference on virtual labs for Online STEM (Aug 19-21)
• Tips for online purchasing during COVID-19 
• Protecting sensitive data during telework

As always, if you have any questions, please consider the following options:

• Academic Continuity | Keep On Teaching | Student Technology Resources 

• Check our extensive FAQ collection 

• What’s new in Ultra? | Known Issues 

• Open a ticket via RT

• Follow the Instructional Technology & DoIT myUMBC groups

• Request a consult with instructional technology staff