How's life on the Blackboard ranch?
Howdy psychological cowboys and cowgirls! How's life on the blackboard ranch? Has navigation become easier? Have frustration levels gone down? Is there clarity where there once was confusion? How are you experiencing the discussion questions? How's the workload? Are there questions that you feel or more relevant than others? If so, what are they?
The first 10 of you to respond to this blog thread will win a copy of my original song, Psychological Cowboy, as recently aired on KWMR's "Bakersfield and Beyond."
Psychological Cowboy
Dr BLT
words and music by Dr Bruce L Thiessen, aka Dr BLT copyright 2010
I will begin posting mid-term practice questions shortly, maybe I'll even add them to this thread. You will not be penalized for getting them wrong, but you will have opportunities to win songs for getting them right.
Posted by Bruce L Thiessen Ph D at 9/9/2010 2:53 PM 
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: blackboard Psychological Cowboy Brandman University
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: blackboard Psychological Cowboy Brandman University
Your comment on Tuesday, "Blackboard is not your boss." helped give a better perspective of the "Blackboard ranch". Glad you think that way----hope ALL the professors do!
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I feel much better this week. I have had a few problems with the blackboard this evening. Nothing overwhelming. I dropped the other course that I was taking, and feel that one course at a time will be the best way to approach this blended, accelerated madness. I think that the learning style exercise is relevant and was entertaining. I am relieved that this has been a better week!
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I applaud you for doing what you need to take care of yourself. But I'm sorry that you had to drop the other class. That's the very worst outcome of this new Blackboard format that I can think of. If dropping a class interferes with your goals, e.g., it takes longer to complete this program, I think that's a shame.
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For the most part, I feel I have found some equilibrium in adapting to this "Blackboard curve ball". It has certainly opened new perspectives. Specifically, for instance, this may be a very good “real life” demonstration of why professionals – even those with supposedly considerable prowess in their chosen fields (psychology) - are not necessarily qualified to perform in areas where they lack appropriate training/experience (i.e. blended curriculum, etc...)
Anyway, I have regained at least some (now-altered) focus on pursuing what seems to be my appropriate level of functioning towards, Lord willing, the completion of this program.
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I have to say my opinions of Blackboard and having a blended class have not changed for the better. While it may be easier to navigate the courses through Blackboard due to me becoming familiar with where everything is, I still feel like everything is piecemeal and was quickly put together without much thought as to what students at our campus need and/or want. I continue to state that Wiki is useless for our application and am not sure that Monty Python is the best example for our assessment purposes, not to mention that I currently am unable to access the video. There continues to be ample amounts of busy work instead of hands on interactions with the material, which I believe will help students learn the material more effectively than doing half-a$$ed written work. Also I personally have not been able to keep up with the reading because of all the "busy work" and life issues (dealing with my mom being in the hospital for over a week) which has only added to my frustration and burnt out feeling. I continue to be frustrated over not knowing exactly what I am expected to do in this and the other course, nor how exactly I am being graded. I like to know from the get go what assignments I have to do and when, and how I am expected to complete them so I can get the grade I want.
I believe this concludes my venting and ranting for now...
Silver lining- the teachers are nice, caring, and thankfully very understanding, as well as all of my fellow students.
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The work load, per se, is not what is so significant. Rather, it is needing to spend so much time and effort trying to figure out what is relevant, what needs to be attended to, and what does not have much appropriate involvement with the curriculum that seems to create the greatest challenge. As far as the relative merit of questions, those that ask us to apply what we have studied – that pertains to what we will need to know to pass advancement/state exams and to function professionally – are the questions that seem best.
The question about what type of validity the learning-styles test presented, for instance, seemed relevant. Perhaps those types of questions are most appropriate, and may serve to pull the nose of this plummeting Blackboard albatross from out of the drink and reorient it somewhere approaching the horizon.
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I have to agree with Sue. Much easier to navigate, but hard to keep up with reading in between. Plus, the textbooks kinda suck so far!
