Release Notes for Learn SaaS - 2023
Learn SaaS release 3900.67.0
Blackboard Learn SaaS Continuous Delivery v3900.67.0
Release to Test/Stage: Tuesday, 9 May 2023 | Release to Production: Thursday, 1 June 2023
Original Experience, Ultra Experience
Original Course View, Ultra Course View
For full feature details please review the corresponding notes for the Learn 3900.67.0 version included below on this page. Details can also be found Behind the Blackboard.
Latest release: 3900.67.0-rel.38+6532b86 to Production servers to take place on 22 Jun 2023.
For more information on updates and bug fixes, please visit Behind the Blackboard.
June 2023 – 3900.67 Release
The June 2023 - 3900.67 release is robust with features in six areas:
- Assessment and grading;
- Richer course and content;
- Data and analytics;
- Communication and social engagement;
- Integration, extension, and management; and
- Course upgrading
These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Some features do require administrative action.
Features with this icon are controlled by a client facing feature flag:
Instructors:
- Add Exemptions for Anonymous Assessments
- Add Exceptions from Gradebook Grid View and Student Overview page
- ‘Base calculation on points earned out of total graded points’ support for Custom Calculations
- Upload questions from a file to tests
- Support for anonymous grading of tests
- Journals Grades & Participation list filters
Instructors and students:
- Course Links improvements
- Announcements in the top navigation
- Course Term display logic improvements
Students:
All users:
Administrators:
Assessment and Grading
Add Exemptions for Anonymous Assessments 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
The use of anonymous grading helps to reduce grading bias. Many consider it an important grading approach. To further support instructors and improve their ability to manage student exemptions, we have introduced a way for instructors to set exemptions for anonymously graded assessments. Instructors can now access the exemptions option for an anonymous assessment from the Student Overview page. This will make it easier for instructors to manage exemptions and ensure a fair and accurate grading process for all students.
Image 1: Instructor view – “Essay: Sun proximity effects – Milky Way” assignment is anonymously graded; the instructor can access the “Add or edit exemption” option from the overflow menu
Image 2: The exemption icon is not visible in the gradebook grid view until all grades have been posted to help ensure student anonymity
Image 3: The exemption icon is not visible on an assessment submissions page until all grades have been posted; this helps to ensure student anonymity
For administrators: The exemption feature is enabled by default. Administrators can turn it off at the institution level in the Ultra Experience configuration page.
‘Base calculation on points earned out of total graded points’ support for Custom Calculations – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
Calculating course grades can vary depending on instructor practice. To offer greater flexibility in gradebook calculations, instructors can now opt to use the 'Base calculation on points earned out of total graded points' option for any gradebook calculation, regardless of whether it contains operators with functions and variables. Previously, this option was only available for Average, Total, Minimum, and Maximum calculations.
Image 1: Option to include 'Base calculation on points earned out of total graded points' option for any gradebook calculation
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed at the administrator level.
Upload questions from a file to tests and assignments – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
Besides course content, assessment questions are one of the most valuable teaching artifacts. Up until now, instructors could only create new questions in tests, assignments, or question banks. This process could be time-consuming and inefficient.
Now instructors can author questions offline in a text file. Instructors can upload the file into a test for a more streamlined test building workflow. Each question file must be a tab-delimited TXT file. The file should not exceed 250 records to avoid time-out restrictions. For more details on formatting requirements, please review the related Help pages for Original and Ultra platforms.
Instructors can easily edit and use the uploaded questions as they would a question created in a test. Uploading questions saves instructors valuable time and effort.
Supported question types include:
- Multiple choice / multiple answer
- True / False
- Essay
- Fill in the Blank
- Fill in Multiple Blanks
- Numeric response
- Matching
Image 1: Instructor view – ‘Upload questions from file’ option in tests; this same option exists for assignments
Image 2: An instructor can edit uploaded questions as they would a manually added question
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed at the administrator level.
Support for anonymous grading of tests – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
Instructors can reduce grading bias for high-stakes assignments by enabling anonymous grading. Until now, this option was only available for assignments. Instructors can now also turn on anonymous grading on tests. This adds an additional layer of fairness and impartiality to the grading process.
The anonymous grading option for tests is not available when grades are automatically posted.
Image 1: Turn on “Hide student names” for anonymous grading in Test Settings
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed at the administrator level.
