Editing Files Using Google Docs - A Modular Alternative to Word’s Copy and Paste

Aug 31, 2026

Guidance explains why course content is better edited in Google Docs instead of Microsoft Word when posting into Blackboard. It covers how Blackboard can automatically reformat tables, bullet lists, images, and other inputs, and how using cloud-based editing helps preserve formatting. The tutorial walks through creating a new Google Docs document, using key toolbar tools, and copying content into Blackboard’s text editor while maintaining consistency. It also introduces the embed option for updating content with less repeated paste work.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPresentations

FormatDOCX

Pages6

Reading Time2 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Why We Avoid Microsoft Word

Google Docs Basics

Creating a New Document

Editing Your Document

Toolbar Breakdown

Copying Content into Blackboard

Conclusion

Editing Files Using Google Docs A Modular Alternative to Word’s Copy and Paste Interactive Table of Contents HYPERLINK \l "_Introduction" Introduction – HYPERLINK \l "_Why_We_Avoid" Why We Avoid Microsoft Word – HYPERLINK \l "_Google_Docs_Basics" Google Docs Basics – HYPERLINK \l "_Creating_a_New" Creating a New Document – HYPERLINK \l "_Editing_Your_Document" Editing Your Document – HYPERLINK \l "_Toolbar_Breakdown" Toolbar Breakdown – HYPERLINK \l "_Copying_Content_into" Copying Content into Blackboard Introduction Hello; my name is Megan Jones and I am an Instructional Designer here at EKU. Today, as part of our faculty professional development, we are going to cover how to edit text files and content. As you know, Blackboard has particular quirks and alternative ways of performing tasks, so hopefully you will find this short tutorial helpful. Why We Avoid Microsoft Word The main reason we recommend avoiding using Word documents relates to the copy and paste nature of Blackboard. Many of us, or actually I would say the majority of us, use alternative word processing programs to assemble our content and then use the copy and paste feature to post our content in Blackboard. What’s the problem with using Word to copy and paste course content? The main problem we encounter is the automatic formatting Blackboard does to any input. Whether it be a table, or a bullet list with text – or even images – Blackboard will reformat the content to its own specifications. To assist with this issue, Blackboard has actually included a button in its text editor that allows us to clear the formatting from any input. The caveat with clearing all formatting? Sometimes we don’t want our format to be altered. And it’s even worse – and time consuming – to go back and reformat input in Blackboard’s text editor. Fortunately, we have found a versatile solution. That solution comes in the form of cloud-based office programs implemented by Google. We often think of Google as just a search engine, but in reality, Google has several services that I have found useful as an Instructional Designer and former faculty. Today, we will be covering a browser-based program called Google Docs. Google Docs Basics Google Docs is a browser-based word processing program. There is no software to install or purchase – you only need to create a Google account. You may notice other programs from Google, including spreadsheet, presentation, and database programs. Google also has cloud storage – similar to Microsoft’s OneDrive – called Google Drive. All of these programs are accessible through a Google account. For the purpose of this tutorial, we will only be editing a Google Docs file. I will also show you how to input Google Docs content into Blackboard. It may seem complicated at first, but in fact, you may find this method can increase your productivity time – by eliminating the need of reformatting text after pasting the content into Blackboard. An added benefit of using Google Docs is the embed feature, which allows you to update content automatically in Blackboard, without the need to go back and copy/paste content multiple times. The embed feature is also compatible with other Learning Management Systems – which means that you won’t have to do much to change content if we stop using Blackboard. The embed feature is more advanced, and it would be best to consult an Instructional Designer before altering any source code in Blackboard content items. Creating a New Document The first step of creating a new document in Google Docs is opening your Web browser and navigating to HYPERLINK "https://docs.google.com" https://docs.google.com – you can hold CTRL and click the link with your right mouse button to open the site in a browser. After you have navigated to the site, Google will prompt you for your username and password. This is the step where you would either create an account or log in with your previously created account. After you lo

FAQs

Why does the tutorial recommend avoiding Microsoft Word for Blackboard content?

Word-based copy and paste often triggers Blackboard’s automatic reformatting of tables, bullet lists, images, and other elements. This can alter intended formatting and require extra time to fix it in Blackboard.

What is Google Docs, according to the tutorial?

Google Docs is a browser-based word processing program that requires only a Google account. Editing is cloud-based and saves changes immediately to Google’s server.

How does copying from Google Docs into Blackboard help?

When content is pasted using the described method, the tutorial states that formatting is preserved, so the Blackboard result looks like the original Google Docs content.

Aug 31, 2026

Upload by Emma Wilson