how to copy an assignment in blackboard

University IT

• Blackboard Online Course Content

Export, Import or Copy Course Content in Blackboard

If you have developed course materials in Blackboard in a previous semester, you may want to move them into a current course by copying or exporting, then importing. This process refers to copying content from and Original course into another Original course

FYI before you begin:

If your source course is from a previous semester, you will need to find the course in its TERM on the courses page.

Both of these methods will ADD, not replace content in the destination course, so some cleanup may be required after the copy completes in order to get rid of duplicated or unwanted Course Menu items.

If you have tests and question pools in your source course, it may be best to use the export/import method . Otherwise follow the instructions below for Copying Your Course .

Exporting & Importing Your Course

Exporting Your Course

1. Click on desired Content Area from the Course Menu.

2. Under Control Panel, use the pulldown next to “Packages and Utilities” to choose Export/Archive course.

On the next screen, you will probably find that there are no existing export files.  You will now create an export file by clicking the “Export” button.

3. You will now be presented with a list of all possible Bb content and tools that might be in your course.  Choose any elements that you want to copy into the destination course.

If you are copying assignments or tests, be sure to also check “Grade Center Columns and Settings” ,  Otherwise assignments and tests will not copy over.

** PLEASE NOTE: Note that if you copy Settings, and the source course is Available, the new course will be set to Available.  If you choose Settings and you want the new course to remain unavailable, be sure to switch it back off after the copy is complete

Always be sure to select “Copy Links and copies of the content.”  This should be selected by default.

4. When you’ve selected everything you want to copy, click Submit.

Blackboard will confirm your request and send you an email when the export file is complete.

5. Once you’ve received the email saying your export is complete, return to the source course, go to Packages and Utilities and choose Export/Archive course as you did in Step 2.  You should now see your export file listed.  Click on the hyperlinked file name to download the file.

Import Your Course

1.. To import this file, enter the course where you want to import the materials, the “destination” course.

• In this course, under the Control Panel, use the pulldown next to Packages and Utilities to choose Import Package (NOT import Course Cartridge)

2. On the next screen, click the Import Package button

3. Navigate to the location on your local computer where you downloaded the export file from the source course and choose it.

4. Choose all the items you want to import. It is best to just choose everything as the system will only import what is in the export file.

5. Click  Submit.

In a few minutes, you will get an email notifying you that the process is complete. Please note: this may or may not be the case.  It frequently happens that the email arrives before the copy is done.  If you go to the destination course and do not see the content, please wait another half hour or so before concluding that your copy or import has failed.

Remember that this process ADDS to the existing course. If left hand menu items have the same name, the content will be added at the bottom of the menu area.

Copying Your Course

1. Enter the original or “source” course. (Please note that you cannot copy INTO an Ultra course – this is only for copy into another Original course)

2. Under Control Panel, use the pulldown next to “Packages and Utilities” to choose Course Copy.

3. On the next screen, select “Copy Course Materials into an Existing Course.”  (NB:  Instructors do not have system permissions to create new courses.)

4. To select the “destination” course, click the “Browse” button.  It will list all courses in which you are the instructor.

5. From the list in Item 2 on this screen, choose any elements that you want to copy into the destination course.

We recommend that you Select ALL and then Uncheck the following: Any Content areas that you do not want to copy, Announcements, Settings.

Note: If you are copying assignments or tests, be sure to also check “Grade Center Columns and Settings..”  Otherwise assignments and tests will not copy over.

Please make sure that Settings is UNCHECKED.

6. Be sure “Copy links and copies of Content” is selected.

7. Do not include enrollments.

Remember that this process ADDS to the existing course. If left hand menu items have the same name, the content will be added at the bottom of the content area. All other items are added to the bottom of the menu.

Copying Courses with Panopto Content

If you use Panopto streaming media in your course and want previous videos available in the current course, you need to make copies of those videos into this semester’s course folder.

It is possible that this will happen automatically, if you perform the following steps in order.

• Perform your course copy as mentioned above. Be sure that Settings are UNCHECKED
• Immediately after the copy is complete, provision the Panopto folder by clicking on the Panopto Course Folder tool in your course (this can be accessed in the Access to Tools or similar link on the left hand menu)

If the videos do not copy automatically, you will need to do that within Panopto. Note that copies will not be immediate, it may take up to 24 hours for the videos to copy (although it is typically within 1-2 hours). See How to Batch Copy and Move Videos

If you’re not sure of the best option, or you have any questions about Panopto content in your copied course, contact your Blackboard Support Team.

Cleaning Up Integrated Tools (Voicethread, Zoom, Yellowdig, Perusall) in Your Course after a Copy/Import 

If you use any of the following tools in your course, you will need to relink them in the new course.

• Voicethread

Voicethread links will need to be clicked to reassociate them with the actions in Voicethread and with your new course.

If you are using the Assignment Builder function, Voicethread will automatically make a new copy of your Voicethread for use with just your own comments. But be sure to review to make sure that any comments you made to/about students are removed.