Original Course View: Improved Assignment Submission page – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS, Blackboard Learn 9.1
Ultra Experience, Original Experience
Original Course View
Impact: Students
Students submitting an Assignment in Original Course View have several possible actions. They can upload files, author a submission, and attach a note to their instructor. Previously, these actions could be confusing for students. The option to add comments always displayed. The option to author a submission required selecting a button that was easy to miss.
We redesigned the Assignment submission page to be less confusing and easier for students to use.
Students have three distinct actions they can take. Each section can be opened independently. Students can open more than one. The page will retain added content when a student closes a section.
- Create Submission
- Upload Files
- Add Comments
All Assignment information has been grouped together:
- Due date
- Points possible
- Grading rubric
- Group membership and update statuses
- SafeAssign disclosure
Image 1. The new student Assignment submission page has three sections: instructions, submission, and assignment information
Image 2. The “Create Submission” section opened
Image 3. The “Upload Files” section opened
For administrators: This feature is available for all Original courses. There are no configurations needed.
Richer Course and Content
Course Links improvements – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
To provide a better experience, we’ve made a series of improvements for Course Links:
- Instructors have the option to add course links to folders and learning modules on the Course Content page. The option to add course links to folders and learning modules is hidden for nested content containers.
- Instructors cannot move into another folder or learning module a course link to a folder or learning module. A warning message displays if an instructor tries to move a course link in this way.
Image 1. Warning message alerting an instructor that a course link to a folder cannot be moved into another learning module
- Instructors cannot copy into another folder or learning module a course link to a folder or learning module. The option to copy course links to folders and LMs is hidden if an instructor selects the Copy Content option from the + menu while inside a folder or learning module.
- To help users identify course links to folders and learning modules, we have made a new icon. This icon displays a link at the top left corner of the icon for a folder or learning module. In the past, the learning module did not have an icon. Learning modules now have an icon, which is the same one displayed for learning modules on the Create Item panel.
Image 2. Learning module iconography on both Create Item panel and learning module (as shown in the background on the Course Content area)
- The context menu for a course link to a folder or a learning module now provides these options:
- Edit Course Link
- Edit Linked Folder or Learning Module
- Delete Course Link
- Users can expand a course link to a folder or learning module as they would a folder or learning module. This allows the user to view the nested contents of the target folder or learning module. The contents displayed are read only. An instructor cannot modify the nested contents displayed for the course link. An instructor cannot move additional content into the folder or learning module course link.
Image 3. Course Link to a folder is shown as expanded, revealing the contents of the course link in a read-only view
- When an instructor makes changes to the nested contents of a folder or learning module, the changes will appear for any related, expanded course link. These changes include:
- Adding/deleting nested contents
- Re-order nested contents
- Moving additional contents into the target folder or learning module
- Editing the names of nested contents
- Modifying the visibility or release conditions of nested contents
- In the past, if an instructor copied a course link to an Ultra Document, some of the contents added via "Add Content" did not copy. This has been fixed. Now the Ultra Document and its contents, along with the course link, are copied as expected.
- When creating a Course Link, an instructor can now select a folder and/or learning module from the Category section of Search Criteria. Additionally, instructors can expand the folders and learning modules in the search results to select one of its contents.
Image 4. Instructor may search categorically for folders and learning modules to create a course link to content in a folder or learning module
- When upgrading an Original course to the Ultra course view, course links to folders and learning modules are not retained. The conversion report includes an exception for course links and explains their removal.
For administrators: These improvements are available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed.
Add Exceptions from the Gradebook Grid View and the Student Overview page – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
We all live complicated lives and special circumstances often arise. When this happens, instructors may need to grant an exception to a student for specific tests or assignments. These exceptions may include the following:
- providing additional attempts
- rescheduling due dates, or
- granting extended access.
These exceptions are available even if the assessment is hidden from other students. Until now, exceptions were only accessible from the submissions page for an assessment. Now, instructors can access the exceptions workflow from the gradebook grid view and Student Overview page.
Image 1: Add or edit exceptions from the gradebook grid view
Image 2: Add or edit exceptions from the student overview page
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed at the administrator level.
Additional Level of Content Nesting – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: All users
At present, Blackboard Ultra supports up to three levels of hierarchy for content nesting on the course content page. We have received consistent feedback from students indicating that they prefer this structure. Many have shared that it improves course navigation. Instructors have shared the same and cited it helps them easily design and layout their courses.
