Reflections on using the Blackboard AI Conversation Tool

By laurenmccann Comment Closed

Find out how Global Academy Lecturer, Brian Turner, has used the Blackboard Socratic Questioning Chatbot feature (part of Blackboard’s AI Design Assistant) in a class, and his thinking on its broader T&L application and meta-use for multiple T&L outcomes.

Overview

I used the Blackboard Socratic Questioning chatbot in my International Foundation Programme Academic English class (1) as a tool as part of the early stages of the process of students generating ideas for a summative essay project, and (2) for student to briefly reflect on the usefulness of the tool itself.

Objectives

  • For students to use the Socratic Questioning chatbot to generate ideas for their summative essay project;
  • For students to then reflect on its use and evaluate how much, if at all, it helped them,
  • Brief class discussion on the two points above but also on the nature and ethics of AI.

Context

I used the Blackboard Socratic Questioning chatbot in an IF0AE2 – International Foundation Academic English class. I wanted to try it as beckoned to by a CQSD session I attended soon after it had been developed and introduced, but also to measure and evaluate student engagement with it as a new possible lesson tool.

Implementation

During Semester 2 of AY 2025-26, I used the Blackboard Socratic Questioning chatbot tool as a means for students to generate ideas in the early stages of their summative essay. Further, I also wanted them to reflect on the use and usefulness of the tool. Two prompts were set:

  1. Use this chatbot to work out a focus for your essay to link the theme of aesthetics to your discipline.
  2. In what ways did the conversation advance your understanding of the topic?

The ‘AI persona’ was set at the default basic of ‘Supportive’ to reflect the scaffolded nature of the class and indeed my pedagogic approach (plus set up was within limited time resource).

Remembering advice from the session I attended, I set ‘Complexity of responses’ at middle level to reflect an appropriate level for a language class.

Afterwards, we had a brief discussion to reflect on the activity and the tool.

Impact

There were varying degrees of engagement with the tool. 4/6 students used it, but 2 abstained, possibly as ‘conscientious objectors’. Some engagement with the first prompt was done a little ‘flippantly’…

…but otherwise, it was used more in the spirit intended.

For the reflective prompt, 3 of the 4 left comments noting a positive experience. In this sense, the activity leant mostly on the side of objectives being met.

However, I also detected a slight reluctance from the students to use it again. This irony does exhibit an interesting phenomenon though, that students will vary their responses to the same event, depending on the ‘format’.

Reflections

It was successful in that most students present engaged and noted the tool’s usefulness. It also allowed discussion around the nature and ethics of AI, wherein we shared our knowledge and views on the AI phenomenon. In the future, I will dig deeper into this element.

My conscientious objectors’ reservations had environmental and data concerns. Next time however, I will be better able to signpost the TEL Guidance and UoR’s assurances RE sustainability, energy use and DP. Discussions around these issues are essential, and indeed teacher-student dialogue thereof is a vital conceptual arena and element in creating a collaborative classroom and safe space. This thus all falls within my key pedagogic approaches of student belonging, whole self teaching, exploring wider T&L opportunities and transformational leadership.

In the future, I will experiment with AI personas and the Role Play tool with an aim to improve value and engagement. In my personal use of ChatGPT, which in some instances I have turned into lesson materials to on using GenAI critically, I often have it adopt a persona or two. One example is when I had philosopher Socrates and fictional character Uhtred from The Last Kingdom books/show discuss veganism. In content lessons, to have the AI speak in the persona of someone students are studying creates great opportunities for students to assess how accurate the AI is against their knowledge of the person and their works. This is also the case with contextual information also. This are points I intend to incorporate in later uses of these tools.

Follow up

Though I was unable to develop the activity further or indeed use it or the Role Play chatbot again due to limited time resource, I have signposted them in the teacher notes of the new module materials that have been developed for AY 2026-27. Again, I intend to explore the persona function more to have students test content knowledge in their own fields. I will also give more options to the students, i.e. they can choose the kind of persona, e.g. supportive again, or perhaps authoritative, depending on what the tool allows.

