Release Notes for Learn SaaS
This page contains features and updates currently on Learn SaaS Test/Stage and Production environments. Visit Archived SaaS Release Notes to see features and updates in older versions. Visit In-Product Updates to learn more about in-product updates.
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Learn SaaS release 3900.116.0
Blackboard Learn SaaS Continuous Delivery v3900.116.0
Release to Test/Stage: Tuesday, 8 April 2025 | Release to Production: Thursday, 1 May 2025
Original Course View, Ultra Course View
For full feature details, please review the corresponding notes for the Blackboard 3900.116.0 version included below on this page. Details can be found on Anthology Global Support.
Latest release to Test/Stage servers to take place on 8 April 2025.
For more information on updates and bug fixes, please visit Anthology Global Support.
The May 2025 - 3900.116 release is robust with features in 7 areas:
- Instructional design;
- Mastery learning and learning pathways;
- Communication and collaboration;
- Tests & Assignments;
- Gradebook;
- Blackboard Core & Security; and
- Premium
These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Some features do require administrative action.
Instructors:
- AI Design Assistant: Auto-generate AI Conversations
- Achievements show current recipients without browser refresh
- Qualitative rubrics with no-points option
- Gradebook accessibility enhancements
- Grade Export v2: Pagination added to the approval workflow
- Grade Export v2: Select items across pages added to the approval workflow
- Grade Export v2: Buttons that are not enabled no longer appear in the approval workflow
- Grade Export v2: Columns renamed on Grades Approval and Transfer screen
- Video Studio - Analytics for student engagement
- Video Studio - Automatically detect different speakers in a recording
- Course Catalog: Copy discussions from course template
Instructors and Students:
- Enhancements to discussions
- “View submission one time” test results setting
- Text-based columns in Gradebook
- Video Studio - 360° Video: easy link from desktop to Virtual Reality Headset
Instructors and Administrators:
- Learning Object Repository: New search function for inserting objects
- Learning Object Repository: Notification emails
- IP Restriction for Ultra Courses - Multiple Test Rooms – Hide Profiles
Students:
Administrators:
Instructional Design
AI Design Assistant: Auto-generate AI Conversations – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: AI Conversation
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors
The AI Design Assistant can now auto-generate AI Conversations. AI Conversations are conversations between students and an AI persona.
- Socratic Questioning: Conversations that encourage students to think critically through continuous questioning.
- Role-play: Conversations that allow students to play out scenarios with the AI persona, enhancing their learning experience.
Creating personas and topics for an AI Conversation can take a lot of time. To streamline this process, the AI Design Assistant can generate three suggestions at once. You can select what the AI Design Assistant generates. You can choose to generate:
- AI Conversation title
- AI persona
- Reflection question
These suggestions provide inspiration for an AI Conversation. Instructors can refine the AI Design Assistant’s suggestions in several ways:
- Provide additional context
- Adjust the complexity of the question
- Select context from the course
- Manually revise the question
The time saved by auto-generating AI Conversations allows instructors to focus more on embedding AI Conversations into their courses.
Image 1. The auto-generate feature is now available in AI Conversations.
Image 2. There are several ways to customize AI Conversations.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: In the building block, AI Design Assistant and Unsplash, a new option called Generate Conversations is available. The default state is off. When this feature is turned on, the privilege needs to be assigned to course roles, such as Instructor. The required privilege is Use AI Design Assistant. When someone with that role creates an AI Conversation, the Auto-Generate Conversation option is available. Turning off Generate Conversations after deployment will remove instructors' permission to generate AI Conversations. However, AI Conversations will still work if Socratic or role-play conversations are turned on.
Learning Object Repository: Enhancements to privileges – 3900.116
Impact: Administrators
Updated Help Page: Learning Object Repository
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Based on feedback, Learning Object Repository privileges are renamed to align with the naming conventions for other privileges. This provides a more consistent and streamlined experience for administrators using the Learning Object Repository.
The previous privilege labels and their new labels are as follows:
Viewing Learning Object Repository from Tools page:
- Previous labels:
- Individuals with this privilege can view the Learning Object Repository from the Tools page.
