Introduction
Course rollover is the annual process whereby Blackboard courses from the current academic year are copied for use in the next academic year.
Course copying and the creation of new Blackboard courses took place on Saturday 9th July 2022, with additional tasks completed over the following week.
What was done
- All relevant course areas were created in Blackboard. This includes
- Courses that were copied on the rollover day.
- Courses copied from school templates.
- Empty shells for remaining MODs and module occurrences.
- Empty shells for PR (Programme) courses.
- Course categories were assigned (so Programme Administrators can locate courses in their School/Department).
- Enrolments for Instructors, Teaching Assistants, Course Builders and External Examiners were copied as part of rollover.
In addition, Module convenors listed in RISIS were enrolled on the relevant course in Blackboard.- Child allocations of occurrences were processed (so that module occurrences such as H,J,K are included in the main Blackboard course for the module).
- Child allocations of merged modules were completed.
- Orphaned Turnitin assignments were removed from copied courses.
- The Microsoft Stream content area was removed from courses that were copied on rollover day.
- A new YuJa area was added to all 2022/3 courses.
Student enrolments
RISIS has now switched to the 2022/23 academic year, so
- Student enrolments on 2022/23 programmes and modules are now being updated in Blackboard overnight.
- Enrolments on Blackboard courses for 2021/22 will no longer be updated automatically from RISIS.
The default position for Course Rollover is that any RISIS module or programme
- which was used in Blackboard in the current academic year (i.e. in 2021/22)
- and is scheduled to run again in the new academic year (i.e. in 2022/23)
will be automatically copied forward as part of Course Rollover.
The vast majority of Blackboard courses normally fall into this category, and no action is required for these courses to be rolled forward.
Merged and Supplementary courses are also copied as part of Course Rollover. See details below.
Module Convenors: In most cases, your course will be copied forward automatically. But please check if your course is scheduled to be copied by searching the Course Copy Status page. If any changes need to be made, please take appropriate action – see below.
Page contents
Blackboard courses for a single RISIS module
Early rollover – requests for course copies before 9th July
Opting out – cancelling a scheduled course copy
Merged and Supplementary courses
Merged courses – requesting changes
Supplementary courses – requesting changes
RISIS modules
Modules which did not run in 2021/22
Blackboard course codes explained
What will be copied?
Which parts of my course will be copied?
After rollover
Preparing your courses for the new academic year
When will students be enrolled on courses?
What action do I need to take?
Blackboard course for a single RISIS module
I want my existing course to be copied forward for use in 2022/23
- Was the Blackboard course used in 2021/22?
- Is the Module running in 2022/23?
Yes to both questions:
Your 2021/22 course should be copied automatically on 9th July.
Action:
Just to be absolutely sure, please check the Course Copy Status page
- Search for the module code and check that it is SCHEDULED.
- If so, no further action required.
- If not, check with Programme Admin that the module is scheduled to run in RISIS.
Deadline for action: to be included in the main Rollover process, all requests should be submitted by close of play on Friday 1st July.
Early rollover required
If it is essential to have your 2022/23 Blackboard course created before the main Rollover day on 9th July
- Go to the Status page.
- Search for the module code.
- If it shows as SCHEDULED, click Opt Out.
- Then submit a Course Copy Request.
- In the Additional Comments section of the Course Copy form please add a comment
e.g. ‘Early rollover please’ or ‘Needed by <date>’
Please note:
- Responding to early rollover requests is time-consuming for the DTS staff involved, so please only submit such requests where it is absolutely necessary to have the new course available before 9th July.
- You will need to enrol students manually onto the course. No student enrolments will be pulled through from RISIS until the new academic year begins in August.
As long as you have details of the students who need to see the course, you can Request batch enrolment for a course/organisation.
Opting out – cancelling a scheduled course copy
You may wish to opt out of course copying for a number of reasons.
- You want to redesign your Blackboard course, so prefer to build your 2022/23 course from an empty course shell.
- You have been using a Merged course, but now want to have separate Blackboard courses for the individual modules.
- You have been using a Supplementary course, but no longer need this.
To opt out
- Go to the Course Copy Status page and search for your Blackboard course.
If a course copy is already scheduled to take place, then SCHEDULED will appear in the ‘Status’ column. - Press the Opt Out button in the final column.
- A confirmation message appears. If you are sure you want to proceed, press OK.
- You will see a confirmation page. If you return to the Status page you’ll see that OPTEDOUT now appears in the ‘Status’ column.
