Frequently Asked Questions
- How can I list all the students enrolled in my class?
- I need to have an account created for an external (Non-UIC) user. What do I do?
- What tool can I use for students to submit files digitally since the "Digital Dropbox" is no longer available?
- Accessibility in Blackboard 9
- How do I activate a blackboard student account?
- How do I Remove Users During the Start of Semester Enrollment Period?
- Groups Functionality in Blackboard 9
- I am having problems accessing blackboard
- My password doesn't seem to be working but my account still exists. How can I reset my password?
- I am having problems uploading documents
- I got in, but don't see my course(s) listed.
- What happens to my site at the end of the semester?
- Will the students be automatically enrolled into the course site or do we have to manually enroll each and every student into the course site?
- What is the best browser to use with Blackboard?
- Are there general login problems I should be aware of?
- Internet Explorer: Why are my drop down arrows/buttons not opening when I click on them?
How can I list all the students enrolled in my class?
There are a number of ways to list all students, instructors and TA's in your Blackboard course site. Browse to "Course Management" > "Users and Groups" > "Users"
- Select "Not Blank" in the drop down box and click the "Go" button
- Search “Email” and include “@” in the search field, click the "Go" button
- Enter a wildcard of "%" in the search field and click the "Go" button
You can also view your current roster through your Grade Center which will list all students enrolled in your current site. Browse to "Course Management" > "Evaluation" > "Grade Center"
I need to have an account created for an external (Non-UIC) user. What do I do?
Anyone affiliated with the University of Illinois at Chicago and having an activated UIC netid will automatically have a blackboard account. If you need to have an account created for an external user (someone not affiliated with the University) please send an email to accounts@uic.edu. For trouble logging in to blackboard please visit one of the CSO consultants (available in any of the public computer labs on campus) - they have the ability to troubleshoot your common password related issues and assist you in logging in to the system. If you are having problems identifying the username please contact us by sending an e-mail to blackboard@uic.edu.
What tool can I use for students to submit files digitally since the "Digital Dropbox" is no longer available?
The digital dropbox is no longer available in Blackboard 9. Instead there are a number of options available:
- Assignment Manager: The assignment manager allows you can easily retreive the digital files through the Grade Center and even grade, indicate errors etc. and re-uplaod the files to download and view from the student's end.
- The Assignment Manager has always been able to batch download assignments, clearly identify each student submitted file by UIC netid, support for public and private comments and ability for instructors to access student drafts.
- Adaptive Release further enhances the Assignment manager. Blackboard 9 Assignment Manager now supports group assignment submission so there is no need to create student groups just for group submissions.
- Groups File Exchange "Drop Box": Use the groups area as a file storage space for group projects.
- Content System: Use the content system as a large repository area for files. You can even enable versioning to ensure the latest file is posted on the server if you decide to use 1 large class Web disk. As an alternate you could also create an individual folder for each student and versioning would not be necessary. www.accc.uic.edu/itl/webdisks
- For the use of 1 large repository students should follow a nice netid.filename.filetype file naming convention and in case they don't teachers should activate WebDisk's Versioning feature.
- Blogs & Wikis: Each student can have their own personal blog and/or wiki to upload individual files (expo sites).
- File attachments are also supported by the Bblackboard 9 blogs and journal and by Bblackboard 9's Visual Text Box Editor (VTBE)
- Portfolios: The use of portfolios is also a good solution if you like the wizard and overall page layout features that come with portfolios.
- Quizzing: Blackbaord 9 has a quiz "question type" called upload student file.
For more information please visit the Blackboard 9 Wiki and view the section titled "Sharing Files".
Accessibility in Blackboard 9
Blackboard 9 includes significant accessibility improvements incluiding content re-ordering to allow students who use screen readers to quickly organize information and support for style sheets to allow students with disability to view the product in different ways so it is easier to see or hear content on the screen.
Specifically support for screen readers and assistive technologies including:
- Keyboard reordering of content
- Less page frames
- Well formed semantic mark-up (HTML and CSS)
Blackboard measures and evaluates accessibility levels using two sets of standards: Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act issued from the United States federal government and the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) issued by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
How do I activate a blackboard student account?
