Getting Started

Request a Course Shell

'Shells' are the spaces in the Blackboard Learning System that are created for online course components and other collaborative projects ('course shells' and 'organization shells', respectively).

A "course shell" is a space on Blackboard that is associated with a specific course at Ryerson, and can be used to contain documents for a course, enable online discussion with the class, deliver online tests and assignments, etc.You need to request a course shell each time the course is being taught to new students. For example, you may teach ITM 100 each Fall term -- you would have to request a new course shell prior to each term. Once you have developed materials in a course shell, you may request that these course materials be copied for use in your next delivery of the course.

"Organizations" function similarly to courses, except that they are not associated with a specific course. Organizations can be used for research groups, departmental communication, and more.

On this page:

• An Overview of the request form
• Tips & Tricks:
  • How to request a separate course shell for each section of the same course.
  • How to request a shell to be shared by you and other instructor(s) teaching the same course.

An Overview of the Request Form:

The request process will result in ONE course shell, containing all of the course/sections that you specify.

• Go to my.ryerson.ca and sign in using your my.ryerson username and password.
• Find the section called Blackboard Support - Faculty & Staff. Click on the link Request a my.ryerson Course Shell.
• Click the option to request a Course Shell.

Instructor Information:

• Notice that your name and RMail address have already been filled in. You will receive all confirmations and communications pertaining to your course shell(s) at this email address, so please be sure to check it regularly. You can also add a phone number.

• To add other Instructors, TAs or Course Builders to this course shell - click the Add Additional Shell Member button for each person you need to add. You will need to know the exact my.ryerson username of the user you are trying to add. You can find this by taking the part before the @ in their RMail (@ryerson.ca) account OR you can ask the user before filling out the form. If you don't know the username at the time of your request, you can email courses@ryerson.ca with the usernames later.

Add Additional Shell Member button

Adding other admin(s) for this shell

• To exclude yourself from this course shell - Check the box for "I do not want to be a member of this Blackboard shell". This is useful if you are requesting a shell on someone else's behalf and do not wish to have access to the shell. You will have to add the intended Instructor in order to exclude yourself, otherwise the shell cannot be created.

Course Information:

Always Start by selecting a Term

• ALWAYS Start by clicking the 'Select a Term' menu, and choosing the term that the course is going to start in. If the RAMSS system has started assigning course/sections to specific instructors, you should see some of your course/sections listed here.

• Two-term - Does this course span across two terms with the same students? You can keep the same course shell for the duration by simply checking the 'Create a two-term shell' checkbox. This will assume that the course (and the resulting course shell) will run from the selected term through to the end of the subsequent term. Your shell code and shell name will include BOTH terms.

Select Course/Sections (if applicable)

• Check the box for each course/section that you wish to be included in this one course shell. Remember - this request will result in ONE course shell containing ALL of the course/sections you specify here.

• If you don't see the course you need a shell for, you can still request a shell. Click the Manually Add Another Course Section button. Please note that manually entered course requests will take a little while longer to process, as these must be processed manually. Please expect a delay of approximately 2 business days.

Manually Add Another Course Section

• Course Code / Section Number - enter the details of a single course/section and term per line. Click the Manually Add Another Course Section button to add another course code / section number. If you are unsure of your section number(s), leave the section number field blank and email section numbers to courses@ryerson.ca once you have confirmed them with your department or RAMSS.

• Course Title - Make sure the appropriate course title is listed here. If you chose from a list of course sections listed by the system, you may see a title already in here. You can modify the title if needed. In some cases, you will also be able to see a preview of the final shell name below. If you manually entered any course sections, however, you won't see the Shell Name Preview.

• Include section numbers in title - This is highly recommended if you teach multiple sections of the same course, but will be splitting them into separate course shells. Checking this box ensures the section number is entered into the shell name, so you will be able to differentiate between shells for different sections in Blackboard. We don't recommend that you use this if you are combining multiple courses with different course codes (i.e. ABC123 and DEF456) into the same course shell. *Please remember that you can edit the shell name in the Control Panel of your course shell, once it has been created.

Shell Request Information:

Choose from one of three options: to have a new blank shell, to copy one of your previous Blackboard course shells (from the last 2 years), or to request a copy of another instructor's course shell (from the last 2 years).

If requesting a copy of your own shell, you will be given a dropdown menu containing a list of the course shells you ran over the last 2 years. If the one you want is not listed, please request a blank shell and email us to copy the contents in after the fact.

If requesting a copy of someone else's course shell, start by typing the first 6 characters of their first name or my.ryerson username. The system will help you to find the correct person - they will be listed by name, with their username in brackets - click on their name when it comes up on the screen.

Be careful not to select an Instructor's "dummy student" - the username starts with ds_. The dummy student won't have any courses listed, so you'll know pretty quickly if you've made a mistake.

Requesting a copy - start typing shell owner's name

Their email address will automatically be populated -- the permission request will be sent to this address.

Select the shell you wish to copy from the Shell Code dropdown list. This list may be fairly long, depending on the Instructor you've selected. The list should appear with the course names in alphabetical order. Each course listed will show the first characters of the shell title, followed by the full course shell code. The shell code may be useful if the title gets cut off -- you will always be able to see the course code and the term that it ran in.

Requesting a copy - select the course to be copied

Click Preview Request. If any required data is missing, or if there are errors, you will be prompted to fix them before the request can be submitted. If there are no errors, you will be given a preview screen that will summarize the settings for your course shell. Please review this page carefully. If you need to change your request, click the Modify Request button.

If you are satisfied that this request will result in the course shell you need, click Send Request to submit the request.

If you manually entered any course sections, or if you requested to copy someone else's course shell, it will take 2-3 business days to process your request. Otherwise, your request will be automatically processed and your course shell will be created within the next couple of hours! Either way, you will receive email notification.

Tips & Tricks

This section assumes that you've gone over the basic overview above, as it will refer to sections of the request form and tips on how to fill them out.

How to request a separate course shell for each section of the same course.

• As each request form will result in one course shell, you will now have to submit separate requests for each course shell that you want.

• In each request form, select one course/section to be included in the shell.

• In each request form, make sure you select the checkbox to "Include section number(s) in title". This will ensure that you can differentiate between the shells, by section.

How to request a shell to be shared by you and other instructor(s) teaching the same course.

• You will only ever see your own course sections listed, so if you are requesting a shell combining your sections and another instructor's sections, you would not see their sections listed. You have two options: only submit the request with your sections listed (and email courses@ryerson.ca later, with the other instructor's sections) OR manually enter the other instructor's sections.

• Keep in mind that "Manually Adding Another Course Section" will always delay your course shell creation by approximately 2 business days, while selecting only from the list of course/sections known by the system will ensure you get your course shell in about 2 hours (unless you request a copy of someone else's course shell).

To get your shell the fastest, please do the following:

1. Be sure to add the other instructor as an "Additional Shell Member" in your request, preferably with Instructor role.
2. Check your sections from the list provided by the system, don't manually enter any sections, complete the rest of the form and Submit your request.
3. You will have to email the other instructor's sections to courses@ryerson.ca. This will ensure that you get the course shell right away, and the only delay is in getting the other instructor's sections added to your shell.