Brightspace and Instructional Technology Support Workshops
CFT staff run Brightspace workshops for instructors interested in learning how to use Brightspace tools effectively and efficiently. We are also available during the academic year to facilitate Brightspace workshops on topics both general and specific for departments, programs, and schools, upon request. Email brightspace@vanderbilt.edu to ask about these offerings or the possibility of an invited workshop.
See the main CFT website for other teaching workshops, including workshops focused on educational technology.
Click here to go directly to our Workshop Calendar.
spring 2024 Workshops
A Beginner’s Guide to Brightspace
In this hands-on workshop for people who have little to no experience teaching with Brightspace, participants will get oriented to Vanderbilt’s course management system and learn how to accomplish common teaching tasks. By the end of the workshop, users will be able to:
- Confidently navigate around the different areas of a Brightspace course
- Post, edit, and link Content for students using a variety of tools
- Communicate with students about Brightspace tools they are using
- Access Brightspace Support when they have questions
There will be time at the end of the workshop for participants to ask questions about using Brightspace.
Participants who would like to access Brightspace during the workshop should make sure they are able to log into Brightspace with their VUnetID beforehand.
Workshop Date: Friday, January 5
Time: 2:00-3:00pm
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Erica Brandon, Instructional Technology Consultant, Center for Teaching
Workshop Date: Friday, January 19
Time: 11:00am-12:00pm
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Erica Brandon, Instructional Technology Consultant, Center for Teaching
These workshops are open to anyone teaching or developing courses at Vanderbilt University.
Vanderbilt University is committed to providing universal access to all of our events. Please contact Brightspace and Instructional Technology Support team at brightspace@vanderbilt.edu to request disability accommodations. Advance notice is necessary to arrange for some accessibility needs.
Grades and Grading in Brightspace
Participants in this workshop will learn about the range of tools available in Brightspace to make grading more efficient and effective. By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:
- Build a gradebook that mirrors the grading scheme in their syllabus
- Understand and control how grades are viewed
- Create a gradebook that can be used throughout the semester, and transferred into future courses
Workshop Date: Friday, January 5
Time: 11:00am-12:00pm
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Erica Brandon, Instructional Technology Consultant, Center for Teaching
This workshop is open to anyone teaching or developing courses at Vanderbilt University.
Vanderbilt University is committed to providing universal access to all of our events. Please contact Brightspace and Instructional Technology Support team at brightspace@vanderbilt.edu to request disability accommodations. Advance notice is necessary to arrange for some accessibility needs.
Video Assignments in Brightspace Workshop
Brightspace Video Assignments (Bongo) is a tool that allows students to upload videos, receive feedback from their instructors and/or peers on video uploads, and provide feedback on fellow students’ video uploads. Participants in this workshop will learn about how to use the Brightspace Video Assignments (Bongo) feature to receive, organize, and evaluate such student work. Participants are encouraged to have Brightspace open so they can follow along and build out their Video Assignments. By the end of the workshop, users will be able to:
- Build Video Assignments in the Content area and select the most appropriate options and settings
- Provide feedback on student submissions in Video Assignments
- Grade Video Assignments
There will be time at the end of and throughout the workshop for a Q&A session.
Workshop Date: Friday, January 17
Time: 3:00pm-4:00pm
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Jenny Park, Instructional Technology Consultant, Center for Teaching
This workshop is open to anyone teaching or developing courses at Vanderbilt University.
Vanderbilt University is committed to providing universal access to all of our events. Please contact Brightspace and Instructional Technology Support team at brightspace@vanderbilt.edu to request disability accommodations. Advance notice is necessary to arrange for some accessibility needs.
Building Quizzes in the New Brightspace Quiz Experience
Participants in this workshop will learn about building Quizzes tool in Brightspace. This new quiz experience came out last fall and became the default and only option for quizzes this summer. By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:
- Create and/or edit a quiz in the new quiz experience
- Understand and control timing options for availability and time limits in quizzes
- Connect quizzes to the gradebook
- Determine what students see after they complete a quiz
Workshop Date: Tuesday, January 30
Time: 1:00pm-2:00pm
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Paige Snay, Instructional Technology Manager, Center for Teaching
This workshop is open to anyone teaching or developing courses at Vanderbilt University.
Vanderbilt University is committed to providing universal access to all of our events. Please contact Brightspace and Instructional Technology Support team at brightspace@vanderbilt.edu to request disability accommodations. Advance notice is necessary to arrange for some accessibility needs.
