Adding Content Market Tools in Blackboard

"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.

Third-party tools that are not included in the content market are unsupported by SU ITS, but can be linked to a Blackboard course through the Create Link feature in Blackboard Ultra.

Content market applications which can be accessed through single sign-on with your SU NetID and password are supported in-house by the ITS help desk, or in some cases by another on-campus office. This category includes Blackboard, Google Workspace, Turnitin, Kaltura, PlayPosit, and Zoom. Contact help@syr.edu for support with setting up these tools and embedding them into your Blackboard courses through the content market.

Content market links from private publishers which require a separate purchase and/or login credentials to administer, such as a Cengage, McGraw Hill, or Pearson e-textbook, are included in the content market list as a courtesy. ITS can provide technical specifications for Blackboard linking to publisher representatives upon request, and offers general training resources on how to access the content market in Blackboard, but user training and technical support for the content tools themselves is the responsibility of the publisher.

Creating a Content Market Tool Link

To embed a link to an external tool into your Blackboard course, open the course content area and click the Add Content icon, then select "Content Market" from the menu.

The full Content Market list will open in a pop out panel. The list is alphabetical; scroll down until you find the tool you wish to link in your Blackboard course.

Note that some tiles in the list have a an Add Content icon in the lower right corner. Click this icon to create a new link in your Blackboard course. Doing so will close the content market menu and return you to the course content area. Click the newly-created link to open the tool and configure the link settings for your students (such as directing the link to a specific chapter in an e-textbook or a specific file or video in a shared cloud drive)

If there is no plus icon in the corner of the content market tile, simply click the name of the tool itself to create and configure the Blackboard link in one step.

Screenshot of the full Content Market tools list

ITS Supported Content Market Tools

The following content market tools are licensed by Syracuse University and are generally available to all current faculty, students, and instructional staff through their university NetID single sign-on (some narrow exceptions may exist). For technical support with using any of these tools for academic purposes, contact the ITS help desk through help@syr.edu or 315.443.2677.

Google Assignments/Google Drive

Embed files from an SU Google Drive account directly into your Blackboard course, including assignments based on a shared Google Doc or Google Sheet.

Kaltura

Embed Kaltura videos that play directly inside course content folders or documents, or create links to playlists of multiple videos.

PlayPosit

Create interactive video quizzes that can be linked back to the Blackboard gradebook.

PointSolutions

Create live response questions or polls for synchronous courses. Requires students to purchase a paid subscription.

Poll Everywhere

Create live response questions and polls for synchronous courses. Certain use cases may require students to download a free mobile app.

Qwickly

Track attendance and manage course communication across multiple independent sections at once. Certain uses require students to download a free mobile app.

SensusAccess (supported by Digital Accessibility Services)

Self-service document remediation and file conversion.

Turnitin

Create assignments that are submitted through a plagiarism detection filter and can be linked back to the Blackboard gradebook.

Zoom

Embed links to individual scheduled meetings or to a recurring class meeting room.

Campus Partner Supported Content Market Tools and System Tools

The following content market tools are administered by other units within Syracuse University and are generally available to all instructors and courses through university NetID single sign-on (some exceptions may exist). ITS provides dedicated support for Blackboard integrations with these tools for the convenience of instructors and students, but training or troubleshooting requests should be directed to the campus office or organization which administers the tool.

Course Tools

These tools are available in Blackboard inside of courses either in Course Content where instructors have elected to place links for them or from the "Books & Course Tools" area of the Details & Actions section.

Gradescope (Institutional Effectiveness)

Manage scanning, recording, and scoring of bubble sheets or other paper-based assessment materials through an online interface.

Library Resources (Syracuse University Libraries)

Access electronic library resources including research guides, course reserves, and digital subscriptions

Orange Instant Access (SU Bookstore)

Automate purchasing of required e-textbooks for all students in a course.

System Tools

These tools are available in Blackboard from the "Tools" area of the main navigation, not from within individual courses.

Course Feedback (Institutional Effectiveness)

Managing and delivering course evaluations that are, in part, distributed through Blackboard.

Orange SUccess (Retention and Student Success)

Advising and communicating with students.

Publisher Supported Content Market Tools

The following tools are licensed and administered by individual departments, units, or programs, and generally require instructors and students to create a separate user account with the content publisher for access. Some frequently used tools have dedicated link embedding through the Blackboard content market as a courtesy to the departments/units who request them. ITS can provide technical specifications regarding our Blackboard environment to publisher representatives upon request, but user technical support for these products must be provided by the publisher to whom they belong.

Accepi

Cengage

Echo 360

Gradescope

Great River

Macmillan Learning

McGraw Hill Connect

Pearson

Practice Labs

RedShelf

SAGE Vantage

WileyPLUS

Creating Links for Unsupported Tools

Instructors may use tools that are not included in the Content Market, though ITS is limited in its ability assist with tools where we do not have a campus-wide license. Instructors using such tools should refer to the vendor for guidance on how to set them up. If the vendor has questions about the configuration of our system, you can direct them to our LTI configurations page to determine if and how their product can be integrated.

To create a custom LTI link to a 3rd-party tool, open the course content area and click the Add Content icon, then select "Create" from the menu. Select "Teaching tools with LTI connection" to open the link configuration settings.

Add a title for your new link at the top of the settings panel.

Enter the URL provided by the tool publisher or vendor under "Configuration URL." If you do not know the URL required, please consult your vendor representative.

Links will open within the same Blackboard browser window by default. Check the "open in new window" box to make the link open the tool in a new tab/window instead when students click it.

Some LTI tools can feed assessment scores back to the Blackboard gradebook. Check the box labeled "Create gradebook entry" to use this option. Note: the availability of this feature will depend on the LTI configuration the vendor provides. Not all LTI tools can access the gradebook.

When finished, click "Save" at the bottom of the settings panel to finish creating the LTI link in your Blackboard course content area.

Blackboard Content Market Tools