Supported Tools Index

The Answers pages below contain information about specific Blackboard Ultra features and settings, including guides on how to locate and set up course tools, and troubleshooting information for common problems.

Ideas pages (listed at the bottom) contain overviews and discussions on more general online teaching and learning questions, and suggestions about how to select the best instructional tools and/or policies to meet your goals.

• Vendor Training and Webinars
• Blackboard Content Market Tools — "Content Market" is the Blackboard location where non-Blackboard tools can be embedded into a course. The content market includes link embedding for SU-licensed tools which are supported by ITS and available campus-wide, including Kaltura, PlayPosit, Turnitin, and Zoom, as well as links for major e-textbook publishers that are frequently licensed by individual departments/programs such as McGraw Hill or Pearson. 
• Blackboard Collaborate (deactivated) — As of summer 2024, the Class Collaborate videoconferencing tool has been discontinued by Blackboard and is no longer available. 
• Kaltura Video — Kaltura is the supported video and media repository for Syracuse University faculty, staff, and students. Kaltura videos are best embedded into Blackboard courses within Blackboard documents, discussions, assignments, etc. 
• Respondus LockDown Browser (for Instructors)
• Qwickly Attendance | Course Tools — Both an Attendance Solution with Customized Features and a Simplified Management Tool for Managing Multiple Courses
• Poll Everywhere-Getting Started — What is Poll Everywhere?
  • Integrating Poll Everywhere with your Blackboard Course and Creating Reports
  • Using Poll Everywhere for Presentations
• Turnitin Assignment — Turnitin can assist in detecting unoriginal or un-paraphrased content in written submissions. The tool generates a "similarity report" that shows what percentage of the submission matches existing content in Turnitin's repositories.
• Google Assignments — Google assignments created with an SU Google account (NetID@g.syr.edu) can be embedded into Blackboard courses and linked to the Blackboard gradebook. 
• PlayPosit — Playposit is an interactive video platform that allows educators to embed various types of interactive elements on YouTube, Vimeo and Kaltura videos to enhance student engagement and learning.
  • PlayPosit for Students
• Zoom —  Zoom is a video conferencing platform licensed by Syracuse University that instructors can use in their courses. As of Summer 2024, Zoom is the preferred academic video conferencing tool at Syracuse University. 
• Supported Tools Ideas
  • Detecting AI Created Content — ITS and Online Learning Services do not currently support or recommend any tool for the detection of AI-generated writing.
  • Creating strong prompts for AI "mentors"
  • Choosing an AI Model