Looking for the latest release information? Check out the Blackboard Learn SaaS release notes feed.
More on Learn with the SaaS Deployment | How to enable the Ultra experience
Browse the list of features
Check earlier versions' notes at the end of this page.
SIS safety improvements in Administrator Panel – 3900.110
Impact: Administrators
Updated Help page: Snapshot Flat File Integration Configuration, Course Examples, User Examples
We are introducing two changes to our Student Information System integration process to protect against loss of data from small mistakes when updating data. Two related features are added:
- SIS integration settings update: Purge is now replaced by Smart Delete in the Delete column within the Object Handling section of the Edit Snapshot Flat File Integration page. In a few instances the label Purge has been retained.
- User interface change: On the Upload Feed File page in SIS Integrations, the Complete Refresh option is discouraged through changes to labeling.
Smart Delete
Previously, the only options for handling most data types were:
- Do not disable or purge
- Disable
- Purge
Some data types like Course Associations can't be disabled. If a small corrective file was mistakenly uploaded in Refresh mode, or if an automation error caused a partial upload with the Purge setting, it could result in large amounts of data being deleted unexpectedly.
Now we separate the Delete mode behavior and Refresh modes behavior (the latter which imply deletion). When the mode is Delete, the delete option is now Smart Delete. Smart Delete has the same effect as the previous option Purge. When refreshing data, the data not in the file, but owned by the integration, will be disabled. For data types that don’t support being disabled such as Course/Organization Association and User Associations, Purge will delete data.
When a file is uploaded in Delete mode, and Delete is set to Smart Delete, the data will be deleted.
Image 1: In the Object Handling section of the Edit Snapshot Flat File Integration page, the option Purge is now replaced by Smart Delete in the Delete column. Some Object Types such as Course/Organization Association and User Associations retain the Purge option.
User interface changes for SIS Integrations
To avoid unintended loss or disruption of data, the user interface within Upload Feed File page in SIS Integrations discourages the use of Complete Refresh and Complete Refresh by Data Source. These options are now grayed out by default.
Image 2: In the Upload Feed File page, the options Complete Refresh and Complete Refresh by Data Source are now grayed out by default.
Options Complete Refresh and Complete Refresh by Data Source can be enabled by selecting the checkbox Enable Advanced Options. However, a warning appears describing these options’ unintended consequences and that they are rarely needed in this mode in the graphical user interface.
Image 3: A new checkbox option Enable Advanced Options enables the options Complete Refresh and Complete Refresh by Data Source. Selecting Enable Advanced Options also raises a warning about the unintended consequences of these enabled options.
Administrator
Availability: Available for all Blackboard courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Learn SaaS release 3900.108.0
Blackboard Learn SaaS Continuous Delivery v3900.108.0
Release to Test/Stage: Tuesday, 10 December 2024 | Release to Production: Thursday, 9 January 2025
Original Course View, Ultra Course View
For full feature details, please review the corresponding notes for the Blackboard 3900.108.0 version included below on this page. Details can be found on Anthology Global Support.
Latest release: 3900.108.0-rel.28+dfa83d8 to Production servers to take place on 9 January 2025.
For more information on updates and bug fixes, please visit Anthology Global Support.
The January 2025 - 3900.108 release is robust with features in 4 areas:
- Instructional design;
- Mastery learning and learning pathways;
- Gradebook; and
- Learn core and security
These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Some features do require administrative action.
Instructors:
- Availability of Achievements tab in courses
- Improvements to AI Design Assistant Outputs
- Improvements to AI Design Assistant Image Generation
- Expanded language Outputs for AI Design Assistant
- Show/hide columns from instructors in the gradebook
- Direct grade entry for assignments from the Grid view or Submissions page
- Improvements to file uploads for Content Designer: Documents
- Improvements to content blocks for Content Designer: Documents
Instructors and Students:
- Set default automatic zeros to off in the gradebook for new courses
- Add submission attempts for release conditions
Instructors and Administrators
- Manage course access from Course Settings
- New role privileges for course access management
- Mastery Gradebook visibility controls
Additionally, our premium service Course Catalog version 2.13 is now available with the following features:
Course Catalog (Premium offering)
- Milestone Integration
- WPM Integration
- Subscription Model
- Graduation and Withdrawal Emails
- Accessibility improvements
- Course IDs column added to Payment Code list
Additionally. Ally 2.11.0 is now available and Ally 2.11.1 is upcoming. These releases include the following features:
Learn SaaS release 3900.106.0
Blackboard Learn SaaS Continuous Delivery v3900.106.0
Release to Test/Stage: Tuesday, 26 November 2024 | Release to Production: Thursday, 5 December 2024
Original Course View, Ultra Course View
For full feature details, please review the corresponding notes for the Learn 3900.106.0 version included below on this page. Details can be found on Anthology Global Support.
