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Brightspace: Building a Course

The majority of what is built in Brightspace will live on the Content area, which includes links to articles, PDFs, assignments, VoiceThreads, Turnitin links, etc.

Course Contents

To start building, click on the Content link in the course navigation.
The Overview page can have a description, files, etc. This is meant to be used as an overview of the course.
Next are Bookmarks. Bookmarks are topics that are flagged by an individual.
Next is Course Schedule, which shows course dates. This includes assignment due dates as well as date availability on non-graded items.
Next is Table of Contents, which is made up of module and submodule pages that live underneath it. Some common ways to organize module pages include:
1. - Weekly Structure: If the course aligns with the weeks of the semester then use the week approach to build out the modules. Within each weekly module, add readings, content, etc. to that week's module.
  - Unit Structure: If the course uses units that might take up multiple weeks then use the unit approach to build modules for each unit. From there, build submodules for the different weeks or topics for each unit.

Modules

Brightspace uses modules as the structure for the actual content of the course. It is best practice to limit your nesting of modules to just modules and submodules. Too many layers can get confusing.

Creating Modules

Screenshot of Brightspace Content page. To the left is the content navigation. At the bottom is a thin rectangular box with text inside that says Add a module. There is a pink box around the thin box. To the right is the content area. At the bottom of the page, there is a thin rectangular box with text inside that says Add a module. There is a pink box around the thin box.

1. Below Table of Contents, click Add a module, type the name of the module, and press enter on the keyboard.
2. After it is added, the module will load on the right side. From here, add content by:
  - Upload/Create: The majority of the content building is done here. Create assignments, discussions, quizzes, etc. To author content directly in Brightspace, use the Create a File option.
  - Existing Activities: Links to existing activities built elsewhere in the course or third-party tools.

Does the course content span multiple weeks?

You can create separate modules for any additional content. For instance, make a Course Resources module that has links to resources that are accessed throughout the semester.

Setting Dates on Modules

Screenshot of a module page. At the top is larger, bolded text that says Week 2. There is a gray square to the right of the text with an arrow pointing down. Below that there is a line of text that says Add dates and restrictions. Below that, there is another line of text that says Add a description.

After creating a module, there's an option to set dates on it:

Start date: The date in which students can click on content in a module. Prior to the start date students can see the module and the contents inside but can't click into anything.
Due date: Adds a due date for that module to the Calendar. Use due dates strategically to keep the Calendar focused for student.
End date: Removes student access to a module and everything in it. Only use an end date if you want students to no longer click on content in a module.

Release conditions set who has access based on certain criteria. Dates and release conditions work independently of one another.

Click on the module
Click on the Add dates and restrictions text under the module name.
Add a release condition (More About Release Conditions).

Building Your Content

The following items are a few best practices tips, tricks, and tools to use while creating in Brightspace.

Utilizing the Brightspace (HTML) Editor

This toolbar pops up when you Create a FIle within Content, reply to a Discussion and many other places in Brightspace. About Brightspace Editor has tips on styling and formatting but below are some functions you should explore!

Creator + Authoring Tools can be found on our Creator + Page for engaging visuals and activities.

Insert Stuff is the best way to upload a document, embed a YuJa or YouTube video and even add a Video Note (check out Welcome Students below to read more on VideoNote).

Insert Quicklink to connect exisiting course materials to direct your learners to the right place (look at Repurposing Existing Content in a Course for more information).

Insert Image for the best practices for your visuals, including adding Alternative Text.

Insert Equation to add Graphical, Chemistry, and other types of equations.

Accessibility Checker will make sure no accessibility issues are detected and will let you know what needs to be fixed.

Click on the plus to see Other Insert Options such as Emojis, Symbols and more.

Creator + Authoring Tools is represented by a pen and paintbrush icon. Insert Stuff is a combination of a play button, pause button, circle and square. Insert Quicklink is represented by a chainlink. Insert Equation is represented with a Sigma symbol. Other Insert Options is represented by a plus sign. Accessibility Checker is represented by a person within a circle.

Using Templates

Screenshot of the Create a file page in Brightspace. In the top left there is bolded and large header text that reads Create a File in Week One. Below that, there is a thin, horizontal rectangular box that has gray text in it that says Enter a Title. To the right of that is a gray dropdown box with text inside that says Select a Document Template. There is a pink box around the gray dropdown box and text above it that says Change the template. Below all of this to the left is a check box that is unchecked with text to the right that says Hide from Users. Below that, there are two rows of formatting options. There is a pink box around an icon that has four symbols. The symbols are a play button, a pause button, an outlined circle, and a solid circle.

Templates are pre-formatted designs in Brightspace to make content more visually appealing and interesting.