Image 1. Before – Content nested in three levels of hierarchy
We have also heard that some institutions need more than three levels of content nesting to structure their course content. To address this feedback, we have added an option to use one additional level of content nesting. This extra level provides instructors with greater flexibility to organize content in ways that better suit their needs. The option to use one more level of content nesting improves the overall usability of the platform for some of our users. Opting for the extra level of content nesting also reduces the flattening effect of content when upgrading courses from the Original to Ultra course view.
Image 2. After - Content nested in four levels of hierarchy
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses once enabled. Administrators should discuss with internal stakeholders before enabling. Some consider an extra layer of depths as a more negative experience for students and mobile users. Once enabled, it cannot be turned off.
This feature is off by default. You can access the setting by selecting the Configure button in ‘The Ultra Experience is here!’ module on the Administrator Panel. The ‘Activate an Additional Level of Nested Items’ is listed among the General Settings on the Ultra Experience Management page.
Data & Analytics
Journal Grades & Participation list filters – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
To help instructors manage journal entries and provide effective feedback to students, we have added new Student and Grading Status filters to the Grades & Participation view in Journals. These filters allow instructors to view student journal entries based on their status. This can help streamline the grading and feedback process. These filters are consistent with filters in other areas of Ultra. This consistency provides a unified and intuitive experience for instructors.
Image 1. Journal Grades & Participation page with filters
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed.
Progress tracking management– 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Administrators
Progress tracking provides students, instructors, and administrators with an efficient way to track and measure student progress. Now administrators can control progress tracking at the institution and node levels. This option is on the Administrator Panel | Tools & Utilities module | Tools option. An administrator may select from the following setting combinations:
- On and unlocked in Ultra courses
- On and locked in Ultra courses
- Off and unlocked in Ultra organizations
- Off and locked in Ultra organizations
The lock option prevents instructors from changing the administrator-defined default within their courses. Administrators should lock the setting to ensure consistent use of progress tracking.
Administrators can control the scope of the availability changes. This allows administrators to choose to apply changes to only new or new and existing Ultra courses/organizations.
Note: With this release, progress tracking availability remains unchanged. With the August release, progress tracking will be turned on for all Ultra courses and organizations. Administrators can change this setting to meet the specific needs of their institution as needed.
Image 1. Progress tracking tool management
For administrators: This feature removes the progress tracking setting from the Ultra Experience Configuration page. After this release, the configuration option may remain visible for a couple of days, but it will not be functional.
If you are a United States federal entity hosted in GovCloud, you can turn on Progress Tracking in this release. Turn it on in the Administrator Panel > Tools. You can set the policy institution-wide or by Institutional Hierarchy node. You can enforce a policy or set a default that can be changed by end users.
Communication & Social Engagement
Announcements in the top navigation bar – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors, Students
To provide a better user experience, we moved Announcements from the Details & Actions menu to the top navigation bar. This reduces the number of items within the Details & Actions menu. This change also improves visibility and prominence of Announcements.
Users will be able to access announcements anywhere from within a course. All existing announcements functionality remains the same.
Image 1. Announcements top navigation bar of a course
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed at the administrator level.
Integration, Extension, and Management
Prevent passwords exposed in data breaches – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS, Blackboard Learn 9.1
Ultra Experience, Original Experience
Impact: All users allowed to change passwords in Learn
Some institutions use an identity provider, such as Azure Active Directory, to authenticate users. Others manage passwords within Learn. In recent releases, we have prioritized improvements to the security of passwords managed in Learn.
Now institutions can also restrict users from selecting passwords exposed in a data breach. This is an important security measure since passwords like "123456," "qwerty," or "password123" are frequently targeted by hackers.
When a user attempts to change their password within Learn, we check it against a global database of breached passwords. If the chosen password is among passwords in the database, we notify the user and require them to select a different password. This helps to ensure that users' passwords are strong and secure, reducing the likelihood of unauthorized access to their account.
Image 1. A user is informed that their proposed password was exposed in a security breach
Image 2. An administrator configures the exposed password protection policy
For administrators: For most institutions, this feature is off by default. It must be enabled by an administrator.
For United States government clients in FedRAMP boundaries: This feature is on by default. If your compliance boundary changes, you should confirm your configuration.
