Collaborate

At the core of Blackboard Collaborate, web conferencing gives you the functionality you need to support a 21st century teaching and learning environment, such as two-way audio, multi-point video, interactive whiteboard, application and desktop sharing, rich media, breakout rooms, and session recording. Educators and students can engage as if they were in a traditional classroom, with as good as, or even better, outcomes.

Getting Started

First, we recommend that you decide how often you would like to hold Collaborate meetings. Will you use Collaborate every day, weekly, monthly, or only for special events?

• If you would like to hold meetings on a regular basis, we can schedule an Collaborate site for the duration of the semester. You will use one link to join the site, and the site will be open at all hours of the day. We recommend this approach for most classroom needs.
• If you only want to use a site for special events, such as a guest speaker or monthly group meetings, we can schedule sites for a specific time period. Please note: The link for each individual site changes so you will need to be sure to use the correct link for each session.

How to Request a Collaborate Site

All faculty and staff may request an Collaborate site. Students can participate in sessions without an account. Instructional Services will establish your Collaborate site within one business day after we receive the request. You will receive an email notification with links to your site when it is ready to use.

• Request a Collaborate Site

After you receive verification that your site has been created, you may use the moderator link to access your site up to 30 minutes before it begins. This will give you a chance to collect your thoughts, upload any necessary files, and perform the Audio Setup Wizard.

How to Present Collaborate to Your Students

When you create a Collaborate site, students do not require a user name or password. We highly recommend that you post the guest link for your Collaborate site in your Springboard course site. Normally, we will schedule your site to be open for the entire semester. This will allow you to use the same site for multiple sections of the same course. Click this link for detailed steps to present Collaborate to your students. To see Collaborate in action, click this link.

How to Contact Blackboard Collaborate Support

Blackboard Collaborate hosts this product and provides technical support 24x7 by phone or online:

• Support by phone: (877) 382-2293
• Support online: http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com/

How to Obtain Collaborate Training

Blackboard provides all training for this product free to all University of Akron faculty, staff and students. We highly recommend that you review the recorded training provided for Moderators, and that you participate in the live hands-on training provided by Blackboard before you moderate your own session.  Please use these links to resources for training support:

• Recorded Videos and Printable Tutorials
• Live Online Training

Who to Call with Questions

• For technical support or training, contact Blackboard at (866) 388-8674 (option 2).
• If you have a question about how to access your meeting or how to add additional moderators, contact Andy Bonecutter from Design and Development Services at (330) 972-2802, or x2802 from a campus phone. You can also direct your questions via email to: collaboratehelp@uakron.edu.

Collaborate can be used to support UA business, teaching, or research.