Building Brightspace Assignments & Using Turnitin
Participants in this workshop will learn about how to use the Brightspace Assignments tool to receive, organize, and provide feedback on student work. Additionally, if you are an instructor planning to use Turnitin this semester, either for the originality checker or for the built-in grading features, we will discuss how to use Turnitin to support student learning and spend less time grading. Ideally, participants will have Brightspace open during the session so they can explore and build content in their own course. By the end of the workshop, users will be able to:
- Build assignments and video assignments in the Content area and the Assignments tool
- Select the most appropriate options and settings
- Connect assignments to the gradebook and use the many built-in assessment and academic integrity tools
There will be time at the end of and throughout the workshop for participants to ask questions about using Brightspace.
Workshop Date: Thursday, January 18
Time: 10:00am-11:00am
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Jenny Park, Instructional Technology Consultant, Center for Teaching
Workshop Date: Friday, January 19
Time: 1:00pm-2:00pm
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Jenny Park, Instructional Technology Consultant, Center for Teaching
This workshop is open to anyone teaching or developing courses at Vanderbilt University.
Vanderbilt University is committed to providing universal access to all of our events. Please contact Brightspace and Instructional Technology Support team at brightspace@vanderbilt.edu to request disability accommodations. Advance notice is necessary to arrange for some accessibility needs.
Grading and Feedback with Rubrics Workshop
Feedback and grades should convey to students where they are succeeding and where they need to invest more effort in order to meet expectations. Rubrics are organized grading schemes that can help you give better feedback in less time while also making grading criteria transparent for students. Instructors interested in thinking through how to use rubrics in their teaching are welcome to attend this workshop. Participants will explore several models of rubrics, workshop a rubric that connects to course objectives, and learn how to create easy-to-use rubrics on Brightspace.
Workshop Date: Tuesday, January 30
Time: 1:00pm-2:00pm
Location: Virtual – Zoom
Facilitator: Paige Snay, Instructional Technology Manager, Center for Teaching
This workshop is open to anyone teaching or developing courses at Vanderbilt University.
Vanderbilt University is committed to providing universal access to all of our events. Please contact Brightspace and Instructional Technology Support team at brightspace@vanderbilt.edu to request disability accommodations. Advance notice is necessary to arrange for some accessibility needs.
Perusall
Perusall is a tool that allows students to engage in the social annotation of text, audio, and video. With features such as hashtags, upvoting, and automatic grading to complement the asynchronous discussions, your students will be more engaged than ever as they prepare readings and go over homework using Perusall.
Perusall is a tool that brings the social annotation of digital resources into your classroom. Instructors can assign PDFs, webpages, video, or audio and have students collaboratively engage with those texts. In this workshop, we will explore three concrete ways you can start using Perusall in your classroom right away to increase student engagement with readings, respond to student questions, and direct student attention to course policies and expectations.
There are currently no workshops scheduled.
Gradescope
Gradescope is a tool that helps instructors administer and grade all of their assessments, whether online or in-class. With features that allow for multiple graders, auto-updating rubrics, and more, this tool can help reduce the grading load in classes with certain kinds of assessments. Join the Gradescope Workshop Series to learn more, ask questions, and demo key features.
There are currently no workshops scheduled.
Respondus
LockDown Browser is a custom browser that prevents digital cheating during a Brightspace quiz. This training session will cover how to use LockDown Browser to prevent digital cheating in proctored testing environments and how instructors set up tests to require LockDown Browser. It will also cover how to allow students to access resources such as digital calculators, spreadsheets, external websites, eBooks, and more, during online tests that use LockDown Browser and the student perspective taking a Brightspace quiz that requires LockDown Browser. The workshop will also touch on best practices and resources and will conclude with a Q&A period.
There are currently no workshops scheduled.
Groups and Discussions in Brightspace Workshop
Participants in this workshop will learn about how to use the Brightspace Groups and Discussions tools for engagement, interaction, formative assessment, individual journaling, and more. Ideally, participants will have Brightspace open during the session so they can explore and build content in our test course! By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:
- Build discussion forums, topics, and threads using a variety of available options
- Connect discussions to the gradebook and use the built-in assessment tools
- Construct useful prompts and activities that will promote maximum engagement from your students
There are currently no workshops scheduled.