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Best Practices for Conducting Sessions

Owned by Gerard Ross
Mar 12, 2020
2 min read

Introduction

Here are some general guidelines for hosting your Blackboard Collaborate Ultra session.

Table of contents


Prior to the Session

  • Connect using a stable wired ethernet connection – if possible. If you have to use WIFI, try to be in a quiet area with a strong, stable Wi-Fi signal. The stability of your connection is more important than the speed of the connection. Use the Network Status link (discussed later) to monitor your connection.
  • Provide opportunities for participants to interact and collaborate with each other.
  • Design sessions to include interactivity and include variety of content and interaction in your session.
  • Practice before leading your first session. Use the Record a Session tool to perfect your presentation.
  • Develop familiarity with the session content.
  • Open applications needed for application sharing before the session begins.
  • Upload files for sharing before the session begins.
  • Find a comfortable place with no distractions to deliver the session.

During the Session

  • As an aid to all Participants and while the session is starting, share a simple PowerPoint slide with details of the session, connection information and contact details for the Blackboard Helpdesk
  • Greet participants as they join the session.
  • Remind participants to run the audio and video set-up tests available under My Settings in order to test their microphone and speakers.
  • Speak clearly and don’t rush.
  • Ask questions and provide opportunity for interaction.
  • Assign another moderator to the session to help you with large sessions and answer questions in chat.
  • Animate your delivery.
  • Look at the whole screen, not just the content area. For example, watch for Chat messages and for new participants joining the session.
  • Encourage participants to respond and to raise their hands when they have a question or comment.
  • Use the whiteboard tools to assist you in your delivery. For example, use the pointer to call attention to specific regions of the screen.
  • Include features such as application and file sharing to assist you in delivering your content.
  • Use polling and breakout groups to increase participant interaction.