- Updated labels:
- Base Navigation > Tools > Learning Object Repository
- Base Navigation > Tools > Learning Object Repository > Search
Creating, editing, and deleting objects in the Learning Object Repository:
- Previous label:
- Individuals with this privilege can create, edit, and delete objects in the Learning Object Repository.
- Updated labels:
- Base Navigation > Tools > Learning Object Repository > Create
- Base Navigation > Tools > Learning Object Repository > Edit
- Base Navigation > Tools > Learning Object Repository > Delete
- Base Navigation > Tools > Learning Object Repository > ... > Copy Items
- Base Navigation > Tools > Learning Object Repository > ... > Tasks and Logs
Inserting objects from the Learning Object Repository into courses and organizations:
- Previous label:
- Individuals with this privilege can insert objects from the Learning Object Repository into courses and organizations.
- Updated label:
- Course/Organization > Content > + > Learning Object Repository
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Learning Object Repository: New search function for inserting objects – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors and administrators
Updated Help Page: Learning Object Repository
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors
We added a search function to the insert object workflow for the Learning Object Repository.
- Search by Name: Users can now search for objects by name, making it easier to find specific items.
- Pagination: The list of items supports retrieving more than 1,000 objects at once, giving users a wide variety of options.
- Automatic Sorting: The list is automatically sorted in alphabetical order for a more organized view.
This update enhances the workflow to make inserting objects easier and more efficient.
Users must have permission to insert objects into courses. This permission is turned on by default for instructors and course builders.
Image 1. The option to search is now available when users go to insert objects.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Learning Object Repository: Sorting for Associations column – 3900.116
Impact: Administrators
Updated Help Page: Learning Object Repository
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Users can now sort items in the Learning Object Repository by association, in addition to sorting by name. Users can easily identify objects with the highest or lowest number of associations. This workflow enhancement streamlines the process of finding the most relevant objects.
Users must have access to view the Learning Object Repository from the Tools page. This permission is turned on by default for the System Administrator (Z) role.
Image 1. Users can now select the Associations column to sort by the number of associations.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Learning Object Repository: Notification emails – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors and administrators
Updated Help Page: Learning Object Repository
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors
Based on your feedback, we updated the Learning Object Repository to remove confirmation email notifications when inserting an object from the Learning Object Repository into a course or organization. This update aligns Learning Object Repository functionality with how copies are handled in Ultra courses. Additionally, the update reduces unnecessary emails ensuring that users’ inboxes receive only essential communications.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Mastery Learning and Learning Pathways
Achievements show current recipients without browser refresh – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Achievements
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors
Achievements now show their current recipients automatically without a browser refresh. Previously, an Achievement needed to be refreshed in the browser to show which students had earned an Achievement after grade changes. This improvement means that instructors can be confident that students’ Achievement statuses are always accurate and up to date.
Image 1. The students listed as recipients of an Achievement are updated automatically.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Tests & Assignments
"View submission one time" test results setting – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors and Students
Updated Help Page: Assessment Settings
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-355
We added a new test result setting option, View submission one time. When a student completes the test, they can review their answers and detailed feedback, such as which questions were answered correctly. The View submission one time option lets instructors provide students with immediate feedback, while maintaining test security.
Instructors
To access this setting option, select Available after submission in the Assessment results section of the Assessment Settings, then select View submission one time from the Customize when the submission content is visible to students dropdown. This dropdown is available only if Allow students to view their submission is selected.
Students
Students benefit from immediate feedback on their test performance in a secure and limited timeframe. Restricting access after the review session balances the need for meaningful insights with the importance of maintaining academic integrity.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Qualitative rubrics with no-points options – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Create Rubrics
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-382
Instructors
Instructors can now create and use no-points rubrics for qualitative evaluation. This rubric type allows instructors to assess student work based on criteria and feedback, rather than numerical values. In addition, the AI generation option now supports no-points rubrics, providing a streamlined method to create detailed evaluation criteria.
Instructors can select No Points as a rubric type when creating or generating a rubric. This option is available alongside existing percentage and points-based rubrics. Instructors can also edit rubrics to switch between different rubric types, including percentage, points range, and no points.
Image 1: No Points option is available in the Rubric Type dropdown.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Communication & Collaboration
Enhancements to discussions – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors and students
Updated Help Page: Discussions (for instructors), Discussions (for students)
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-5098
Instructors and students
We made several enhancements to discussions to improve the user experience and make discussions more engaging and efficient.
