Blackboard requires admin privileges to add LTI tools before instructors can add links to their own courses. Please refer to your onboarding communication for your APA-provided key and secret.

On this page, you'll find instructions for

1. LTI Integration
2. Adding Course Content Links to Blackboard (Learn or Ultra)
3. Initializing the Course
4. Using Blackboard-Specific Features
5. Copying Your Blackboard Course

1. LTI Integration

In Blackboard, only those with an admin role can add tool providers. (Please refer to your onboarding communication for your APA-provided key and secret.) If you're an instructor adding content links to your course, please skip to Step 2 below.

To add PsycLearn,

• Log into Blackboard.
• Using the toolbar on the left side of the screen, select “Admin” (and a specific course if required).
• In the Integrations area select LTI Tool Providers.
• Select the Register LTI 1.1 Provider tab.
• Complete the Provider Domain Status area as follows:
  • Provider Domain - app.willolabs.com
  • Provider Domain Status - Approved
• Complete the Default Configuration area as follows:
  • Default Configuration - Set globally
  • Tool Provider Key - Provided by CUPA
  • Tool Provider Secret - Provided by CUPA
• Complete the Institution Policies area as follows (illustrated below):
  • Send User Data - Send user data over any connection
  • User Fields to Send - Check all (role, name, and email)
• IMPORTANT - Please talk to your Onboarding Specialist if your institution requires different privacy settings.
• Select Submit.

After you submit the configuration details for APA Digital Learning tools

• Select the Manage Global Properties tab from the LTI Tool Providers page.
• Complete the Feature Availability area as follows
• Creation of Tool Provider Links - Allow only links to approved tool provider.
• Allow configured tool providers to post grades - Yes
• Select Submit

2. Adding Course Content Links to Blackboard (Learn or Ultra)

Once the LTI integration is complete (adding the tool provider as described in Step 1), content needs to be made visible to students. This is completed by adding specific links to your course.

For more ideas on how to use APA Digital Learning content in your course, have a look at our best practices pages for Academic Writer and PsycLearn. You may also want to attend one of our Academic Writer teaching and learning sessions.

Blackboard currently has two user interfaces - Blackboard Learn and Blackboard Ultra. The navigation on the left-hand side is a good way to differentiate Blackboard Learn from Blackboard Ultra, where the plus sign (+) used to add content is a key identifier of the interface. Make sure you're using the version that matches your LMS.

 

Adding Links in Blackboard Learn

• Navigate to your course.
• Select a content area on the left (e.g., Week 1, Week 2, etc.,) where you'd like to add your content links. If one doesn't exist, create a new one using the + icon.Please note that you cannot add content links to Learning Modules in Blackboard Learn.
• Hover over the Build Contenttab and select Web Link (illustrated below).

• Complete the Web Link Information fields as follows:
  • Name - Name your Academic Writer or PsycLearn link
  • URL - Paste the URL provided by APA (check the spreadsheet from your Onboarding Specialist)
  • Select the box to indicate This link is to a Tool Provider.

• In the Description area, we recommend adding text that describes or contextualizes the assignment for students.
• To assign a point value that will feed into your grade book:
  • Select Yes to Enable Evaluation.
  • Enter a number of Points Possible.
  • Select the box to make the link Visible to students.
  • Enter a due date, if applicable.
• In the Web Link Options area, make sure you select Yes to indicate that the assignment needs to Open in a New Window. If you do not select Yes, your assignment links will not work correctly.
• Select Submit to publish your assignment.

Adding Links in Blackboard Ultra

• Navigate to your course.
• Select + Createto add a new link. 
• Select Teaching tools with LTI connection from the navigation menu.
• Complete the New LTI Link fields as follows:
  • Select Visible to students to publish the link to your course.
  • Configuration URL - Paste the URL provided by APA (check the spreadsheet from your Onboarding Specialist
  • Select the boxes to Open in a new window and Create a gradebook entry for this item.
  • Enter a due date, if applicable, and your preferred grading method.
  • Select the appropriate category (Assignment or Quiz) for your link.
• Select Submit.

3. Initialize the Course

You must initialize your course so that students can access any of the APA Digital Learning content you added. This one-time-only step is required. To initialize your course, select any link that you've added.

• Enter your course start date (as mm/dd/yyyy). The date you provide will determine when students can begin accessing Academic Writer and PsycLearn content. (If students are using access codes, this date will also be used to determine their free trial period.)

Select Submit to initialize your course.

4. Using Blackboard-Specific Features

Blackboard Learn and Blackboard Ultra have different features - make sure you're looking at the features for your version.

In Blackboard Learn, use adaptive release and analytics to customize your course content availability and see how students are using any optional content. (These features are available for Blackboard Learn users - Blackboard Ultra content is coming soon.)