A good practice to ensure all functionality of your Blackboard course appears, functions, populates the Grade Center and is deployed correctly is to activate a secondary student Blackboard account. You will have a new login ID "netID.bb" and you will use the same password as your primary ACCC common password (same password you access UIC Webmail etc.). After the account is activated (takes up to 30 minutes) you can then enroll your secondary account into your Blackboard course and test appropriately.
How do I Remove Users During the Start of Semester Enrollment Period?
PLEASE NOTE: Be careful when removing students from Blackboard course sites as all information associated with the student (inc. grades and homework assignment submissions) will be deleted. Before removing students, make sure you do not need to refer back to these students' grades, assignments, quizzes, etc. from the Blackboard course site.
The process is quick and easy. However, before you remove a student from your Blackboard course site they need to be removed from the Banner system first. If they are not removed from Banner first they will be re-enrolled after you remove the student from your Blackboard course.
- Please wait 48 hours after a student drops your course for Banner to update its records and so that our Banner-driven overnight student enrollment process does not add the student to your Blackboard course site again.
- Select "Users and Groups" from the Control Panel of your course site.
- Select "Users" from the drop down menu to display the Users page.
- Type the UIC NetID for the student that you want to remove from your Blackboard course site in the box to the right of "Search: UIC netid Starts with".
- Select "Go".
- Select the checkbox to the left of the student's name.
- Select the "Remove Users from Course" button.
- Select "OK" in the dialog box asking, "This action is final and cannot be undone. Delete users?"
- Note that the student's name no longer appears in the list of students in your course.
Note that you can also display the names of all the students in your course using "Search: UIC netid Not blank" and checking the names of any and all students that you want to remove from the course before completing the last two steps of this procedure.
Groups Functionality in Blackboard 9
Blackboard groups can be designated as self-enroll, allowing students to add themselves to a group, or manual enroll, having the Instructor assign students to a group. Instructors can also activate “random enroll” for groups through the Create Group Set so a set number of students will automatically be enrolled into group sets.
Create a Single or Group Sets
- Self-Enroll
- Manual Enroll
- Random Enroll
In addition to the updated enroll features a large number of improved group collaboration tools are now available
- Blogs: Users within the group can post to the Blog and add comments. Instructors can enable the Blog tool for use only within the Course Group, or can grant the public access to the Blog.
- Collaboration: Users within the group can participate in real-time lessons and discussions.
- Discussion Board: The Group Discussion Board is an area where Course Group members can post messages and repliesInstructors can use this tool to encourage discussions of course material outside of the classroom. This Discussion Board is available only to Course Group members, not to the entire course.
- Send Email: All members of a Course Group can send email messages to selected members or the entire group. These messages are internal to the Course Group, they are not available to anyone outside the group.
- File Exchange: Students and Instructors can use this tool to upload documents to the Course Group area and organize them through the creation of folders in which their items can be stored. Students can access this material from within the course. Instructors have access to all folders in their course.
- Journals: Instructors can assign a private Journal to each user in a group to allow private communication between the Instructor and the User.
- Tasks: The Group Tasks page organizes projects or activities (referred to as tasks) by defining task priority and tracking task status.
- My Scholar Home
- Scholar Course Home
I am having problems accessing blackboard
To access blackboard, you must use your UIC NetID (the same as your UIC email ID) and the 'Common Password' (meaning, the same password that you use to access your UIC Webmail). Make sure that you do not append '@uic.edu' to your UIC NetID while trying to log into blackboard.
If you are still not able to access blackboard, try resetting your password at http://passwords.accc.uic.edu.
If you continue to have problems with your UIC computer account and password, please contact the ACCC Client Services Office (CSO) .
You can reach the CSO at 312-413-0003, consult@uic.edu, or you may have to see a CSO consultant at any of the ACCC computer labs (see www.accc.uic.edu/pclabs) or at the CSO main offices in 2267 SEL or 181 BGRC, i.e. the room outside of the ITL-West.
My password doesn't seem to be working but my account still exists. How can I reset my password?