- Updated wording: We used to call discussion contributions "responses" and "replies." We changed this to "posts" and "replies."
- Improved input field text: Previously, the text within the input field was "Type a response." The text within the input field is now "Post a response to the discussion."
- Avatar update: We previously included the user's avatar beside the input field. We removed the avatar to increase the area for adding content to the discussion.
Image 1. The button to post a reply was labelled Respond and the user's avatar was included beside the input field. The text inside the input field instructed the user to type a response.
Image 2. The Respond button is now labelled Post. There's no avatar included beside the input field and the text within the field instructs users to post a response.
- Streamlined response entry: The text field for entering a response is now directly below the discussion topic for a more intuitive experience.
- Instructor indicator: When an instructor posts in a discussion thread, an indicator beside their name now identifies them as an instructor.
Image 3. The instructor indicator appears beside the instructor’s name.
- Aligned draft indicator: The Draft indicator is now aligned with the user's name, enhancing clarity.
- Enhanced search field: The search field for participant names now includes a magnifying glass icon for better visibility.
Image 4. The magnifying glass icon appears before users select the Participant name field.
- Simplified group discussions: The large banner beneath group discussion posts has been removed. Users can now directly select their group without distraction.
Image 5. The menu for selecting a group is directly after the discussion post.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Gradebook
Gradebook accessibility enhancements – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors
The Gradable Items tab in the Gradebook now features a redesigned interface to improve accessibility and navigation for keyboard-only and screen reader users. This enhancement supports an accessible experience for instructors grading student work, reducing the time and effort required to manage student grades.
With this update, the Gradable Items tab uses a table-based layout to enhance usability:
- Screen reader users can now hear both header and row announcements, allowing for smoother navigation through student submissions.
- Keyboard users can now move efficiently across rows or down columns using arrow keys.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Text-based columns in Gradebook – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors and students
Updated Help Page: Ultra Gradebook
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-1566
Instructors can now create custom text-based columns in the Gradebook, giving them the ability to record information for an assessment, such as performance code, group membership, and tutoring information.
Text-based columns in the Gradable Items view are accessible through a properly marked-up table layout. Screen reader users can navigate and hear headers and rows accurately. Sorting and assistive technology features ensure an inclusive experience for all users.
Instructors
Instructors can now create text-based columns in the Gradebook. These columns allow instructors to record up to 32 characters. The column is not restricted to text input.
Instructors can:
- Create text-based columns via the Add workflow in both the grid view and Gradable Items page;
- Name the column, control student visibility, and add a description;
- Add and edit text information for a specific student using an inline eidt workflow.
Text-based columns exclude the following:
- Points values (automatically set to 0 points)
- Due dates
- Categories
- Gradebook calculations and related calculation UIs
Content in text-based columns auto-posts and supports sorting functionality within the Gradebook grid view. Instructors can also download and upload text-based columns using the Gradebook's upload/download function.
Image 1: Instructors can select Add Text Item to create a text-based column.
Image 2: Instructors can enter column name, set visibility for students, and enter a description for the text-based column.
Students
Students can access text-based columns and associated information in their Gradebook when the column is set to Visible to students.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Grade Export v2: Approval History available to administrators
Test/Stage: week of March 24th; Production: week of March 24th
Impact: Administrators
Updated Help Page: Admin Tools
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Administrators now can use Show History in course level approval workflow. Selecting Show History provides administrators with a detailed history of all submission, approval, and extraction actions taken in a course, as well as determining the user who took each action. This history gives administrators the ability to follow up on any questions about actions taken during the approval process.
Image 1: In the approval workflow, a Show History button now appears for administrators for each course.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra and Original courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Grade Export v2: Pagination added to the approval workflow
Test/Stage: week of March 24th; Production: week of March 24th
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
The approval workflow pages are now paginated, limiting each page to ten items. This eliminates the need for scrolling through a long list to find the desired item. This improvement provides a more efficient experience for instructors.
Image 1: Page numbers appear at the bottom of the approval workflow pages, eliminating the need for excessive scrolling.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra and Original courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Grade Export v2: Select items across pages added to the approval workflow
Test/Stage: week of March 24th; Production: week of March 24th
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors now can select items across pages in the approval workflow. If an instructor checks the box to select all items, all items on the page are selected. Instructors can also select all items across pages. This feature increases instructor efficiency by allowing them to perform actions on all items returned in a search.