We have not restricted the Course Copy or Opt Out forms to Module Convenors. But clearly these decisions are the Module Convenor’s prerogative / responsibility. We would expect action to be taken only by the Module Convenor or someone acting on their behalf – for instance by a Programme Administrator, after discussion with the Module Convenor.
Modules which did not run in 2021/22
If your module did not run this year, but you wish to have the 2021/22 Blackboard course copied forward, please submit a Course Copy Request selecting ‘Single’ as both the Source and Destination course type.
Modules with a new RISIS code
If your module has been assigned a new RISIS code, but the content is substantially the same, you may want to copy content from an existing Blackboard course.
Please submit a Course Copy Request
Select
- ‘Single’ as both the Source and Destination course type
- ‘Select a Source Course’ – enter the module code for the course you want to be copied
- choose the required academic year
- ‘Destination Course Code’ – enter the new module code
Merged and Supplementary courses
Both Merged and Supplementary Courses will be copied forward by default.
If you want your 2022/23 Merged or Supplementary course to be set up exactly the same as your 2021/21 course, no action is required.
But please visit the Course Copy Status page to check that your course is scheduled to be copied.If one or more of the ‘child’ modules in your Merged course will not be running, you may have to manually request a course copy – please see the Merged Course Examples below.
If you want to change which ‘child’ modules are included in your Merged or Supplementary course, you will need to cancel the scheduled copy, and manually request a new course copy – please see What if I need to make any changes? below.
Merged courses
- Used when you have a set of closely related RISIS modules, and you want to administer them as a single course in Blackboard.
- A Merged Course always replaces the Blackboard courses for individual RISIS modules.
- Merged Courses are supported by the EMA Integration and can be used for summative assessment.
- A Merged Course is not appropriate if the same students are enrolled on more than one of the modules being merged.
- Merged courses for 2021/22 modules look this this in Blackboard:
AB1XYZ-21-2MOD Advanced Basketweaving (Merged 2021/22) - The ‘Parent’ course uses the module code from one of the ‘Child’ modules – normally the first in alphanumeric sequence.
Please note that the module code used does not affect what students see in Blackboard – see How do students see merged courses?
The default position is that any Merged course
- which was used in Blackboard in the current academic year (i.e. in 2021/21)
- and where the module designated as the ‘Parent’ course is scheduled to run again in the new academic year (i.e. in 2022/23)
- and has at least one Instructor or Teaching Assistant enrolled
will be automatically copied forward as part of Course Rollover.
Merged Course Examples
AB1XYZ-21-2MOD merges AB1XYZ and AB1XXX.
AB1XYZ (‘Parent’ module) running in 2022/23? |
AB1XXX (‘Child’ module) running in 2022/23? |
Result in Blackboard |
Y | Y | AB1XYZ-21-2MOD will be copied forward to AB1XYZ-22-3 MOD.
2022/23 taught occurrences of both AB1XYZ and AB1XXX will be included in the new course. |
Y | N | AB1XYZ-21-2MOD will be copied forward to AB1XYZ-22-3 MOD.
2022/23 taught occurrences of AB1XYZ will be included in the new course. |
N | Y | AB1XYZ-21-2MOD will NOT be copied forward.
AB1XXX-22-3MOD will be set up as a blank course shell – but you can submit a request to have it created as a copy of AB1XYZ-21-2MOD |
What if I need to make any changes?
- If you want your course to be copied, but there is a change to the modules which need to be included in the Merged Course, you will need to do the following:
-
- Go to the Course Copy Status page and cancel the scheduled copy by Opting out.
- Go to the Course Copy Request form and request a new course copy, with the correct module details.
When filling out the form, select ‘Merged’ in both the Source and Destination drop-down boxes.
- If you do not want your Merged Course to be copied, you can submit a request to have the course copy cancelled – see Opting out above.
Supplementary Courses
Used when you want a shared Blackboard space in addition to individual RISIS modules or programmes.
Supplementary courses look this this in Blackboard:
ACADSPPT-21-2SUP Academic Support (2021/22)
The default position is that any Supplementary course
- which was used in Blackboard in the current academic year (i.e. in 2021/22)
- and has at least one Instructor or Teaching Assistant enrolled
will be automatically copied forward as part of Course Rollover.
What if I need to make any changes?
If you want your course to be copied, but there is a change to the modules or programmes which need to be included in the Supplementary Course, you will need to do the following:
- Go to the Course Copy Status page and cancel the scheduled copy by Opting out.
- Go to the Course Copy Request form and request a new course copy, with the correct module / programme details.
When filling out the form, select ‘Supplementary’ in both the Source and Destination drop-down boxes.