Latest release: 3900.106.0-rel.53+be172ea to Production servers to take place on 19 December 2024.
For more information on updates and bug fixes, please visit Anthology Global Support.
The December 2024 - 3900.106 release is robust with features in 8 areas:
- Instructional design;
- Communication and collaboration;
- Learner progression and personalized experience;
- Flexible grading;
- Gradebook;
- Integrations;
- Learn core and security; and
- Upgrade to Ultra
These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Some features do require administrative action.
Instructors:
- AI Design Assistant: rubric generation improvements
- Moodle conversion improvement: images in question text
- Improvements to grading assignments: New labels for late submissions
- Grade override improvements
- Group management: performance improvements
Instructors and Students:
Students:
Instructors and Administrators
Administrators:
- Deploy Role Play separately from Socratic Questioning for AI Conversation
- Copy items from courses improvement
- Performance Goals Scale via Public REST API
- Additional Grader Information for Grade Export Tool
All users:
Additional Grader Information for Grade Export Tool – 3900.106
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Course View, Original Course View
Impact: Administrators
Related Topic: Grade Export
Exporting grade data helps institutions create reports, perform audits, or integrate with information systems. The Grade Export (v2) tool allows institutions to manage this data exchange in bulk. Gradebook column data in an export file now includes additional information about the last grader for each grade. The name and email of that last grader appear as new columns in the extract file. This indicates the owner of the current grade value. These data enable institutions to follow up on grade questions or create reports on staff task completion. The new column headers in the extract file are:
- User.GRADER_FULLNAME indicates the full name of the last grader of the gradable item.
- User.GRADER_EMAIL indicates the email of the last grader of the gradable item.
For administrators: This data is extracted for all courses, Ultra or Original. There are no configurations needed. Administrators manage the Grade Export (v2) tool by selecting Platform Extensions in Administrator Panel.
Integrations
Performance Goals Scale via Public API – 3900.106
Blackboard Learn SaaS, Blackboard Learn 9.1
Ultra Course View & Original Course View
Impact: Administrators
Related Topic: Blackboard APIs
A new Blackboard public REST API lets developers retrieve the Goal Performance Scale configuration. Third party applications can access the defined performance scale for goals aligned with assessments. Instructors can reference the Goal Performance Scale while working with integrations to better track and analyze student goal performance. Configuration fields include range, label, and color.
Users can access to this information through the following endpoint:
- GET /learn/api/public/v1/courses/settings/goalperformance/scale
For administrators: No configurations or specific entitlements needed.
Learn Core & Security
Mobile app sessions renew without requiring authentication – 3900.106
Blackboard Learn SaaS
Ultra Course View & Original Course View
Impact: All users
Related topic: Account Lock
After the Blackboard App 9.11 is released on December 6, 2024, mobile users must update the Blackboard App on their devices to ensure proper functionality. A red banner indicating session expiration will display for any user who does not update their app.
Administrators can now define the maximum length of time a user can access the mobile app before they are required to login again. This time limit is controlled through an authentication token. The token allows the app to automatically renew a session without re-authentication, as long as it hasn't expired.
To set the length of a token, go to the Administrator Tool Panel, select Account Lock Settings, and then Mobile App Token Timeout. By default, the mobile token lifetime is set to the maximum of 336 hours (about 2 weeks). The minimum setting is 1 hour.
Image 1. Mobile Token Timeout configuration from Administrator Tool Panel
For administrators: The verification process that ends inactive sessions runs every hour. If Use same value as Inactive Session Timeout is selected, and Maximum Activity is less than 60 minutes, the session timeout may not be precise to that value. However, the session timeout will occur in no more than an hour. For security certifications, select Use same value as Inactive Session Timeout to end sessions in the same timeframe. This option works independently of the type of device used to log in. Use these values for the Inactive Session Timeout: FedRAMP Moderate: 30 minutes; IL4: 25 minutes.
Release notes for earlier versions
Release notes for earlier versions available in English only:
Return to top of the Archived Release Notes page