Adaptive Release

Adaptive release allows you to customize the availability of course content based on criteria like date or student performance. With some planning, adaptive release can save you time by making appropriate content available to students when they need it.

By Date

If you do not want students to work too far ahead in the content, publish assignments and quizzes on a specific date by using adaptive release. For example, you can set an Academic Writer quiz to be released to students after the due date for the corresponding quick guide or tutorial assignment.

Set the date when you are creating the assignment in the Standard Options area.

Select a date to Display After. (You can also select a date to Display Until if you'd like to make content available for a specified and limited amount of time.

You can also enable adaptive release on existing assignments by selecting the arrow next to the title to access the drop-down menu.

• Select Adaptive Release (not Adaptive Release: Advanced).
• Select a date to Display After. (You can also select a date to Display Until if you'd like to make content available for a specified and limited amount of time.)
• Select Submit to add the release parameters to your existing assignment.

By Grade

You can use the adaptive release to provide additional content and assignments to students based on a quiz or assignment grade. For example, if you assigned the How to Avoid Plagiarism and Self-Plagiarism quiz and if a student scores below the specified threshold that you set on the quiz, you can release the How to Avoid Plagiarism and Self-Plagiarism tutorial for them to review.

To enable adaptive release based on student performance, select the arrow next to the title to access the drop-down menu of the content to be released. (Using the example above, select Adaptive Release from the tutorial, not the quiz.)

• From the drop-down menu, select Adaptive Release.
• In the Grade section, use the drop-down menu to Select a Grade Center column to select the quiz or assignment on which you are placing the conditions. (Using the example above, select the quiz - Remember that you're placing the conditions on the tutorial to be released based on quiz performance.)
• Select the conditions for releasing the content. There are three condition options:
  • The student has any attempts at the quiz,
  • The student scores below a specified grade, (see example below) or
  • The student scores between a specified grade range.
• Select Submit to add the release parameters to the assignment.

Analytics

Analytics allow you to see how students are using Academic Writer. For optional or ungraded assignments, analytics on assignments (or links), content folders, or content areas can give you insights on how many and which students are using Academic Writer, helping you determine the value of the resource in your course.

Assignment Analytics

Individual link analytics can help evaluate general links to Academic Writer such as a link to the Writing Center if completing writing assignments in the platform is optional for students. Because you can not only see how many times a link was used, you can view statistics by the user to correlate student performance with the use of the resource.

To add and access analytics to an assignment or link

• Navigate to the Standard Options area of the link settings when you are adding a new link or editing an existing one.
• In Track Number of Views, select Yes.

• To view the usage report for the link, make sure you're not in Edit Mode, and select the arrow next to the title of the assignment. From the resulting drop-down menu, select View Statistics Report. (The View Statistics Report option will only appear for links where you've selected Yes to Track Number of Views.)
• On the Course Reports page, select the arrow next to Content Usage Statistics and select Run to run the report.
• Select a format and date range for the report.
• Select user data to include - if you do not make a selection, the report will include all users.
• Select Submit to run the report. (If you cannot download the report, please check your browser's notifications or settings.)

Content Folder Analytics

If you have included your Academic Writer links and assignments within a specific content folder in your course, you can view statistics on student activity such as how many times they selected the link and the time of day it was used.

To add and access analytics on a content folder

• Select Yes in the Track Number of Views area when editing the content folder. You can also select the arrow next to a folder title and select Statistics Tracking from the drop-down menu to access the statistics tracking option.
• To view the usage report, use the steps above to access and run the View Statistics Report option from the folder drop-down menu.

Content Area Analytics

If you have added your assignments within one content area of your course, you can run a report to see how many times your students accessed PsycLearn.

To view Content Area reports

• Use the left-hand navigation menu to get to Course Management, then select Evaluation, then Course Reports.
• Select the arrow next to All User Activity inside Content Areas to access the drop-down menu and select Run.
• Select a format and date range for the report.
• Select user data to include - if you do not make a selection, the report will include all users.
• Select Submit to run the report. (If you cannot download the report, please check your browser's notifications or settings.)

5. Copying Your Blackboard Course

If you've used APA Digital Learning Tools in previous courses, you may be able to copy your course, modules, and assignments. After you copy your course, we recommend double-checking

Assignment link settings (to make sure they're still opening in a new tab) and Assignment due dates.

If you don't see the options shown in these instructions, you may need assistance or additional privileges from your Blackboard admin.

If you'd like to review additional content and add new links, please refer to the spreadsheet provided by your onboarding specialist. Please note, that launch URLs are not clickable until they have been added to your course.

To copy your course

• Select Admin from the left-hand navigation menu, then Courses from the Courses area of the Administrator Panel.

• Search for your course, then check the box next to the course. Select Copy Course from the upper right area of the screen.

• Confirm the course copy type (into a new or existing course) and options (course IDs), then select Submit.