Release Notes for Learn SaaS

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.25+fc2d438 to Production servers to take place on 1 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:

• Original Course View: Improved Assignment Submission page

All users:

• Additional Level of Content Nesting
• Prevent passwords exposed in data breaches

Administrators:

• Progress tracking management
• Bulk Conversion options
• Prevent renaming of items when moved during a copy, import, and/or conversion
• Preserve “Open in New Window” behavior for Flickr Mashups as Web Links
• Managed privilege to view System Roles

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.

Return to June 2023 – 3900.67 Release description

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.

Return to June 2023 – 3900.67 Release description

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 the privilege, 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.

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