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Like Sue, I'm still not happy with the Blackboard Hybrid format. I can maneuver thru the site better than I could at first, but I find it very poorly put together. Some examples: the discussion board questions for Weeks 1 & 2 were reversed. The Learning Styles Inventory link and webpage weren't operational when we needed them. Eventually I was able to access the Learning Styles Test page thru the link, now I can only get to it by pasting the link into my browser. Weekly Discussion Board questions are assignments, right? So why aren't the questions posted in the assignment area? They aren't for the first week, they are for the 2nd. Click on the red tab "Power Point". I think you should find Deulens Pwr.Pt notes there. No, the Pwr. Pt tab is a place to post your own Pwr. Pt. presentation. Deulens Pwr. Pt. notes are in Assignments tab under Documents & Resources. Week 2 Course at a Glance says "Read Essentials of a Good Psychology Test". I went looking all over the place in Week Two for it. Oh, here it is. I found it in Week 1 under Docs & Resources. Huh? Week 2 assignment listed in Course at a Glance: Review Pwr. Pt. notes for Hood chp. 4, 14 & 17". There aren't any notes there for Chp 14. Assignment: View Monty Pyton Skit. The word "View" is underlined. It should be a link to the skit. No! You'll find the link to the skit under Docs & Resources. How much it's illogical and not user friendly floors me.
It's nice that DrBlt is understanding and accomodating, but this is really messed up.
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I have to agree with Sue even though it is becoming easier to navigate through it just seems like busy work to me and I feel it really has nothing to do with what we are learning. I think being in class and interacting with the class would be better suitable then these discussion board/ wiki things. Overall it is getting better but i just see no use in all of it. I also agree with Mark that it is difficult to see what really needs to be done and what doesn't!
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I have to say, I am not a fan of this online academic bandwagon that some schools are adopting. As many of my intelligent classmates have mentioned, there are a number of reasons why blackboard specifically is pretty lame. TO name a few of the key points: Less face to face time with class/instructors means less of a chance to establish any meaningful relationships with instructors or classmates. I think the program should be more relationship oriented rather than text book and busy work focused. After all, I feel it is essential for our profession to learn what constitutes and how to cultivate healthy relationships. I don't believe the online move will work to out benefit here.
I think the online move is a poor decision educationally, sure it will save the school money in the long run but is it worth sacrificing the quality of education?
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I like the idea of a ranch. I can herd the cattle and feed the chickens and then sit on the front stoop and see the results of my work. Right now I am looking at the results of my learning styles test and I have scored the highest points for aural and verbal which are exactly right on. I started the class with the attitude that I don't like assessment testing, but I am now starting to see that these tests are important when used appropriately.
Suzette
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The Blackboard is what it is a black hole... Sometimes things appear near and at time things are foggy and far away...LOL. For what it currently is it is a tool that takes a little getting used to and seems to still have some areas where it could be a little more user friendly. But it is doable.
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The "Black hole" Ranch is getting better as far as learning what is where and how to do what needs to be done. (What a mouthful.) However, I feel like it should really be better than this by now. If you think about it, we are in week three. After three comes four. Four is half of eight, so we are almost half way there and it is only "getting better"? I plan to chug along and do what I can as best as I can.
As far as the learing styles assessment test. I feel that my results were pretty close to one another. If you would have asked me before the assessment, I would have had a different answer to what my learning styles are. I also can't help but wonder if social and/or solidarity doesn't encompas auditory, visual and physical.
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Ok, Blackboard isn't all bad; it's just different. I think what's hard is change. With education moving forward into a more technological format it may seem like the quality of the information is compromised but really it is just impersonal and dry. Although I prefer personal contact, Blackboard can be useful for people who have less time to sit in a classroom. Utilizing blackboard in this program allows me to be home with my family at a reasonable time so I can kiss them goodnight. I am open to new experiences when it comes to learning; however, the university should have transitioned the blackboard format a little at a time.
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I would like to present the Vocational Preference Inventory (VPI)
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