"Blackboard" is a web-based course management system available to all Virginia Tech instructors. Some choose to use many of the features offered by Blackboard, while others, like me, prefer to use it for very specific things only. At this time those specific things include:

• Terms quizzes and Listening quizzes for each Chapter covered in Music 2116, on the Assignments page
• Copies of Class Powerpoint Presentations that can be accessed outside class, on the Lectures page
• Copies of PDF Downloads of those same Presentations formatted to be downloaded as handouts and printed to be brought to class, also on the Lectures page
• Review copies (at the end of the semester) of a few early Terms and Listening quizzes, on the Class Materials page

Additional uses for Blackboard may be added during the semester. I am still experimenting with its use.

Since it is web-based, you need to access it through your web browser. Go to:

• http://learn.vt.edu

You will need to enter your PID (the name Virginia Tech assigned you for your email) and your password to access the program. And you will have to be currently and properly enrolled in Music 2116 to get access to it.

The "Announcements" page should let you know about any new quizzes or downloads that have been added, but please note that there will not be a new announcement when I reopen a quiz that was open previously. Terms and Listening quizzes will be found on the "Quizzes" page. So will some extra credit or practice quizzes. Powerpoint Presentations and Downloads will be found on the "PowerPoints" page. You can access your scores through the "Tools" page.

Blackboard thinks it is managing the entire class. It isn't! All your quiz scores will be transferred to my own class Gradesheet, so ignore anything Blackboard wants to tell you about your overall class standing or grade averages.

The Terms and Listening quizzes are required for students who choose Grading Options 2 and 3. Students who choose Grading Option 1 may certainly take the quizzes for practice, and it is a good idea to do so, but those scores will not count towards your final grade. By the first day of class, you should find practice Terms and Listening quizzes up and available. You may need to upgrade your free copy of Quicktime to the latest version (available on the Apple site, for both Mac and Windows platforms) in order to play the Listening examples, so try these practice quizzes to make sure everything works for you. Some students have found it necessary to dowload the Listening Quizzes to their desktops in order to play the examples. Most have not.

There will also be two extra credit quizzes on Blackboard for everyone, on all 3 Grading Options, during the first couple of weeks of class, and a third extra credit written assignment. The beginning of the semester is the time to do extra credit work, because none will be available at the end of the semester!

• Before starting, make sure you have all the material you might need handy, including the textbook, the CDs (and scores for Music Minors), the relevant Study Guide for that chapter, the Recording Index for that chapter, and the downloaded Powerpoint Presentation for that chapter. These are "open-book" quizzes.
  
• These quizzes are to help you learn, not just to test you. I expect you to score 100%.
  
• Click on the link for the quiz you want to take. The links may show on the "Announcements" page, but will definitely show on the "Assignments" page.
  
• Take the quiz and double check all your answers. Generally you may only take each quiz once, there will be no time limit, but you must usually complete it before 11:55 p.m. (2355) on a specified date.
  
• DON'T FORGET TO CLICK ON "SUBMIT" to finish and record your score!

For the Listening quizzes, click on the link to the Listening Examples to hear them. These will be different from the 2115 Listening quizzes. There will be 4 separate questions for each example, just as there will be on the Unit Quizzes and the Final Exam: identify the title, identify the composer, identify the type of piece, and identify the country of origin or (for the Final Exam) the time period of the piece. Please note that this is different from what was done in 2115. Taken together, the four answers should make sense for that example and allow you to compare and cross check them.

• Don't forget to click the Submit button at the bottom of the page when you are done.
  
• If there are no complications, you can access your score immediately.

Blackboard is very touchy, and if anything out of the ordinary happens it will not credit your score and will lock you out so you can't try again. This can happen if your browser burps, if you try to do something Blackboard doesn't like, if you lose power, if you go overtime or forget to click Submit, or if it's just having a bad hair day!

If this happens, don't panic! Contact me by email and I will go into the system and reopen the quiz for you. If necessary, and if your problem seems reasonable, I will extend the deadline for you, but with a password so only you can access the quiz.

Because complications can happen, do not wait until the very last minute before the deadline! I recommend taking the quizzes as soon as they are open, because this will help you prepare for class and in turn for each Unit Quiz and the Final Exam.

Go to the "PowerPoints" page, find the lecture or download you want to access, and click on the link. The Presentations are exact duplicates of the class Powerpoint slides, without the animation, except for one important thing: These slides are from a previous year, and all the dates and specific times in "Coming Events" are wrong. I will try to update them if I have the time, but don't count on it. The Downloads are formatted 3 slides to a page with a space for taking notes in class. New: With modern browsers you should be able to change that formatting if you wish. Both are PDF files, so make sure you have the free Adobe PDF Reader on your computer.