Introduction to Jenzabar

1. Introduction to Jenzabar The Course Management System

2. How to get in • Open an internet browser • Jenzabar works best with Internet Explorer • Go to the Mount jenzabar site • http://portal.msmary.edu • Enter domain name, user name and password • Domain: msmary (employees) or mount (students) • User name and password: the same as your email username and password • Just like logging on to webmail • msmary\rupp • XXXXXXX

4. The Course Management System • Use for an online supplement to your courses • Click Faculty in the top right, then Course Manager in the drop-down menu • If you are currently teaching courses, they will appear on the right, under Course Manager, as links • If you are not currently teaching, click All my courses, then past or future

6. Course Manager • Click on a course to go to its course information page • Your name, email address, and the course meeting times should automatically appear • Your picture and office hours will also automatically appear if you already added them in My Info • Or, select a category from the “Go directly to:” dropdown list

8. Coursemates • Jenzabar’s term for the students in a course • Use their pictures to learn names and faces • Students can replace their Mount ID pictures with whatever they want • Although this may change • Email should go to their Mount email address • studentname@email.msmary.edu

10. Coursemates, cont. • You can email one student at a time, or selected students, or all students in a course • Click either Email selected students or Email All • Check the box next to a student’s name to select him or her New Feature!

11. Attendance • You can use jenzabar to keep track of student attendance • Click Attendance • You will see student names and the dates of class meetings up to the present • The default is that all students are present • All boxes are checked • All have 100% attendance New Feature!

13. Attendance, cont. • Uncheck a box if a student is absent • Click submit • Attendance percentage will recalculate

14. Announcements • You can add Announcements that will show up on the students’ course manager page on the dates you specify • A reminder about a quiz • A change in the syllabus

15. Adding Announcements • Click Announcements; click Edit; click Add • Enter the text of the announcement • Short description: will display on the course manager page • Full announcement: will display in a separate small window • Enter the start date and end date • Click on the tiny calendar to select the dates • Check faculty or student or both • This determines who will see the announcement • Click Save

17. Handouts • Probably the most useful feature • Jenzabar calls a “handout” any computer file that can be downloaded, not just a paper handout • A PowerPoint presentation or an Excel spreadsheet, for example, could be a handout • Click Handouts, then Edit to work with handouts

18. Working with Handouts:Adding a Handout • To add one or more handouts, select the number of handouts you wish to add from the dropdown list, then click Add • Browse to where you have previously saved the handout • Enter the name of the handout in the label field • This is the text that will be displayed on the Handouts page as the link

19. Adding Handouts, cont. • Enter a description of the handout, if desired • Specify a header from the dropdown list, if desired • You have to have previously specified a header • Specify the dates the handout will be available to students, if desired • Click Save

21. Adding Handouts, cont. • When a student clicks on the label, the handout will download to her computer and open in the appropriate program (if she has it). • E.g. a Word document will open in MS Word. • She can then save or print the file as she likes. • A student can use File Tools to download programs that will enable him to view handouts if he doesn’t have the full program. • For example, he can download a PowerPoint viewer that will let him look at a PowerPoint presentation.

22. Adding Handouts, cont. • If the handout is a large file (like a PowerPoint, e.g.) it’s best to add it where you have a fast connection • If you try to add a large file using a dialup connection, it’s likely to time out and you’ll get a “this page cannot be displayed” error

23. Working with Handouts:Headers • Handouts can be grouped under headers • Click Add next to Add Header • You can add only one header at a time • Enter the name of the header and a description, if desired • If you already have added handouts, they will be listed. You can specify that they be listed under this header • Select them • Hold down Ctrl key to select more than one • Click Save

25. Working with Handouts:Editing Handouts • If you see that you made a mistake in the label or description of the handout, go back to the Edit Handouts page • Click Edit to get there • Then click Edit next to the handout you need to fix • You can change a handout’s header, label, or description. • Edit will allow you to change only what appears on the jenzabar page—it does not edit the handout itself

26. Working with Handouts:Deleting Handouts • If you decide you don’t want a particular handout, go to the edit handout page and click delete next to the handout you want to delete • Deleting handouts is quicker than adding them

27. Working with Handouts:Changing the Order of Display • You can change the order in which handouts or headers are displayed • Click the up or down arrow next to the handout or header to move it up or down in the order • The default order is: • Handouts and headers display in the order they were added • Handouts not under a header display before the headers New Feature!

