Brightspace Frequently Asked Questions
Check out our newly updated Brightspace FAQs! This list runs through the most common questions the Brightspace Support Team gets throughout the year. If you have any questions not listed here, be sure to contact our Support team for assistance.
Support Schedule
The 五一茶馆儿 Brightspace Instructional Technologists are available for support between 8 AM and 4 PM Monday through Friday. Any emails received after 4 PM will be addressed when our team returns to normal support at 8 AM the following business day. While we鈥檙e out, we encourage you to utilize our On-Demand Resources to answer any questions that arise.
Are you trying to get your courses up and running in a hurry? This guide outlines some basic skills you鈥檒l need to quickly get up to speed with Brightspace.聽Please note that in addition to the resources outlined below, we聽offer phone and email support, workshops, and drop-in hours for face to face support. 聽Click here for more information about Brightspace Support. You may also want to check out our聽Video Workshops聽series to get a detailed tour of Brightspace and how to use the tools.
Get to know your Brightspace dashboard
When you log into Brightspace, the first page you鈥檒l see is your dashboard. This page shows all the courses you have access to: past and present. This image shows a few important areas of your dashboard you should be aware of:
- NavBar 鈥� The navigation bar containing useful tabs. The NavBar will look different depending on whether you are on your dashboard or in a course.
- Semester tabs 鈥� Your courses are sorted by semester. You can view 鈥淎ll Course鈥� in the first semester tab. You are able to 鈥減in鈥� certain courses to the top of your list by following聽these instructions.
- My Media 鈥� This is where you will upload audio and video files that you play to use in your classes. The media in the 鈥淢y Media鈥� tab is visible only to you.
- Profile 鈥� You can view and edit profile information here, as well as uploading a photo. This is also where students will choose their notification settings.
- Announcement widget 鈥� Important announcements from the Brightspace Support team will appear here. Be sure to check this out at different times of the semester, as new announcements are posted.
Links to helpful guides for the content covered here:
Change your course image
When your course is generated in Brightspace, it is assigned a random stock image. You can choose to keep this image or change it to a new one. There are stock photos you can choose from, or upload a new one.
Option One: Choosing from a stock photo
Click on the 鈥渢hree dot鈥� menu that appears on the right side of your header image. Choose聽Change Image. Pick the image you like best and聽Save.
Option Two: Upload your own header image
This is done in the Course Admin area by following聽these directions.
Add your Syllabus and other Content
When you enter your course, locate the NavBar (navigation bar). Click on Content. This is where you will post all the materials your students will read, watch, or listen to and all the activities you have planned.聽This image shows a few important areas of your Content page you should be aware of:
- Syllabus 鈥� You will upload a Word document or PDF syllabus here
- Table of Contents 鈥� This contains all your modules and submodules
- Dragging/Reordering modules 鈥� Clicking on these dots and dragging will allow you to change the order of the modules and submodules
- Hidden module 鈥� You are able to hide modules from students that you want to keep unavailable to them
- Add a module 鈥� This is where you will create a new module or submodules by typing in its title. Once it鈥檚 been created, you can drag/reorder it following the instructions above.
Links to helpful guides for the content covered here:
Review your Classlist
On your Navbar, click on 鈥淐lasslist鈥� to see all the students, instructors, and TAs enrolled in your course. You can also聽email your whole Classlist聽at once while you鈥檙e in this tool.
The Classlist is automatically updated multiple times a day by synchronizing with Vanderbilt鈥檚 YES system. Any changes that are made in YES will feed into Brightspace in a matter of hours. It鈥檚 necessary that any students be added to your Classlist through the Office of the University Registrar, who will then input the enrollment into YES. This includes students enrolled for credit, TA鈥檚, and formal auditors. This does not include informal guests, who can be added by Brightspace Support staff members.
Links to helpful guides for the content covered here:
Activate your course
By default, your course will be聽Inactive: hidden and unavailable to your students. Once your course is ready, you will need to manually make the course聽Active. Here is our full聽step-by-step guide聽to the process.
Three simple steps to make your course active
- Go to Course Admin -> Course Offering Information
- Scroll down and check the box 鈥淐ourse is active鈥�
- Click Save
Communicate with students
If you are wondering what students need to know about Brightspace, we are here to help.聽This blog post聽walks you through the four most important Brightspace features for students, and also provides suggestions for how to talk about Brightspace in an email or on your syllabus.
We also have a number of guides available to students on this website. They are available under the 鈥淥n Demand Resources鈥� tab at the top.聽Here is a link to all the student guides.
Contact Brightspace Support
Please reach out to our team whenever you have a question 鈥� no matter how big or small. We are always glad to help!