To access templates, go to Content in the course navigation.
Click on a pre-existing module or create a new module.
Click Upload/Create and then Create a File.
Enter a Title (this will be the name that shows up in the module).
Click on Select a Document Template and click on a template.
Notice that the box below updates with the template.
Update the template with your content
1. Change the image by clicking on the image in the template, clicking on Insert Stuff, selecting My Computer (to upload from the computer), select the file. Images should generally be about 1200 pixels wide.
2. Note: when copying/pasting, it is common to see odd formatting if copying from Word or Docs. To avoid that, use Ctrl+Shift+V (on a PC) or Cmd+Shift+V (on a Mac) when pasting in content.

Repurposing Existing Content in A Course

Often times instructors find that they want to copy content in one course and use it somewhere else in a different module. The two options below will walk through how to do that.

Linking To Other Pieces of Content Inside A Course

Use a Quicklink in one content file to reference another content file in your course. This will create a link in one page that leads back to the original page. To do this:

Create a new file in the module where the link should live.
Choose the link icon in the HTML editor.
Choose Content.
Navigate to the piece of content to add.
Click on the piece of content to add the link to it in the file.
Click Save and Close.

Using Content From Another Place Inside A Course

Have the full HTML page show up in more than one spot in a single course. To do this:

Go to the module where you want a content file to show up for a second time in the course (again, first one already must exist in another spot).
Choose Upload/Create.
Choose Add from Manage Files.
Locate the HTML file of the original page in the course. They won’t be structured in the module organization of the course, so you will need to search for the page by title.
Select it and click Add.

Visual Table of Contents

Screenshot of Brightspace homepage, specifically the Table of Contents area. There is text up in the top left that is bolded and says Table of Contents. There are two vertical rectangles side by side. The first rectangle has a picture of a stop light with a blue background in it. Below that in the rectangle, there is text that says Start Here. Below that in the rectangle is a thin gray line and text below that says zero percent, zero of three topics completed. The second rectangle has a photo of a desk with computers on it. Below that in the rectangle is text that says Technology Requirements. Below that in the rectangle is a thin bar that is partially blue and partially gray. The text below it reads thirty three percent, three of nine topics completed.

The Visual Table of Contents allows students to see the course modules in a visual way. Module images come from the description of the module. To set up the images:

Go to Content in the course navigation.
Go to the module page and click on the description (just below the module name).
Click on the image icon in the editor bar.
Click on My Computer to upload an image .
Click Add and add alternative text to describe the image.
Click the uploaded image and then click on the image icon.
Set the width to be 800. The height should auto-apply.
Click Save, then click Update.
Check the image by going to the course homepage.

Screenshot of the Brightspace editor view. There are three rows of formatting options. The first two rows span the entire width of the screenshot. The last row is cented in the middle and has only nine options. There is a pink square around one of the icons. The icon is a landscape.

Making Content Visible

Anything associated with a crossed-out eye means it is hidden to your students. You can change this within Content:

Click on the crossed-out eye and toggle it to visible.
Click the carrot next to the item and choose Make Visible to Users from the drop-down menu.

What if you want your students to access the resource on a specific date?

The best way to do this is by including a Start Date, they can see it but can not access it.

For a Module, start in the Table of Contents, click on the Module, at the top click on Add dates and restrictions and choose a Start Date.
- Note: Students can still access Quizzes, Assignments and Discussions in their respective tabs if you only apply it to the module and not the item.
For an item in a Module, start within the Module, click on the carrot next to the item, select Edit Properties in Place, click on Add dates and restrictions and choose a Start Date.
- Note: You can click Bulk Edit to change the Start Date for multiple items in the module.

Changing The Course Homepage

Instructors can customize their course homepage. The items that appear on the course homepage are widgets. To change out widgets:

Go to the course .
Click on Course Admin in the red course navigation.
Click on Homepages.
Click the carrot to the right of the Default Fisher Course Homepage and click Copy.
Click on the copy.
Change name to the course ID (i.e. CHEM100-01-2022-01).
Scroll down to the Widgets section and hover on the widget you want to remove until you see an "x" icon in the top right of the widget box.
Click the "x" to remove the widget.
To add a widget: Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Add Widgets.
To move a widget: hover on a widget and then drag it.
Go to the Active Homepage option at the top of the page and click to select the new homepage. Then, click Apply.

Our video on how to customize your Course Homepage

Creating External Links

Screenshot of a text editor window in Brightspace showing how to create a link with a pink box around the an icon that looks like a chain link.

Creating External Links

Brightspace will try to load external links (meaning any link that's not pointing to something in Brightspace) in the frame of the current window. Often times, this results in an error as the linked site isn't meant to be loaded that way. To avoid that, we recommend using the option to Open in a New Window when creating a new link.

To create a new link:

Go to a text editor (i.e. Create a new file)
Enter in the text you want the link to display as
Highlight the text
Click the link icon (see first image above)
Enter in the link in the link box then select Open in New Window (see second image below)

Screenshot of the Add Link window in Brightspace. There is a pink box around the link box and a pink box around a radio button that says New Window.

When using educational technology tools, be FERPA aware. To learn more, visit the Registrar's FERPA Guidelines site.

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