Image 1: Instructors now have the option to select multiple records across pages.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra and Original courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Grade Export v2: Buttons that are not enabled no longer appear in the approval workflow
Test/Stage: week of March 24th; Production: week of March 24th
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Now, buttons that are not enabled in the Grade Export v2 administrator settings do not appear in the approval workflow. Previously, these buttons still showed in the UI as grayed-out options that were not actionable. This change provides a cleaner interface and prevents confusion for instructors.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra and Original courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Grade Export v2: Choose course roles in Platform Extensions Manager
Test/Stage: week of March 24th; Production: week of March 24th
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
In addition to institution and system roles, administrators can now choose course roles for Grade Approver User access in the Platform Extensions Manager tool. This option gives administrators more granular control over what course roles can launch the Grade Approval and Transfer tool.
Image 1: Administrators can now choose course roles in addition to institution and system roles, for Grades Approver User access.
Administrators
Availability: Available for Ultra and Original courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Grade Export v2: Columns renamed on Grades Approval and Transfer screen
Test/Stage: week of March 24th; Production: week of March 24th
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
We renamed two columns on the grade-level Approval and Transfer screen. Now, instructors can find the student's current grade in the Current Grade column. The Previously Approved Grade column provides the last grade that was approved for the student. Instructors can clearly identify how a student’s grade has changed since the last time grades were approved.
Instructors
Image 1: Columns are now titled Current Grade and Previously Approved Grade.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra and Original courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Learn Core & Security
IP Restriction for Ultra Courses - Multiple Test Rooms – Hide Profiles – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors, Administrators
Updated Help Topic: Assessment IP Address Filtering (admin), Restrict Location (Instructor)
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Administrators can now hide or unhide profiles used for proctoring tests. This security feature ensures that only available profiles are used for proctoring tests, which enhances security. The feature also improves change management by allowing administrators to control profile visibility without impacting existing configurations.
IP filters permit test access only on computers that are specified. Administrators can create more than one profiles associated with one or more ranges of IP addresses. Instructors assign the proctoring lab or location to students from the available profiles configured by the administrator.
Administrators can hide a profile in the Administrator Panel by selecting Course Settings, then Grading Security Settings. Open the menu for the profile to be hidden, then select Make Unavailable.
Image 1: Administrators can now hide profiles used for proctoring tests by selecting Make Unavailable in the profile’s edit menu.
Once hidden, that profile is displayed on the Grade Security Settings page with a red dot with an X icon.
Image 2: Once a profile is hidden, it is displayed Grade Security Settings page with a red dot with an X icon.
Instructors
For new test configurations, a hidden profile doesn't appear as an option for instructors selecting Location Restriction in Test Settings. However, the profile still appears if it was available in existing test configurations. In this case, when an instructor selects the unavailable profile, they get a message requiring them to choose another profile.
Image 3: A profile that is hidden from instructors doesn't appear as an option in Location Restriction in Test Settings.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed. The option Make Unavailable applies exclusively to Ultra courses. In Original courses, all profiles remain available for configuration at all times.
Video Studio - Automatically detect different speakers in a recording - 3900.116
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Video Studio (Instructors)
Exchange ID: Not applicable
Video Studio can now automatically identify different speakers in a recording and individually segment them within the recording transcript. The feature can identify up to 30 speakers. Instructors can manually edit the speaker labels to better identify each individual for users.
The ability to automatically detect speakers and edit speaker labels enhances the accuracy and clarity of a recording transcript, making it more valuable to instructors and students alike.
Instructor
When instructors access a recording transcript, they will see that Video Studio automatically generates transcriptions segmented by speaker. The default label for each speaker is Speaker 0, Speaker 1, up to 30 speakers. Instructors can edit speaker labels the same way they can edit recording transcripts.
Image 1: Video Studio is now able to identify multiple speakers when it automatically generates captions and transcript. When generated, the speakers are identified from "Speaker 0" up to "Speaker 29."
Image 2: Video studio allows instructors to edit speaker label names in the transcript.