Further information

CQSD TEL guidance: Blackboard AI Design Assistant AI Conversations

University of Derby: Enhancing student engagement with Blackboard’s AI Conversation Tool

Using Blackboard AI Design Assistant to Enhance Students’ Engagement

By laurenmccann Comment Closed

Find out how Hanan Hamad from the School of Pharmacy and NHS has used Blackboard’s AI Design Assistant to enhance student engagement in MPharm ‘Prescribing in Practice’ workshops.

Overview

To improve student engagement with pre-session learning materials, Blackboard’s AI Design Assistant was used to redesign the online learning environment for a Prescribing in Practice workshop within the MPharm programme. The redesigned Blackboard page resulted in increased student engagement, attendance and highly positive student feedback.

Objectives

The activity aimed to:

  • Increase student engagement with pre-session Blackboard materials;
  • Improve attendance at Prescribing in Practice;
  • Create a more attractive and intuitive online learning environment;
  • Encourage active learning through AI-generated formative knowledge checkers,
  • Evaluate the impact of the Blackboard AI Design Assistant on student engagement and learning experience.

Context

Prescribing in Practice workshops are delivered to MPharm students to develop clinical examination, patient assessment and prescribing skills in preparation for Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs). Despite their importance, student engagement with pre-session Blackboard materials and workshop attendance had been lower than anticipated, prompting exploration of strategies to enhance participation.

Figure 1: Blackboard page prior to using the AI Design Assistant tool. 

Figure 2:  Student engagement with the page prior to using AI assistant tool.

Implementation

Following attendance at a CQSD TEL workshop introducing Blackboard’s AI Design Assistant, I redesigned the Blackboard session page for one Prescribing in Practice workshop. Rather than uploading resources within a standard folder structure, the AI Design Assistant created a visually engaging, well-organised learning page with clearly structured content and improved navigation.

Figure 3: Where to find AI assistant tool.

Figure 4: designing the page with the AI Assistant tool.

I also used the AI-generated Knowledge Checker to create formative multiple-choice questions based on the uploaded learning materials. Students were encouraged to complete these activities before attending the face-to-face workshop to reinforce key concepts and .identify areas requiring further study.

Student engagement with the Blackboard page was monitored using Blackboard Analytics and compared with a previous delivery of the same workshop where the AI Design Assistant had not been used. Attendance data and student feedback collected after the workshop were also reviewed to evaluate the overall impact of the redesigned online learning environment.

Impact

The redesigned Blackboard page was associated with a marked improvement in student engagement. Blackboard Analytics showed that 76.5% of students accessed the AI-designed learning page compared with 40.1% for the equivalent workshop without AI support.

Figure 5: students’ engagement after using AI assistant tool

Completion rates also increased from 9.2% to 11.7%. Workshop attendance improved to 73.8% from 61.3%, suggesting that greater engagement with pre-session materials encouraged participation in face-to-face teaching.

Student feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with learners describing the workshop as engaging, well organised and highly relevant to clinical practice. Many valued the opportunity to practise prescribing and clinical decision-making within realistic scenarios, while also appreciating the supportive teaching approach.

Reflections

This initiative demonstrated that relatively small changes to the presentation of online learning materials can positively influence student engagement. The Blackboard AI Design Assistant significantly reduced the time required to create an attractive and structured learning environment while maintaining full academic control over the educational content. The AI-generated Knowledge Checker was an unexpected benefit, providing students with an accessible method of self-assessment before attending the workshop.

Although improvements in engagement and attendance cannot be attributed solely to the AI Design Assistant, the combination of enhanced online resources and interactive face-to-face teaching appeared to support better student preparation and participation.

Follow up

Student suggestions, including providing additional guidance during prescribing exercises and making supporting resources easier to locate, will inform future iterations of the workshop. I intend to extend the use of Blackboard AI Design Assistant across other clinical skills sessions and continue evaluating its impact on student engagement and learning outcomes.

Further information

CQSD TEL guidance: Blackboard AI Design Assistant