29. Working with Handouts:The Handout Bank • If you have handouts that you use in more than one class, or in more than one semester, you can place them in the Handout Bank • Check the box next to the handout, then click Copy Selected Handouts to Bank

30. The Handout Bank, cont. • Go to the course in which you want to retrieve handouts from the bank • Click Bank under Handouts (in the left column) • Check the handouts you want to add to this course • Click Copy Selected Handouts to this Course

31. Web Links • Works much the same way as Handouts • Click Edit • Add any Headers you want to group the web links under • Click Add and choose a number of web links to add • In the URL field, enter the URL of the desired web site

33. Adding Web Links, cont. • The easiest way is to have 2 browser windows open • In the second window, go to the desired web site • Copy the URL • Highlight it • Press CTRL-c to copy • Go back to the jenzabar window • Press CTRL-v in the URL field to paste

34. Adding Web Links, cont. • Enter a label • This is the text that will display on the web links page • It is what students will click on to get to the link • Enter a description of the link, if desired • Specify a header from the dropdown list, if desired • Specify the dates the link will be available to students, if desired • Click Save

35. Web Links, cont. • Like Handouts, Web Links can be grouped under headers or added to a bank • They can be deleted or edited • Again, editing will change only what you entered in jenzabar: the URL, the label, the header, or the description

36. Syllabus • Click Syllabus, then Edit to get to the Syllabus page • Either enter a URL to insert a link to a syllabus stored on another server • You can link to a course web page here • Or enter text in the box labeled HTML. Maximum number of characters is 7500 • It won’t let you do both

38. Syllabus, cont. • Another option: upload your real syllabus as a handout • Right-click on the handout link • Select Copy shortcut • Go back to Syllabus • Paste (ctrl-v) in the URL field • Link to syllabus will show up as Click here for syllabus.

39. Readings • Just a list of the assigned readings • Click Readings, Edit, Add • Enter the requested information • Click Save • This is not the texts of the readings themselves • Those would have to be uploaded as handouts or weblinks

41. Chat and Forums • Chat is synchronous • Everybody participates at the same time • Forums are asynchronous • Everybody can participate at different times • You might use Chat for virtual office hours, or an online review session • You might use Forums to allow students to extend discussion outside of class

42. Chat • Tell your students when the Chat is going to take place • At the specified time, click Join the Chat • A new window will open • Participants type in the box at the bottom of the window where it says Say • Click Send when you’re done typing

44. Chat, cont. • The participants are listed on the right of the window • The current “speaker” is starred • All the postings appear in the main part of the window • Click View Transcript to see a record of what’s been said • Opens in another new window • Can be saved or printed • It seems to go away when the chat is over

45. Forums • A Topic is a discussion on a particular topic • Only the instructor can create a new topic • A Thread is a subtopic under a Forum • At this point, jenzabar doesn’t allow for threads • Students can only post replies to topics created by the instructor • This may be changing with a later release Threads coming soon!

47. Coursework • Allows students to do or turn in assignments online • Click Coursework, then Edit, then Add • Enter the Title of the assignment, an abbreviation, and a point value • The point value is used by the gradebook; even if you don’t use the gradebook, you must enter a value to continue. I just enter “1” for everything. • Enter the Start date and time, and Due date and time. • Click on the little calendar • The assignment will only be available to students during the specified period.

49. Types of Coursework • Offline is for conventional assignments that students turn in to you on paper. Use this option only if you are using the jenzabar gradebook to calculate your grades. • Online is for tests or quizzes that the students do while logged on to jenzabar. • Upload/Download is for assignments students do on their computers while not on jenzabar (like writing a paper). They use this feature to turn in their work to you electronically. • The advantage over having them email you their work is that all the assignments end up in one place, instead of being scattered through your inbox

50. Coursework, cont. • Select a Header, to group the assignments in the gradebook • Click Continue • Enter a description of the assignment and other requested information and click save. • For tests and quizzes, click add or question bank to generate questions • Questions in the question bank can be re-used