In the course, we will discuss two products, webReader and docReader. The information below will provide clarity as you move through the course.
webReader is the product that is used for:
- Reading each quiz question
- Reading assignments
- Reading discussion
- Reading files in content that were created using the “Create a file” tool in Brightspace
- And more!
webReader
Here is an image of the webReader. As described above, it is displayed at the top left side of the files.

docReader
docReader is the product used to read documents. docReader reads PDFS, Office type files, text files, and the Open-office versions of these same file types. Depending on your view in Brightspace, it may appear differently.
Below is the image of docReader with the various tools labeled and a brief explanation of each. Instructions for launching the docReader are provided for each view below this image.

Brightspace Classic View
- Begin by clicking on the document's name in Content.
- Click on the
for a drop-down menu to the right of the document heading.
- Select “Open with docReader.” The document is now open in docReader.

Brightspace New View 1A:
- Click on the document's name
- Click on the speaker,
, in the upper right-hand corner of the document, and the document will open in docReader.

- When opening docReader in the new view, the lower toolbar is shown by clicking on the hamburger,
, the three horizontal lines. The new view of Brightspace, with the lower toolbar expanded, looks like the image below.

Brightspace New View 1B
- Click on the document's name
- Click on the "Open docReader" (
) tool in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.

Rule of Thumb
-
- Eyes to the top of the page.
- Look for the listen button.
- If you don't have a listen button, look for the docReader icon.
- Classic View has the "V",
, dropdown menu to the right of the title. Click on the "V"
, and then click on "Open with docReader."
- New View 1A: Click on the speaker icon,
, which is on the right-hand side of the title.
- New View 1B: Click on the "Open DocReader" (
) button on the right-hand side of the title.
Proceed to the Next Section