Configuring your Course Wiki
By default, the Course Wiki is set up such that the instructor is the only user who can edit and
create pages. The default setting is off for Course Wiki. If you see the message shown below, the
Wiki tool has not been configured.
To configure the settings for this Wiki, navigate to the Control Panel for your course or
organization and select “Configure Wiki Tool.”
Select “Configure Wiki
Tool” to make the Wiki
tool available to your
course. Options are
explained below
The following options are available when configuring your Wiki tool:
Please Note: The settings on this page apply only to the course or organizational level wiki tool, not to
the group wiki tool that can be added in content areas.
Do you want to allow students to edit the Wiki?
Choose "No" if the instructor will be the only person editing or creating pages. Choose "Yes" if
students can participate.
Do you want to allow students to permanently delete Wiki entries?
Choose "Yes" if students are allowed to permanently delete pages in the wiki. If selected, then
students will have the option to either delete or permanently delete when they select to delete a
page in the wiki. NOTE: Deleting a page in a wiki IS an undoable action if you do not explicitly
permanently delete the page. This means that a page that is unintentionally deleted can be
retrieved at a later date if a regular deletion is performed. For this reason, most instructors
choose to disable permanently deletion, especially when a wiki is being used for group work.
Do you want to allow students to export the Wiki?
Choose "Yes" if the "export site" link should appear for students in the Wiki sidebar. This will allow
students to export (download) the Wiki to their computers. This link will always be available to instructors
regardless of what is selected for this setting.
Do you want to allow students to view comments on Wiki entries?
Select "Yes" to allow students to view comments made on Wiki pages. This does not allow students to
add comments. That is controlled through a separate setting. The instructor, however, can view and add
comments to any Wiki pages.
Do you want to allow students to add comments to Wiki pages?
Select "Yes" to allow students to add comments to Wiki pages. Note that you cannot select "Yes" for this
option unless you have also enabled students to view comments on Wiki pages.
When can members edit the Wiki? Choose the dates and times for which students will be allowed
to edit the Wiki tool.
Use the date ranges to specify when students are allowed to edit pages. By default there are no date
restrictions placed on editing. To enable, simply check “Allow Edits After” and/or “Allow Edits Until.” A
calendar icon can be clicked to access calendar mode. However, you may choose to place restrictions
editing the wiki if you want to prevent students from editing while you are grading or after an assignment
is due, for example.
Choose the dates and times for which the Wiki tool can be viewed by students.
Use the date range fields to specify the time range in which students can view pages. By default there are
no date restrictions placed on viewing, if viewing is enabled for the user.
How shall public references to students be displayed?
Users' names appear in a number of locations throughout the Wiki:
At the top of each Wiki entry, if they are the author of the entry or the last person to modify the
entry
In the history for an entry, for every revision made by that user
As the author of any comments added by the user
In all of these locations, the user will be referenced with the name value selected for this field. The
options are as follows:
User Name: If selected, the user's username will be displayed, e.g., ja0doe01. Note: This is not
recommended unless absolutely necessary, as usernames are personal identifiers in Blackboard.
Person Name: If selected, the user's first name and last name will be displayed. e.g., John Doe
Person Name and User Name: If selected, the user's first name, last name, and username will be
displayed. Note: This is not recommended unless absolutely necessary, as usernames are
personal identifiers in Blackboard.e.g., John Doe (ja0doe01)
Given Name: If selected, the user's first name, or given name, will be displayed. e.g., John
Are you using a right-to-left language?
If you are building your Wiki in a language that is read right-to-left, such as Arabic, you can set the
primary text direction. If no option is selected, all text in the Wiki will be displayed left-to-right by default.
Once you have made your selections, click "OK" to save your changes.