Brightspace Template
As a way to jumpstart your online course site building, a team of educational developers and instructional designers developed a model course site structure, informally known as the Brightspace template. The template aims to provide students with a consistent learning environment and to support faculty in the set up and design of their online course spaces.
Framed around the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and other pedagogical strategies considered best practice, the template includes a set of homepage widgets; a course orientation; example welcome messages, discussion prompts, and student feedback surveys; built-in supports for both students and faculty; and more. Implementing the template is optional.
Fully customizable templates are available to instructors across H in Brightspace through a self-enrolment process (see Self-Registration Instructions, below).
Implementing the Brightspace Template
To implement the template, follow the instructions below.
Adding Template to Your Course Site
- From your own course site, navigate to theCourse Adminmenu.
- Click theImport / Export / Copy Componentslink.
- Press theSearch for offeringbutton.
- In the pop-up window, do a search for the template named:Template - General Use(you can just search for the wordstemplate general)
- Select the template from the list and pressAdd Selected.
- On the next screen, pressCopy All Componentsor select components individually.
- You will get a message once the copy process is complete. The template has now been added to your course site. You can now upload content or customize as desired.
Other forms of support around Brightspace include:
- Educational Developerswith the Centre for Learning and Teaching, who can assist with writing learning outcomes, developing student assessments, and other aspects of course design. Contactclt@dal.cato schedule a consultation.
- Instructional Technologistswith Academic Technology Services, who can assist with technical support and training of H’s instructional technologies, such as Brightspace, Panopto, and more. Contactintech@dal.cafor support or visit the.
Note: Agriculture has its own set of customized Brightspace templates. Please contact the Educational Technology and Design (ETD) office by email (etd@dal.ca) for more information.