Blackboard Folders VS Modules

Two popular methods of chunking course content in Blackboard is by using folders or by using learning modules. Unfortunately, the differences between folders and learning modules are not clear to instructors because in your view they look virtually identical except for the icon. In fact, these two tools have different features. This post will help you decide which is best for your situation.

Folders

• A folder in Blackboard can be used to collect documents, links, and so on. You can add any type of content or assessment to a folder.
• A key feature of folders is that all folder content is seen at once. When they enter a folder, students see a list of the contents, just as the instructor does. None of the contents open automatically. Users must click each item to open it.

Learning Modules

• Learning modules are intended to be used to not only collect, but organize and sometimes control access to course content. The Online Learning accessible template (a.k.a. Haystack) used for online courses is built with a learning module structure.
• Like folders, all types of content and assessments can be added to a learning module. Instructors can force students to view the contents of a learning module in sequential order.
• A key difference between folders and learning modules is that students do not see the "list" view of the module the way a instructor does. When a student enters a learning module, the first item in the module opens automatically. Students only see one piece of content at a time in learning modules, which can help students focus and can help instructors control the learning experience. Learning modules do include a navigable table of contents, which is not present in folders.

Recommendations

Advantages of Modules

For wholly online courses, there are advantages to using learning modules to structure units or lessons. Courses that use "Haystack" include Lesson Activities pages that are intended to be the first experience students have with each lesson. This page is designed to open in browsers, within Blackboard, and to serve as a roadmap and launching pad for the entire week or lesson's activities, including quizzes, discussions, lectures, readings, outside resources, etc.

Advantages of Folders

For enhanced courses or courses not built using "Haystack," there are occasions when using a folder instead of a learning module can have an advantage. One situation is when your "lesson activities" page is a file linked to from OneDrive. The OneDrive file exists outside of Blackboard. So, if you begin a learning module with a OneDrive file, it may open the OneDrive file in a new tab of the web browser. This can be jarring or confusing to some users. Users will also need to navigate back to their Blackboard tab, which can be even more confusing on a smart phone, in order to resume the lesson.

The advantage to using a folder when linking to a OneDrive file is that when the student enters the folder, nothing will open automatically. Students will need to click the item for it to open, which tends to be less confusing. Moreover, instructors can include information in the name of the file to let students know what to expect. For example, the link to the OneDrive file could be called "Start Here - This link will open in a new window."

How to Add a Module to Your Class

Need to add one more weekly lesson folder to your course? Here's how!

1. Enter your course and navigate to Lessons (homepage) -- the page with the list of your learning modules
2. Open the Build Content menu
3. Click Learning Module
4. Fill in the Name and, optionally, add a description in the Text field.

Next, you will need to add content to the module. The files of your Blackboard course should include a few page files in each folder to get you started. If you need additional folders or files, ask an Online Learning instructional designer for assistance.

Add a File link to Course Module

Adding a File to a Blackboard course module is easy.

Step 1: In module

• Navigate to the module where you want the file.
• Select Build Content
• Choose file

Step 2: Name Link to File & Browse

• Name the file link**
• Choose Content Collection

**NOTE: This is not a file name so spaces and capital letters are fine.

Step 3: Navigate Content Collection

• Click on My_Course_Files folder
• Continue navigating folder structure to correct location

• In correct folder, browse file
• Select radio button left of correct file

Change File Linked in Module

Changing the file linked in a Blackboard course module is easy.

In Module

1. Find the file you'd like to replace
2. Select action link
3. Choose Edit Options

Edit Name & Get File

• Edit name if needed **
• Select Different File

**NOTE: This is not a file name so spaces and capital letters are fine.

Navigate Content Collection

• Click on My_Course_Files folder
• Continue navigating folder structure to correct location

• In the correct folder, browse file
• Select radio button on the left