If you are not using Assignment Builder, you may want to make copies of your existing Voicethreads prior to this in order to link the new versions in your new course. Be sure to only include your own comments so to protect the privacy of your previous students.

Make a Copy of a Voicethread

For Perusall, you will click the link to make a new Perusall course area. You can then copy materials and assignments from past courses into this space. For more information, see Perusall documentation.

For Zoom and Yellowdig, it is easiest to delete the links and recreate them. You can copy settings from a previous Yellowdig community when the new community is created.

• Teaching and Learning with Blackboard
• Course Copy

Course Copy - Frequently Asked Questions

In order to copy materials between courses, the faculty member must be an Instructor in both courses, the source (where the original materials resides) and the destination (the course into which the materials will be copied). Learn more about Course Copy .

Original Course View

Blackboard offers two ways to copy materials from course to course, both through the Control Panel. Entire sections of a course can be copied using the Course Copy feature, while individual documents or folders can be copied from the Action Link menu next to the item in the Course Content area.

Ultra Course View

In the Ultra Course View, you copy content by pulling it into the course that you are building. You can copy an entire course, portions of a course, or a single item. You can copy between two Ultra Courses, from an Original Course, and from within the same course.

To start copying content, either click the three dots (...) in the upper right above the course content or click the plus icon (+) wherever you would like the content to be added. Choose Copy Content from the menu and use the side panel to find and select the content to be copied.

Yes, you can do this in both the Original and Ultra Course View.

To copy individual folders or files:

• Click the round drop-down arrow next to the folder or file to be copied, and choose either Copy or Move from the menu Note: Copy makes a duplicate of the item; Move removes the item from the original location
• Select the Destination Course from the drop-down menu
• Click the Browse button and select the folder for the copied item
• Click the Submit button

You cannot copy individual Tests or Assignments between two Original Courses.

You can copy individual content items or assessments from courses in either the Original or Ultra Course View. To start copying content, either click the three dots (...) in the upper right above the course content or click the plus icon (+) wherever you would like the content to be added. Choose Copy Content from the menu and use the side panel to find and select the content to be copied.

Yes, but you must be listed as an Instructor in both the Source and Destination courses.

Yes, but with significant differences between the Original and Ultra Course View

You can copy tests between courses if you use Course Copy , and you copy Tests, Surveys and Pools , the Content Area the test is deployed in, and the Grade Center Columns and Settings .  

Note:   It is important that all three of the options be selected during the Course Copy process.

Another option is to export the test from the course you created it in and then import the test into the second course. The test must then be redeployed in the second course. 

To export a test, go to the Control Panel > Course Tools > Tests, Surveys, and Pools > Tests . Then click the action link (the round down arrow) next to the test you created. From the menu, select Export to Local Computer. Save the exported file to your computer.  It will be a .zip file. Do not make any changes to the zip file.

In the second course, follow the same path to navigate to the Test manager. Click the Import Test button and find the file on your computer. Once the test has been Imported, you can deploy the test and set the options.

IMPORTANT - If you want the quizzes to also be deployed automatically (ie: available to students) in your new course, when performing the copy, you also need to copy whatever Content Areas that the deployed quizzes reside in as well as the Grade Center Columns and Settings to ensure that the quizzes are deployed in the desired Content Areas in your new course. Otherwise, if you just copy the "Tests, Surveys, and Pools" you'll simply need to re-deploy each quiz to the desired Content Area after you make whatever modifications you need.

You can copy individual tests into an Ultra Course from both Original and Ultra Courses by using the Course Copy feature. Blackboard will copy the test and the Gradebook column.

Yes. Adaptive release criteria general to the course content can be copied to another course. Criteria that are specific to the enrollment of a particular section will not be captured if the enrollments are not copied with the content. User-specific adaptive release rules must be re-established in the destination course after being copied.

Because Assignments are tied to the Grade Center, in order for Assignments to successfully copy it is necessary to select both the Content Area the assignment is in and Grade Center Columns and Settings when performing a Course Copy.

Note that this does not happen in the Ultra Course View. Copying an Assignment or Test between courses will automatically copy the Gradebook column associated with that item.

Blackboard Collaborate sessions/recordings do not get copied over during a Course Copy. Instead, we recommend downloading the recordings and uploading them to Kaltura. Collaborate recordings are only retained for 6 months prior to being deleted from the system, so reusing Collaborate recordings is not a long-term approach to sharing content. 

To download a recording:

• Access Blackboard Collaborate in a course
• Click to open the menu (three parallel lines in the upper left, above the course room)
• Click  Recordings
• Find the appropriate recording by using the  Filter by   options on the right to view recent recordings (from the last 30 days) or recordings in a date range
• Click the  Recording Menu   at the far right (three dots in a circle) and select  Download

The recording will automatically download to your computer in an .mp4 format. You can then upload the video file to Kaltura (if you will be reusing it for subsequent courses) or to Microsoft OneDrive (if you are retaining it for archival purposes but will not be playing it frequently).

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