If you do not want your Supplementary Course to be copied, you can submit a request to have the course copy cancelled – see Opting out above.
Please note that Supplementary Courses are designed for use in addition to individual RISIS modules or programmes.
Supplementary Courses should not be used to deliver summative assessment, as this is not supported by the EMA Blackboard-RISIS integration.
Brand new modules
Any module which is scheduled in RISIS to run in 2022/23 will automatically generate a new Blackboard course, and the Module Convenor listed in RISIS will be automatically enrolled on the Blackboard course. No action is required.
Blackboard course codes explained
Any Blackboard course which represents one or more RISIS module occurrences has a course code in the format AB1XYZ-21-2MOD.
This applies to Blackboard courses bringing together multiple occurrences of the same module, as well as ‘merged courses’ which combine two or more distinct module codes.
Blackboard courses for Programmes
There are no changes to how these are handled as part of rollover.
Please see Using Blackboard for Programme delivery
Which parts of my course will be copied?
What will be copied:
- All course content will be copied.
- Video content:
- Embedded links to Stream videos will be copied.
However Microsoft Stream is not being used for Teaching & Learning in 2022/23 – all videos for Teaching & Learning will need to be uploaded to the new media platform YuJa.
The TEL team will be providing advice on how to deal with these links in your 2022/23 Blackboard course.
See our support article Transitioning from Stream to YuJa. - Videos uploaded directly into Blackboard will be copied but these also should be transferred to YuJa.
- There will be no Microsoft Stream area on your 2022/23 course menu. This will be replaced by a YuJa area.
- Embedded links to Stream videos will be copied.
- Blackboard Tests and Surveys will be copied, but NOT deployed to users (made available to users) – you will need to deploy them with appropriate settings on the new course.
- Talis reading list links will be copied, but you will need to configure them for use by students in the new academic year.
- Teams Meeting links for live online sessions will be copied – these need to be deleted and new links created.
What will not be copied:
- Blackboard and Turnitin Assignments will not be copied.
The creation of summative submission points is controlled by the EMA Integration between RISIS and Blackboard, and managed by Programme Administration teams.
Module Convenors:- please liaise with your programme administrator to confirm assessment requirements for your module
- you will need to create any formative submission points with appropriate settings on the new course.
Please note: a new version of Turnitin is being used on all 2022/23 courses – see Turnitin LTI assignments.
- Announcements, discussion boards, blogs, journals and wikis will not be copied.
- As noted above, Microsoft Stream is not being used for Teaching & Learning in 2022/23. Therefore the Microsoft Stream area on your course will not be copied. This will be replaced by a YuJa area.
Users:
- All Instructors, Teaching Assistants, Course Builders and External Examiners will be copied during the summer course rollover.
- In addition all staff who are listed as a 2022/23 Module Convenor in RISIS will be enrolled onto the corresponding Blackboard course.
This applies equally to courses which were copied, and to courses which are set up as a blank shell.
If you are a Module Convenor for a module which runs both in Reading and Malaysia, you will see all 2022/23 occurrences of the module in Blackboard. - No other users will be copied.
- Groups will not be copied.
Staff members no longer involved in course delivery
Inevitably, given that we copy staff enrolments forward each year, many Blackboard courses have enrolments for staff members who are no longer involved in delivery of the module.
There are various workarounds to prevent such enrolments being copied to 2022/23 courses:
- Senior Programme Administrators in the Support Centres are able to delete staff enrolments
- any Instructor or Teaching Assistant on the course can set a user’s course status as Unavailable
- if you are no longer involved with course delivery, you can set your own enrolment status as Unavailable.
Please note: course rollover does not affect your 2021/21 course at all – available courses will remain available in Blackboard after they have been copied, with the same content and the same enrolments.
After rollover
Preparing your courses for the new academic year
See our guide Getting Ready for the New Year.
Blackboard plays an essential part in the delivery of teaching, learning and assessment. A series of Online teaching toolkits has been prepared, covering all of the essential aspects of effective digital teaching. In particular, please look at the toolkit on How to structure your Blackboard course.
Please DO NOT SET OLD COURSES AS UNAVAILABLE – it has been agreed by DELT that students should continue to have access to all of the Blackboard courses relevant to their programme of study i.e. a final undergraduate student should still be able to access their Blackboard courses from Parts 1 and 2. This is so that they can access course materials and all feedback received from staff.
When will students be enrolled on courses?
From the start of August, students who are already enrolled on 2022/23 courses in RISIS will be enrolled on the corresponding Blackboard course.