Courses Term display logic improvements - 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View, Original Course View
Impact: All users
In the past, when a course was not associated to a term and occurred in the past, Learn would sometimes create a term based on the duration of the course. In other cases, Learn would assign the course to a term based on institutional-defined criteria that matched the duration of a course. This assignment method often led to confusion for students and instructors. To remove confusion and provide accurate term and course alignment, we have implemented improvements to the course term display logic.
| Course Duration | Term Alignment |
|---|---|
| Continuous | Current term |
|
Select dates: Current date is equal to or between start and end date Current date occurs before the start date Current date occurs after the end date |
Current term Future term Past term |
|
Days from the end of enrollment Student and guest users with remaining days Student and guest users with no remaining days Non-student, non-guest users |
Current term Past term Current term unless associated with a term in the past of future |
|
Course Duration - Use Term Duration Continuous Select Dates Current date is equal to or between the Term start and end date Current date occurs before the Term start date Current date occurs after the Term end date Days from end of enrollment Student and guest users with remaining days Student and guest users with no remaining days Non-student, non-guest users |
Current term Future term Past term
Current term Past term Current term |
For administrators: We did not introduce any additional settings or tools with this change. Adjustments to course settings can be made from the Edit Course interface in the administrator panel. Adjusting Course Duration and/or Term Duration will impact the term display logic.
Managed privilege to view System Roles – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS, Blackboard Learn 9.1
Ultra Experience, Original Experience
Ultra Course View, Original Course View
Impact: Administrators, Developers
Developers create applications that expand the functionality of Blackboard Learn. Some of these apps integrate using REST APIs. Administrators manage the privileges for integrated apps. As a best practice, an integration should only have the minimum privileges necessary to function.
In the past, if an integration needed to read System Role information, the integration user had to be set as a full System Administrator. Now administrators can configure an integration user with fewer privileges and still grant access to view System Role information.
In the System Role privileges manager, administrators can now grant a new privilege called Administrator Panel (Users) > System Roles. No System Roles have this privilege by default. An Administrator must always grant the privilege to any System Role. It isn’t possible to grant this privilege to a Course Role.
For administrators: This feature is available for all Learn environments. There are no configurations needed at the administrator level. To improve security, admins should reduce privileges for a REST application if System Administrator privileges were granted previously as a workaround.
Course Upgrading
Bulk Conversion options – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Administrators
Institutions now have an easier way to convert a large number of courses to the Ultra Course View. Administrators can use Bulk Convert and/or Bulk Copy and Convert.
- Bulk Convert: Converts selected courses from the Original to Ultra course view
- Bulk Copy and Convert: Copies selected courses using the Original course view and converts them to the Ultra course view; this is the option we recommend for most institutions
Both options save time and effort when converting large numbers of courses.
Image 1. Bulk Convert Actions
Please review the Help documentation for Bulk Convert and Bulk Copy and Convert before using them. You may want to enable the extra level of content nesting on the Course Content page before using either option. Having the extra level can help with conversion.
For administrators: Administrators should discuss the above options with their account executive and client experience manager before using. Having conversations ahead of time can help to ensure a smooth transition to the Ultra Course View.
This feature is on by default. You can turn off the feature by selecting the Configure button in ‘The Ultra Experience is here!’ module on the Administrator Panel. ‘Course bulk conversion’ is included in the list of Available Features.
Prevent renaming of items when moved during a copy, import, and/or conversion – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
Items copied, imported, or converted into the Ultra Course View sometimes move. Items move when they are nested more than the Ultra Course View allows. Items that move are placed at the lowest supported level in the Ultra Course View.
When moved, the title of these items would change to reflect their original location path. While helpful, the change added extra work for users. As a result, users had to change the title of each moved item and remove the pathing. With this release, we will no longer change the title of items.
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed.
Preserve "Open in New Window” behavior for Flickr Mashups as Web Links – 3900.67
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Experience
Ultra Course View
Impact: Instructors
In the May release, we added a new setting to Web Links on the Course Content page. Instructors can choose whether the web link opens in a new window or within the Ultra Course View. With this change, converted Flickr Mashups would not load unless users opened the Web Link in a new window. We have updated the conversion process so that when a Flickr Mashup is converted to a Web Link, the "Open in a new window" option is auto selected.
For administrators: This feature is available for all Ultra courses. There are no configurations needed.
