What is Ultra & how do I learn more about it?

Mon, 12 Nov 2018 15:17:31 -0500
blackboard, ultra-course-preview, ultra-experience

Training and support are essential components of a successful transition to the Ultra Experience. This past summer, about 30 faculty and staff attended the Ultra Experience Boot Camp, one of several training solutions available to the campus community. This semester, about 30% of the UMBC faculty who attended the boot camps opted to teach with Ultra. Their fourteen courses include traditional, hybrid, and fully online formats with more than 500 students.

The FA2018 pilot faculty are not the only instructors with access to the Ultra Experience! All FA2018 faculty now have access to an Ultra Course Preview sandbox... do you know what to do with it?

First, look over the FAQ and video about the Ultra Course Preview. The Ultra Course Adoption Center also has useful information.

Next, check out the Ultra Learn Essentials self-paced resources. All FA2018 faculty were enrolled in this self-paced course.

If you have questions, plan to attend an Ultra orientation, stop by a walk-in clinic, or open an RT ticket to make an appointment to speak to instructional technology staff.

Self-paced training and boot camps are not the only options. We are also prepared to offer:

Department Training

Instructional Technology staff are available for department training and orientation requests. These workshops may be scheduled in 45-minute, 90-minute, half-day, or full-day sessions on pre-packaged topics or mix & match themes. Please open an RT ticket to schedule this training.

Ultra Experience Essentials Boot Camp (3-5 hours)

This fast-paced program is intended for advanced Blackboard users who are very comfortable with the existing system. By the end of the workshop, participants should be able create and upload content to an Ultra course, create and grade assignments, configure the gradebook, and create, monitor, and grade discussions.

Webinars (ITNM & Bb)

Virtual trainings (45 minutes) provided by Instructional Technology staff and Blackboard offer flexible solutions for faculty training. Topics include Skill Builder workshops, Blackboard Innovative Teaching Series, Best of Bb World, course development, flipped classrooms, best practices, what’s new updates, or other customizable sessions.

Ultra Experience Redesign Workshop (2-day)

Focusing less on “button-ology” of using Ultra, this program is a 2-day workshop designed to support faculty as they redesign and redevelop their existing Blackboard courses for the Ultra Experience. Faculty will compare conversion vs. redesign options when migrating to UX, prepare Original courses for conversion to the Ultra Experience, and check courses for quality.

TA Training / Course Design Boot Camp (2 hours)

Instructional Technology staff are available to deliver a 2-hour workshop for Teaching Assistants on the effective use of Bb’s Ultra Experience specifically for teaching assistants. Please open an RT ticket to schedule this training.

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

Check our extensive FAQ collection

About the Ultra Experience | What’s new in Ultra?

Open a ticket via RT

Follow the Instructional Technology & DoIT myUMBC groups

Request a consult with instructional technology staff