myLesley Course Checklist

Modified on Thu, Apr 10 at 2:55 PM

Getting Ready for the Start of the Semester/Term

This guide will walk you through all the tasks needed to get your course ready for the new semester or term.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Getting Ready for the Start of the Semester/Term
Prepare for Your Course
Teaching on Campus?
Set up Your myLesley Course Site
Review Your Copied Content
Help and Support

Prepare for Your Course

The following guidelines will help you as you prepare for your course.

Task	Resources
Check to make sure that you can log in to your Lesley accounts.	Log in to Lesley University account management. Set up account recovery information. Set up multi-factor authentication (MFA). Log in to Lesley services with single sign on (SSO).
Order your textbooks.	Login to the Virtual Bookstore to place your textbook adoption.
Utilize your library resources.	Check for relevant books, articles, videos, and more on the Lesley Library website. Email asklib@lesley.edu with any questions.
Send a welcome announcement to your students.	Create Announcements in myLesley.

Teaching on Campus?

If you will be teaching on campus, make sure to familiarize yourself with the classroom technology and make sure that you can log in to Wi-Fi.

Task	Resources
Familiarize yourself with the technology available in your classroom.	Classroom & computer lab technology. Using the HyFlex classroom technology . Contact it@lesley.edu to request HyFlex training.
Set up Eduroam Wi-Fi access on all the devices you will be using on campus (laptop, tablet, phone).	Eduroam installation and FAQ.

Set up Your myLesley Course Site

Utilize your myLesley course site to organize your course content including your syllabus, readings, videos, student activities, assignments, and more. You may set your course to Private while you are working on it and then make your course Available when you are ready for students to access the content.

Task	Original Course View	Ultra Course View
Set course to Private while you are updating the content.	Set Course Availability in myLesley.	Set Course Availability in myLesley.
Reusing content from a previous course?	Copy Original Courses. Or fill out the Course Copy Request Form.	Copy Ultra Courses. Or fill out the Course Copy Request Form.
Upload your course syllabus.	Post your Syllabus in myLesley.	Post your Syllabus in myLesley.
Create and manage course content.	Create Course Content in Original. Add and Format Content (Original). Managing Release Dates in Original.	Create Course Content in Ultra. Add and Format Content in Ultra (add links, files, images, and videos). Set Content Visibility and Release Conditions in Ultra Courses.
Create and manage activities and assignments.	Create Discussion Boards (Original). Create Assignments (Original). Create Blogs and Journals (Original). Create Tests (Original). Create VoiceThread assignments and activities.	Create Ultra Discussions. Create Ultra Assignments. Create Ultra Tests. Create Ultra Journals. Create a Cloud Collaboration. Create VoiceThread assignments and activities.
Check the accessibility of your course content.	Create Accessible Alternative Formats of Documents in Your myLesley Course (Blackboard Ally for Instructors).	Create Accessible Alternative Formats of Documents in Your myLesley Course (Blackboard Ally for Instructors)
Set up your Grade Center/Gradebook.	New to grading in myLesley? Check out the Grade Center tutorial (Original). Grade Center and Grading (Original).	Blackboard Ultra Gradebook and Grading.
Manage date/time settings for students with accommodations.	Manage student accommodations (Original).	Manage Student Accommodations in Blackboard Ultra.

Review Your Copied Content

As a best practice, you should always review your copied content for errors.

Please note that not all Original content will copy into an Ultra course. Refer to the Should I Create New Content in Ultra or Copy From an Original Course? support article for detailed information.

Review the way your course is organized

Check to make sure that your course is organized the way you want it. Is your content organized in a logical order? Can students easily access the content?

Ultra Courses: Edit, replace, delete, and reorder Ultra content to improve workflow and student navigation. If you copied from an Original course, be on the lookout for nested content and flattened folders as well as truncated folder and link descriptions.
Original Courses: Organize your Original Course Menu to make sure that students can easily navigate your course and find your content. Edit, reorder, copy, or move Original content to improve workflow and student navigation.

Review your course content

Check all of your content for formatting issues (including text and spacing), broken links, and file attachments. Pay special attention to embedded content, such as videos.

Ultra Courses: If your formatting is wonky, you may edit or recreate it using the Ultra Content/Text Editor.
Original Courses: Use the Original Text/Content Editor to edit or recreate your formatting.

Review your content visibility settings

Check to make sure your students can view your content! Unsure if your students can view your content properly? Use the Student Preview to view your course as a student.

Ultra Courses: Check your Ultra content visibility and Release Conditions to make sure that your content is visible to students.
Original Courses: Check your Original Release Dates to make sure that your content is visible to students.

Adjust your Due Dates

If your gradable items have due dates assigned, these will come over in the copy. Due dates appear in many places in myLesley, including your graded item, the course calendar, in the students' Activity Stream, and in the Gradebook.

Ultra Courses: You may adjust due dates for each item one at a time or use the Batch Edit tool to update them all at once.
Original Courses: You may adjust due dates for each item one at a time or use the Date management tool to automatically adjust the due dates.

Review your media content

Review your media content to ensure that it plays correctly, captions are accurate, etc. In some cases you may need to re-insert your media. Refer to the Managing Media in myLesley support article for more information.

Review your instructions

Review and update any instructions that you have written to make sure they reflect current workflows. This is especially true if you have converted your course to Ultra.

Help and Support

Convert Your Course to Blackboard Ultra

Teach your next course in Ultra! Lesley University is transitioning to Blackboard Ultra, the new and intuitive version of myLesley/Blackboard. Learn more about the advantages of Ultra and how to get started today!

Blackboard Ultra Training Options

Choose the training option that best suits your needs! Whether you prefer to go at it alone, or want extra support and training on your journey, we have an Ultra training for you: Blackboard Ultra Training Options.

Unable to attend one of our trainings? Email elis@lesley.edu to set up an appointment or request a small group training.

Faculty Online Office Hours

Have questions about myLesley? Need assistance? Join the eLIS staff for our weekly online office hours every Monday and Thursday, 2:00 - 4:00 ET. No appointment necessary: Join eLIS Online Office Hours.

Contact Us

Reach out to eLearning and Instructional Support (eLIS) at elis@lesley.edu with any questions or to request a 1:1 or small group training.