Blackboard Content System Wins Add to UK Success and Expansion
Tuesday September 21, 7:01 am ET
Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College among 10 institutions choosing Blackboard for content management, meeting British government guidelines
WASHINGTON, Sept. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Blackboard Inc. (Nasdaq: BBBB - News) has achieved significant growth in the United Kingdom, having signed 10 new Blackboard Content System(TM) clients. The Blackboard Content System is a key product in the Blackboard Academic Suite(TM), a comprehensive family of integrated applications for teaching, learning, community-building and knowledge-sharing.
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The newest UK adopters of the Blackboard Content System include: the Bloomsbury Consortium of the University of London, Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College (BCUC), the University of Cambridge, the University of Dundee, the University of Durham, North Trafford College, Northumbria University, the Peninsula Medical School, Sheffield Hallam University, and the University of Wales Medical School at Swansea.
The UK's independent education standards governing body, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), has mandated that higher education institutions provide a Personal Development Plan (PDP) for students to monitor, build and reflect upon their individual academic development by 2005. The Blackboard Content System offers universities an e-portfolio/PDP feature that provides instant access to the information required by these British government standards.
"The Personal Development Plan promotes a structured process for our students to reflect upon their own learning, performance and achievement, and to plan for their personal, educational and career development," said Dr. Helen Fletcher, Director of Learning and Information Services for Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College. "An integral component is the e-portfolio, which makes it easy for students to manage this process and get more out of their learning experience. We believe the Blackboard Content System is the most effective tool for achieving a solid PDP process, quickly and with minimal administrative hassle."
As part of their agreement, BCUC has adopted the entire Blackboard Academic Suite(TM), a comprehensive collection of software creating an integrated e-learning environment.
The Blackboard Content System offers learning institutions a variety of features, including learning content management, e-portfolio management, virtual hard drive management and library digital asset management. As evidenced by the UK requirements, online portfolios are increasingly seen as a critical tool in education. Using the Blackboard Content System, students at BCUC and other institutions can develop online portfolios to enable learning assessment, support career development and meet certification requirements.
"Our primary objective when creating the Blackboard Content System was to make it easy for universities to manage learning data," said Andrew Rosen, President of Blackboard's international business. "Out of that, we have created an invaluable tool for individuals to manage their own academic careers. The toolsets, modularization and adaptability of our software allow users to construct and customize an environment fit for their individual purposes. This is a powerful resource for students and faculty alike. We are pleased to offer our UK clients a simple road to meeting the QAA standards."
Blackboard Continues UK Expansion
Blackboard has recently expanded its European and United Kingdom staff with additions to its global services consulting and support teams. "These teams are working locally with our clients to help them significantly increase the reach and capability of their virtual learning environments while reducing costs," said Mr. Rosen. The Bloomsbury Consortia at the University of London is one such initiative, bringing together multiple schools to share Blackboard® resources. Blackboard also offers in-country technical resources in order to provide UK clients specialized and prompt expertise.
In addition to the eleven institutions recently signing on with the Blackboard Content System, approximately 180 UK colleges and universities actively use the Blackboard Learning System(TM) for their e-Education initiatives.
About Blackboard Inc.
Blackboard is a leading provider of enterprise software applications and related services to the education industry. The Company's product line consists of five software applications bundled in two suites, the Blackboard Academic Suite (TM) and the Blackboard Commerce Suite (TM). Blackboard's clients include colleges, universities, schools and other education providers, as well as textbook publishers and student-focused merchants that serve education providers and their students. Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices and staff in North America, Europe and Asia. |
