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Best Practices for Conducting Sessions

Owned by Gerard Ross
Mar 12, 2020

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.