Administrator
Availability: Video Studio is a premium solution.
Activation: We are offering customers a free trial until June 30, 2025. This trial provides access to the full version of Video Studio. Video Studio is set to OFF as a default in test/stage and production environments. If you want to enable it in your institution’s environment, you can do that for free until the end of June 2025.
Configuration: To configure Video Studio: select Configure in The Ultra Experience is Here! module. Select Enable creating/uploading videos using Video Studio. Beyond June 30, 2025, your institution will have to purchase Video Studio to continue using it.
Video Studio - 360° Video: easy link from desktop to Virtual Reality Headset - 3900.116
Impact: Instructors, Students
Updated Help Page: Video Studio (Instructors), Video Studio (Students)
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Please consult your VR headset operating instructions prior to use. Some users may experience motion sickness, dizziness, or mild discomfort when using VR headsets. In rare cases, individuals sensitive to flashing lights may be at risk of seizures. Taking regular breaks and following safety guidelines can help ensure a comfortable experience.
With Video Studio, users can now turn 360° videos into immersive experiences with an easy Virtual Reality (VR) headset handoff workflow.
VR experiences can sometimes require specific equipment and software that can be challenging to maintain. Video Studio introduces a straightforward process that links any VR device to 360° videos in Blackboard.
Immersive virtual experiences are particularly beneficial for educational scenarios where physical presence is not feasible. For example, construction students can explore a highway construction environment to identify risks; students can tour the international space station; or new faculty can familiarize themselves with classroom layouts using 360° walkthroughs.
This straightforward VR headset handoff workflow makes it easy for users to experience immersive VR learning. Students can gain a deeper understanding of their course material in an accessible manner. The product agnostic nature of this Video Studio feature means that institutions can use existing VR equipment or purchase equipment to fit their budget and needs.
Instructors and students
Once an instructor records a 360° video, they can upload it like any other Video Studio recording. Detailed instructions for linking to a VR headset can be found in the Video Studio (instructors) topic.
Image 1: Video Studio now includes the option Connect VR on 360 video recordings so that a user can connect their VR headset for an immersive experience of the video.
Administrator
Availability: Video Studio is a premium solution.
Activation: We are offering customers a free trial until June 30, 2025. This trial provides access to the full version of Video Studio. Video Studio is set to OFF as a default in test/stage and production environments. If you want to enable it in your institution’s environment, you can do that for free until the end of June 2025.
Configuration: This feature requires installing a new building block. In the Administrator Panel, select Building Blocks in the Integrations module. Then, select Installed Tools. In the list of building blocks, select Device Authentication. To configure Video Studio: select Configure in The Ultra Experience is Here! module. Select Enable creating/uploading videos using Video Studio. Beyond June 30, 2025, your institution will have to purchase Video Studio to continue using it.
Course Catalog: Copy discussions from course template – 2.16
Test/Stage: Thursday, 10 April 2025; Production: Thursday, 10 April 2025
Impact: Managers
Updated Help Topic: Create an Offering
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
If managers create an offering with a template, discussions from that template are now copied by default unless the option chosen is Blank Course Ultra View. Previously, discussions were not copied. This change prevents managers from having to repetitively create discussions in their Course Catalog courses.
The template option Blank Course Ultra View does not copy any content. Discussions are not copied and no toggle switch appears.
Managers
A Copy Template Discussions toggle appears when managers choose a template that is not blank. They can turn off the option to copy discussions.
Image 1: A Copy Template Discussions toggle now appears when managers choose a template option.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Course Catalog courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Course Catalog: Pagination added to Achievements tab on learner dashboard – 2.16
Test/Stage: Thursday, 10 April 2025; Production: Thursday, 10 April 2025
Impact: Students
Updated Help Topic: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
The Achievements tab on the learner dashboard is now paginated, limiting each page to ten items. This eliminates the need for scrolling through a long list to find the desired item. This improvement provides a more efficient experience for students.
Image 1: Page numbers appear at the bottom of the Achievement tab pages, eliminating the need for excessive scrolling.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Course Catalog courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Learn SaaS release 3900.114.0
Blackboard Learn SaaS Continuous Delivery v3900.114.0
Release to Test/Stage: Tuesday, 11 March 2025 | Release to Production: Thursday, 3 April 2025
Original Course View, Ultra Course View
For full feature details, please review the corresponding notes for the Blackboard 3900.114.0 version included below on this page. Details can be found on Anthology Global Support.
