Category: Technology

Campus Media Services will begin servicing all classroom computers on Tuesday, Dec. 14 to wipe all user data in preparation for next semester.

If you have stored any files on these computers that you wish to keep, please remove those files and save them to a secure device immediately. All individual user files and data will be erased prior to the holiday break. If you have files that you need to keep, but you are unable to remove them prior to Dec. 14, please submit a CMS Classroom Technology Support ticket.

The schedule for the Campus Media Service (CMS) spring 2022 In-Person Classroom Media Training Schedule is now available at the Wichita State Classroom Media Training Schedule website.

CMS supports the technology in five primary classroom types plus several bespoke classrooms with customized technology fit for any occasion.  Access to classroom technology is available to faculty and staff with consistent keys for most classrooms that are issued during a short training session​. If you have a key but aren’t sure if it will work in your new classrooms, check out the CMS FAQ page. Faculty are encouraged to verify that their assigned classrooms have the technology they need before the start of the semester.

Training is by appointment only. To apply, email glenn.gunnels@wichita.edu. For more information, contact 316-978-3588.

Wichita State’s plan has long been to move fully to the Ultra Course Format no later than Dec. 31, 2022, but recent experiences with the pilot program and Blackboard’s ongoing commitment to improving the Ultra Course Format have led the university to make a change to the deadline.

In consultation with the Accessibility and Technology subcommittee of the Faculty Senate, the Office of Instructional Resources (OIR) has decided to suspend the deadline to move to Ultra Course Format for the time being. OIR is committed to supporting instructors in both formats through the end of the 2022-23 annual year. That means that WSU will not be moving to Ultra Course Format fully before the end of May 2023, and it could be after this date.

OIR will continue to support students, faculty and staff in both formats, and will continue to encourage instructors to move to the Ultra Course Format over time. Ultimately, the Classic Blackboard Course Format will sunset on our campus, but OIR wants to make sure that the Ultra Course Format does all the university needs it to do before it takes that step.

If you would like to begin your move to the Ultra Course Format, now is a good time. OIR has a new webpage designed to help instructors of all ranks know their options and choose a personalized path to Ultra Course Format.

For more information, please contact OIR@wichita.edu, or make a plan to drop into online lab times.

Blackboard will have intermittent downtimes Thursday, Nov. 25 (Thanksgiving Day). The system is being upgraded to improve its performance. Users should avoid using Blackboard during this time. For more information, contact OIR@wichita.edu.

The University Applications Training and the Registrar’s Office will host Summer 2022 and Fall 2023 Schedule Building Training sessions Dec. 7-8 for new Banner schedule builders. Both Sections 1 and 2 are required for new schedule builders.  Attendees will learn to enter the course schedule and view information using Banner 9, Self-Service, and Wichita State Reporting.

New schedule builders are those who have not been through the training previously and will be building the upcoming schedule. To attend the new schedule builders session, an employee’s supervisor must submit a request for approval at stusecurityaccess@wichita.edu before registering. Registration is required. The sessions are posted at myWSU > myTraining. Due to COVID and the need for social distancing, spaces in these sessions are limited and restricted to new schedule builders only.

Current schedule builders are welcome to attend the remote Schedule Building Overview Session which will be posted in myTraining Dec. 1. Please visit Wichita State’s Schedule Building webpage for schedule building-related information.

For more information, contact Madelyne Toney in Applications Training at 316-978-3083 or madelyne.toney@wichita.edu.

Thank you to the many of you who provided (Who, or office here) insight and feedback to help streamline the current Strategic Planning Initiative (SPI) form and workflow. Because of this feedback, tactics will now be optional and the workflow is only one step to update an SPI. The (Who, or office here) will update current SPIs to the new format on Nov. 15.

To learn more, visit wichita.edu/strategicplan/<site of new directions>.

Now is the time for instructors to consider converting one Blackboard course to the Ultra Course format for spring 2022. Converting a course now gives instructors time to learn the format before all courses convert to this format in spring 2023. The Ultra Course format has both design, layout and grading interface differences from the past versions Blackboard.

The Office of Instructional Resources (OIR) knows this conversion is a big ask for instructors. OIR is here to help and support instructors throughout the process, and they have compiled many of their support materials on a single webpage to help instructors get started.

The Office of Instructional Resources has developed a curriculum packet for faculty who want to add more information about freedom of speech and expression to their fall or spring courses. The packet offers information representing multiple points of view as well as an optional short quiz faculty can provide to students for extra credit.

For more information or help setting up the freedom of speech and expression packet in your Blackboard class, please contact the Office of Instructional Resources at OIR@wichita.edu.

Want to know how to find a proposal in workflow or create a permanent course from an experiential course?  Check out the Curriculum Management (CIM) user guides for these tasks and many more:

User Guides (updated frequently)

You can also bookmark these other popular links for quick access:

• CIM Course Form
• CIM Program Form
• CIM Misc Admin Form
• Approval Page
• Curriculum Change Guidelines

You can also attend one of the following one-hour Zoom CIM training sessions, which include a  30-minute question and answer session. The Zoom links to these sessions are available via myTraining:

• 1-2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 20
• 1-2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov 10

To lower student costs for proctoring services, Wichita State University has joined the Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) proctoring contract with Examity. This service will replace ProctorU for the spring 2022 term.

Because proctoring adds expenses to students and can increase stress in the testing environment, we encourage faculty to first consider options for exam integrity that do not require proctoring. For more information please view the information on test integrity from the Office of Instructional Resources.

Examity can be set up for four different levels of proctoring:

• Automated Proctoring Standard: Recorded with artificial intelligence flagging irregularities — without a proctor audit ($3.75 per test)
• Automated Proctoring Premium: With a human audit of the recording ($5.75 per test)
• Live Proctoring Standard: Live authentication, session recorded and reviewed by AI, followed by Examity review of the session ($11 for the first hour and $5 for each additional hour)
• Live Proctoring Premium: Overseen by a live proctor the entire session ($12 for the first hour and $5 for each additional hour)

Faculty wanting to use student-paid proctoring options in their classes are encouraged to learn about Examity directly from the Examity website.

We will be working on installing Examity’s Blackboard integration during December to make it available for spring 2022 courses.

Respondus LockDown Browser and Monitor (recording that uses AI-flagging) are both still available to the university at no cost to students. There are a limited number of Monitor licenses for the entire year, so we ask faculty to consider how many Respondus exams they use.