To reset your password you need to visit the password changing utility on-line at:
If you are unable to use this utility you will need to visit the CSO consultants. These consultants are located in a few different locations on campus:
- Client Services Office (Room 2267 SEL)
- BGRC Consultant's office (Room 181 BGRC)
- ACCC Network Operations (Room LL55 BGRC)
The CSO is generally open during normal business hours, and the schedule for the BGRC consultants is posted on their door. Network Operations is staffed 24 hours, 7 days a week. To reach the CSO either e-mail consult@uic.edu or call 312-413-0003.
This utility is only available to users who have activated their UIC NetID. If you have not yet activated your UIC NetID, please visit the ACCC Accounts page and click on Activate UIC NetID.
I am having problems uploading documents
Make sure to name your documents properly. Filenames should be reasonably short, generally not longer than about 20-25 characters, and should not contain spaces or special characters (especially problematic are !:$#/&\,*?;%=). Stick to letters, digits, dashes and underscores and you will have no problems. Uploading problems may also stem from bandwidth limitations from your ISP, and impatient users - don't click elsewhere while uploading a file, but wait for the "content successfully added" receipt.
I got in, but don't see my course(s) listed.
There are various possible reasons:
- Your class does not use Blackboard at all. Ask your instructor if it does and if they requested a site for this term.
- Your site has recently been requested, but is not yet created.
Your instructor can tell you so. - Your site exists, but has not been made available to students.
Ask your instructor to change this from his course control panel, under "Settings > Course Availability". - You have not yet been added (enrolled) to the Blackboard site, although you have enrolled in the course.
- This may mean the site has the wrong call number(s) (CRNs) listed, leading to wrong/incomplete enrollment. Your instructor can correct this from the course control panel, under "Settings > Course Name and Description". Or it may mean our record of you is somehow incomplete/incorrect. In that case, the instructor can enroll you manually for quick access to the site, but it is a good idea to contact us anyway so this doesn't happen again.
What happens to my site at the end of the semester?
Your site will be deactivated two weeks after the last week of classes, meaning students can no longer access them. You can extend the course duration from the Control Panel, under Settings > Duration. Shortly after the beginning of the next term, the site will be made invisible to studenttrol Panel, under Settings > Duration. Shortly after the beginning of the next term, the site will be made invisible to students (Blackboard calls this "unavailable"). The materials in Blackboard sites can easily be re-used for later terms by simply copying the course's contents to a new site. To request such a content re-use, simply fill in our online site request form and specify which previous site you wish to re-use.
One full year after the class is over, the site is disabled, causing it to disappear from your view as well. However, the student records in your site are preserved by us for several years according to UIC policies, although the site appears to have been removed from the server. This also means that your content remains available for site re-use even after the site has been "removed".
Will the students be automatically enrolled into the course site or do we have to manually enroll each and every student into the course site?
Yes, students are automatically enrolled into your site based upon the call numbers you specify in your site request. The batch enrollment process is run from two weeks before the semester begins until the Add/Drop deadline. The batch enrollment will add students into your course site, but you will have to un-enroll any students that drop themselves.
If you have a course site that doesn't have a call number you can send us the list of the Netids of the students that you'd like enrolled to blackboard@uic.edu.
If the students or users you wish to enroll in your site are not affiliated with UIC or do not have netid's. You will need to have an accounts created for them (someone not affiliated with the University) by sending an email to accounts@uic.edu.
If for some reason your students did not get captured by the batch upload process you can manually enroll student accounts already on the system into your course site.
What is the best browser to use with Blackboard?
For Microsoft Windows users you should use Firefox 3.5 (or later) or Internet Explorer 8. For Macintosh users Firefox 3.5 (or later) or Safari 4 (or later). For more detailed information please visit our browser support page.
Are there general login problems I should be aware of?
Your username is your UIC NetID, the same as for all other ACCC services (and many other services on campus). It does not include "@uic.edu". Your password is your ACCC common password, the same as for all other ACCC services, such as webmail or bluestem web authentication. For more detailed information please visit our login problems page.
Internet Explorer: Why are my drop down arrows/buttons not opening when I click on them?
You need to either run an earlier version of Internet Explorer, or if you are running IE9 or later run it in compatibility mode as indicated in the image below.
