RPI Supported Tools
Blackboard Learn is the Learning Management System (LMS) supported by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The platform contains multiple features, such as organization for your course documents, such as syllabus and lecture notes. Blackboard Learn also allows instructors to set up spaces for students to upload assignments, which can be run by the Safe Assign plagiarism checker if desired. Other features include online tests, discussion boards, and blogs.
Link to submit a support request to our LMS Team: RPI LMS Support Link
Cisco Webex is a web conferencing software service that offers immersive online meeting experiences for collaboration, virtual classrooms and webinars. Learn more about Webex Meetings, Teams and Training.
Link to submit a support request to our MultiMedia Services Team: RPI MultiMedia Services Team
Gradescope is an online grading tool that allows teachers to provide feedback to students on their tests and assignments. It provides detailed feedback on each section of the submission to students, and instructors can access detailed assignment and question analytics.
This tool offers live responses to questions the instructor poses in class whether an in-person or online course. As an institute, we use the iClicker Cloud version. The remotes are no longer supported on campus as we have moved to the mobile subscription based solution for the students to offer more flexibility and engagement for in the classroom or remotely. The instructor can create polls or low-stakes testing in-class to have instant feedback about the lesson material. This took integrates with our LMS system.
Contact: Maureen Fodera (foderm@rpi.edu)
Submitty is an open source programming assignment submission system from the Rensselaer Center for Open Source Software (RCOS), launched by the Department of Computer Science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. It supports secure testing of many languages, including Python, C/C++, Java, and anything available on GNU/Linux, as well as advanced grading tools like memory debuggers. Other features include multiple submissions for students, flexible late day policies, hidden tests, an interface for instructor manual grading, and support for multiple instructors.
Box is a cloud content management and file sharing service. Box's main features include online storage, secure file sharing, syncing with desktop, file editing, notes application and file preview. Box supports granular permissions, which allow the user to permit others to have specific permissions, such as "view only" or "edit", over files hosted on their account. Additional features include version history, commenting, and search options. Box supports usage via a web browser on a desktop computer, or the Box Mobile App on mobile devices, available for Android and iOS.
The platform includes thousands of assets that you can access anytime from any device! Lifelong learning is a fundamental component of our mission at Rensselaer. New technologies and business practices require skill development and innovation. Whether you are interested in a short vignette for a specific job related need, or a comprehensive course designed to advance your career, the Professional Learning Center for Faculty, Staff and Students contains solutions. Explore the possibilities and login to your personalized account via the Skillport link above using your RCS login information.
Contact: Will Fahey (faheyw@rpi.edu)
The division of Production & Video Services of RPI MultiMedia Services is a full service video and multimedia production facility, dedicated to professionally producing and delivering content for the Rensselaer's instructional, event and Institute advancement needs. Its services are provided at no charge for course listed on the SIS Class Hour Schedule, but their equipment and services are also available (on a fee basis) for non-course, on-campus events.
Contact: pvs@rpi.edu
Mediasite is a presentation tool that allows instructors to make live digital recordings of lectures or presentations. Students can view the presentation over the internet in real-time and/or can access the presentation for viewing at a later date.
Link to submit a support request to our Mediasite Team: RPI MultiMedia Services Team
Additional Tools
Voicethread is a collaborative, multimedia, cloud-based slide show that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate slides and leave comments using voice, text, audio file, or video. Voicethread's services incur a cost per instructor with additional per-student fees for classes of over 50 students.
Slack is a cloud-based platform of team collaboration tools and services. Features include teams, which groups to join through a specific URL sent by a team admin or owner, and channels, which are specific chat threads that can be public and open to all members of a group, or can be private an include only a subset of members. The platform can be accessed via a web browser on a computer, or via mobile app available on Android and iOS. Slack is a free service, with additional features available for a fee.
YouTube is a video sharing platform that allows unregistered users to view all of its content, but users to log in with their Google account to upload, rate, share, comment on videos, make playlists and subscribe to other users. YouTube hosts user uploaded videos in a variety of topics, including education, science, entertainment, lifestyle, beauty, travel, fashion, and more. The plaftorm can be accessed via a web browser on a computer, or via mobile app available on Android and iOS. YouTube is a free service, with the option to pay a fee for the YouTube Red service, which removes advertisements and allows users to access restricted content.
Desmos is a mobile application and browser-based graphing calculator. In addition to graphing both equations and inequalities, its features include: lists, plots, regressions, graph restriction, simultaneous graphing, piecewise function graphing, polar function graphing, and other features commonly found in programmable calculators. Desmos is a free service accessible via its website, and application available in Android and iOS.
Google Drive is a file storage and synchronization service that can be accessed with a Google account (which can be associated with an email of any domain, for example: Gmail or an RPI email address). Google Drive supports desktop via web and programs for Windows and MacOS, as well as mobile platforms, with apps for Android and iOS. It also includes a collaborative editing office suite comprised of Google Docs, Sheets and Slides, which allow multiple users to open and edit files of the following categories in real time: documents, spreadsheets, presentations, drawings, forms, and more. Google Drive is free to use up to 15 GB of storage, though additional storage can be purchased.
SurveyMonkey is a web-based platform that provides customizable online surveys, as well as a suite of paid back-end programs that include data analysis, sample selection, bias elimination, and data representation tools. Surveys can be created wither using a computer with a web browser or on a mobile device with the SurveyMonkey app available for Android and iOS. However, surveys can be responded via web browser on any device. SurveyMonkey can be used for free by a single user receiving 100 or less responses per survey, but further features can be accessed at a cost.
Microsoft Translator translates conversations so everyone can join in. There is also a feature to download the transcript once the conversation or course content has been shared.
Kahoot! is a game-based learning platform, where anyone can create multiple-choice quizzes that a whole class can access and interact in real time by using their own electronic devices. Kahoot! supports use via a web browser on Windows or Mac computers, or via a mobile app on Android and iOS smartphones. Kahoot! Is a free service.
Wheel Decide is a website that lets users provide a set of options to create a “wheel”, which can then be “spun” to output a random choice of the given options. The tool is available to be used by anyone at the website, and users that log can save wheels to their profile for later use. It is a free service and can supports use from any computer with a web browser.
Voice and text chat tool.