Chapter 6
Using Course Cartridges
Course cartridges are supplemental material available from textbook publishers, containing comprehensive course content to import into your Blackboard course. Content may include slides, documents, animated tutorials, quiz banks, lists of relevant links, and other learning materials. Cartridges can be an excellent resource for instructors who are just beginning to develop online teaching strategies.
If you choose to use a course cartridge, your students will be able to access the cartridge material installed in your course. Some cartridges require a Student Access Key that comes bundled with the student's textbook purchase. Other publishers may provide the Student Access Key to the instructor for in-class distribution. Still other cartridges are "Open Access" and do not need any key-code or password at all. If a Student Access Key is required, students are prompted to enter the key through the "Course Documents" area of the Blackboard course. After this initial entry, they will have continual access to the material.
Once you have received an Instructor Download Key from your publisher, you will be able import the cartridge into your Blackboard course.
To obtain a course cartridge, visit the Blackboard Course Cartridge at
http://cartridges.blackboard.com
You will find a listing of current cartridges available, a publisher contact list, and other pertinent information related to cartridges.
To Download a Course Cartridge:
- In the Course Options area of the Control Panel, click "Import Course Cartridge."
- In the text box, enter the Instructor Download Key.
- Click "Submit" when finished.
- Click "OK" to acknowledge the receipt of your changes
Upon installation of the cartridge, instructors should receive an e-mail confirmation when the cartridge has finished downloading. Instructors are then free to customize the content by adding and deleting materials as needed to correlate with specific topics covered in the classroom.
If you experience any technical difficulties while importing the course cartridges or need additional assistance, please contact the Blackboard Support Team.