This article will cover how to create new groups. There are four separate ways to create, select the link to jump to the article heading.
The new release of the Blackboard Groups tool will go live at UToledo on Monday, August 24.
Manually assign
In the Groups tab, select the plus sign drop down to Manually assign.
Type in the title of the group. By default, Blackboard will call it "Group Set with a date of creation"
The Group Set is the overall name, e.g. Homework Groups. You can additionally name each individual group within the set as you go through the settings.
In this next step, instructors can choose to set it up manually by selecting:
1. Select Add Groups drop down to create a group or multiple groups.
or,
2. Select Automatic Enrollments will prompt instructors to choose how many students in each group and will manually create the groups.
Instructors can also use the manual assign function and allow students to self-enroll. Select the link to jump to the Self-enroll option.
Using Add Groups Function, Create Group
Select Create Groups to create a single group.
1. Provide a name of the group.
2. Add a description for the group.
3. Select the Add Members plus sign to pull up the list of students.
4. Select Done.
Using Add Groups Function, Create Multiple Groups
Select Create Multiple Groups.
1. Type the number of groups to create.
2. Select Continue.
In each group, select the plus sign to add students to the groups.
Select the 3 dots, elipsis, to edit the group settings.
1. Provide a name of the group.
2. Add a description for the group.
3. Select the Add Members plus sign to pull up the list of students.
4. Select Done.
Members can be added to groups by using the drag/drop function:
1. Use the mouse to click on the student, the purple vertical bar will appear.
2. Hold the mouse and slide to the group.
Automatic Enrollment
Select Automatic Enrollment.
1. Type in a number of members per group.
2. Select Enroll members.
Blackboard will create the groups and assign students into individual groups.
Using Self-enroll
Select the gear icon for settings.
Toggle the Self enrollment on.
1. Select a start/end date.
2. If an end date is set, instructors can choose to auto-enroll members after the end date.
3. By default, allowing members to change groups during enrollment is turned on and can be deselected.
4. Hide enrolled members.
5. Restrict a group size.
6. Select Done.
When group creating is complete, select Save.
Import from CSV File
Formatting a Spreadsheet for Importing Group Members
This above screenshot shows how the spreadsheet should be formatted for importing:
- Group Code:The first column should be given the headerGroup Code. TheGroup Code indicates which group the users should be assigned to. Group Codes should be entered with underscores for spaces and should correspond with the Group Code column in the Groups spreadsheet.
- User Name:The second column should be given the headerUser Name. TheUser Name corresponds to each user's UTAD username.
Once you have entered the group memberships in a spreadsheet, you would need to save the spreadsheet as a .csv file. To save as a CSV file, click on File>Save As, and using the Save As Type dropdown menu, select Comma-Separated Values Windows (.csv) and save the file.
Formatting a Spreadsheet for Group Parameters
The above image shows how the spreadsheet for importing group parameters should be formatted. To format the spreadsheet, use the following headers and type in the appropriate information. Note: All column headers must be provided in order to successfully import the group parameters.
- Group Code: The Group Code is used by Blackboard to identify which members belong to each group. When formatting Group Codes, use an underscore for spaces.
- Title: Enter the title for the group in the second column.
- Description: Enter a description for the group in the third column.
- Group Set:If you wish to organize groups as part of a set, enter the Group Set name for each group you want to be part of a group set. When formatting the Group Set name, use an underscore for spaces. The Group Set name is entered in the fourth column.
- Available: To make a group visible to students, enter Y in the fifth column for each group. To make the group invisible to students, type N in the fifth column.
- Personalization:To allow group members to personalize the appearance of the group home page, enter Y in the sixth column. Otherwise, type N to prohibit students from changing the group home page.
- Self Enroll:To allow students to enroll themselves in the group, type Y in the seventh column. If you do not wish students to enroll themselves, type N in the seventh column.
- Max Enrollment:To set a maximum number of students who can enroll in a single group, type the desired maximum number in the eighth column. For instructor-managed groups, or if you do not wish to have a maximum, leave this column blank.
- Show Members:For self enrolled groups, if you wish to allow students to see who has already signed up to a group, type Y in the ninth column. To hide the list of members who already have signed up, type N in this column. For non self enrolled groups, you can leave this column blank.
- Sign up from Group List:If you wish to allow students to sign up from the group list, type Y in the tenth column. If you wish to link the signup sheet in another content area, type N in this column. For instructor-managed groups, you can leave this column blank.
- Sign up Name:For self enrolled groups, type in the name of the sign up sheet in the eleventh column. For non self-enrolled groups, you can leave this column blank.
- Sign up Instructions: For self enrolled groups, type in instructions for the sign up sheet in the twelfth column. For non self-enrolled groups, you can leave this column blank.
Once you have entered the group parameters in a spreadsheet, you would need to save the spreadsheet as a .csv file. To save as a CSV file, click on File>Save As, and using the Save As Type dropdown menu, select Comma-Separated Values Windows (.csv) and save the file.
In the Groups tab, select the plus sign drop down to Import from CSV.
1. Drag and drop or Upload file using the formated CSV.
2. Select Import.
Instructors will receive an email in their Outlook when the import is complete, may need to refresh the browser.