Although the semester doesn’t begin for another two weeks (on Wednesday 9/4) Mercy Online has opened the fall 2019 Blackboard courses to students today (8/21). I’m still not totally sure why this happens or what’s to be gained from it, but please note that professors have no obligation to have their courses ready for student-viewing anytime sooner than the start of our actual semester on 9/4. So prior to 9/4 if you look at your Blackboard courses you might see anything ranging from a default shell which appears unready for fall, to a course that’s been customized and carefully prepared (which would mean hidden from student view for the most part) in preparation for this 8/21 unveiling, to a ramshackle behind-the-scenes look at a course-in-creation that the professor forgot to hide from student view.

The only positives that I imagine could come from unlocking the courses two weeks ahead of the semester is that students might get a look at the book requirements to secure them, and at the first few weeks of reading to get a jump on the reading. But for our MA program you can already see all the book orders in this earlier blog post. And reading ahead is sometimes actually detrimental, because your professor might want to prep you for the readings, contextualize them in a way, during the course of the semester before you encounter them.

Bottom line: classes open on 9/4, and 9/4 is when professors are obligated to have their Blackboard sections sorted. Until then, please be patient with whatever you see in your course shells. Any questions: talk to me at cloots@mercy.edu. I’m here to help.