Journals, Wikis, Blogs, and Discussion Boards: A comparison of the four main communication tools in Blackboard Learn Original.

Journals

How does it work?

A Journal is a personal space for students to enter written assignments and reflect on course material. Journals are intended for communication between instructor and student and aren’t usually shared between students.

How can it be used in a class?

One example: Students make reflective posts for a writing course. The instructor provides comments and feedback to assist the student in refining their writing over time.

Where can I find out more about it?

Wikis

How does it work?

A collaborative space where students can contribute to multiple pages of content and course information. Think of it as a course (or topic) website that students can add to and edit as needed.

How can it be used in a class?

Wikis are useful as repositories of knowledge built by students and may include presentations, summaries, and outlines of class readings, glossaries, or other student-generated course material.

Where can I find out more about it?

Blogs

How does it work?

A Blog may also be a personal space for written reflection but it is typically intended to be read by others and in most cases, readers are allowed to post comments and feedback to the author of the Blog posts. A Blog may be written by one person or may have several contributors.

How can it be used in a class?

An example from Blackboard’s self-paced instructor course: “…in a Horticulture course, students can track the crop production in their weekly labs with each Blog entry.”

Where can I find out more about it?

Discussion Boards

How does it work?

Discussion boards (also called bulletin boards or forums) are a way to encourage and facilitate communication, discussion, debate, or other conversation between students in a course. Topical forums provide a place for students to make posts and to react to other students’ posts with comments and feedback.

How can it be used in a class?

Discussion boards are a prominent feature in online courses but are also useful in traditional face-to-face courses to encourage discussion and participation among students who may normally be hesitant to participate in the traditional classroom setting.

Where can I find out more about it?