Blackboard alternative
As online education becomes more and more popular, Tri-C is constantly encouraging faculty to develop courses in this format. We use a web-based service called Blackboard to present the courses.
After using Blackboard for about four years, I have a pretty good understanding of how it works. I'm not a fan.
Blackboard is clunky and ugly, not at all user-friendly. And did I mention that it's ugly?
The very first assignment I give students in any online class is to introduce themselves via a "Discussion Board."
Here you see how this looks in Blackboard. Many students find it intimidating. Since Blackboard is currently in version 9, I doubt that it's going to change, so I've been looking for an alternative. I recently found one.
Schoology
If Blackboard and Facebook had a one-night stand, Schoology would be their love child.
It has most of Blackboard's educator-friendly features: online tests, attendance charts, statistics-tracking and a whole lot more.
But it's way friendlier. In fact, it looks and works almost exactly like Facebook.
Here, a Week 1 discussion area looks less dense and intimidating than it does on Blackboard. Facebook users will find it very familiar, right down to the "Like" button.
Since we've only been using Schoology for a week, it's too early to tell whether it will take the place of Blackboard, but so far, I "Like" it.