Latest release to Test/Stage servers to take place on 11 March 2025.
For more information on updates and bug fixes, please visit Anthology Global Support.
The April 2025 - 3900.114 release is robust with features in 8 areas:
- Instructional design;
- Mastery learning and learning pathways;
- Communication and collaboration;
- Tests & Assignments;
- Gradebook;
- Learner progression and personalized experience;
- Upgrade to Ultra; and
- Premium
These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Some features do require administrative action.
Instructors:
- Course Activity improvements: 3000 student limit removed
- Course Activity improvements: Sending messages
- Indicator if student has or has not reviewed feedback
- Enhanced grading experience for group submissions
- Moodle conversion: Improved support for embedded multimedia
- Achievements in student preview
- Course Catalog – Award an achievement based on percentage score
Instructors and Students:
- Content Designer: Print Document
- Activity indicator color changed to purple
- Improved support for LTI: Resize requests
- Improved student experience when test or assignment is changed to Hidden from Students
- Ally - Math Support for Microsoft Word Documents Now Available for HTML Alternative Formats - 2.13
Students:
- Replace Feedback column with actionable Results column in student Gradebook
- Course Catalog – Access certificate details from student dashboard
Instructors and Administrators:
Administrators:
Instructional Design
Learning Object Repository – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors and administrators
Updated Help Topic: Learning Object Repository
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-3138
The new Learning Object Repository is an institutional repository designed to centralize resources across courses and organizations. Administrators can upload objects to the Learning Object Repository for instructors to copy into their courses.
- Updates to objects in the Learning Object Repository are automatically applied to all associated courses and organizations, saving instructors time and maintaining consistency.
- Changes aren’t applied to courses that are marked complete or with an end date/term end date in the past.
- Only the title, body, and description are synced for objects in the Learning Object Repository. All other settings are set to the default. For example, if the object is set to visible in the Learning Object Repository, the object will default to visible in every course. Instructors can override settings unrelated to title, body, and description if they have the associated permissions.
- For students who were marked incomplete and need to regain access to a course, we recommend extending the student's enrollment date instead of the course enrollment date. Extending the student's enrollment date prevents changes to course objects from the Learning Object Repository when objects are updated.
This is the initial release of the Learning Object Repository. The capabilities of this release are best suited to reusing institutional content. Program or department uses will be better suited to future planned updates.
Good candidates for objects to keep in the Learning Object Repository include:
- technology requirements
- AI policies
- course etiquette
- academic integrity policies
At this time, only Documents are available for the Learning Object Repository. File uploads are coming in a future update. We'll add other objects in future releases. Administrators can access the Learning Object Repository through the Tools page in Blackboard.
Image 1. The new button for the Learning Object Repository is on the Tools page.
Managing objects
By default, users with the System Administrator (Z) role are the only users who have access to the Learning Object Repository to manage objects. To create a custom role or give someone access to the Learning Object Repository, users must be granted the following system privileges:
- Individuals with this privilege can view the Learning Object Repository from the Tools page.
- Individuals with this privilege can create, edit, and delete objects in the Learning Object Repository.
- Individuals with this privilege can insert objects from the Learning Object Repository into courses and organizations.
Inserting objects
By default, users with the Instructor, Course Builder, or System Administration roles are the only users who can insert objects from the Learning Object Repository into a course or organization. To give a user access to insert objects from the Learning Object Repository, administrators must grant the following privileges:
- Course/Organization (Content Areas) > Create Materials
- Individuals with this privilege can insert objects from the Learning Object Repository into courses and organizations.
If you want to remove access to inserting objects from the Learning Object Repository, remove the following privilege:
- Individuals with this privilege can insert objects from the Learning Object Repository into courses and organizations.
Instructors
Instructors access the Learning Object Repository through the More options menu on the Course Content page. Instructors can copy an object from the Learning Object Repository, but certain attributes are locked down. For example, instructors are locked out from editing the title, description, and body of a Document.
Image 2. Instructors hover over the Information button to be informed that a Document is managed by their institution, and they have no editing privileges.
Administrator
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: Access to the Learning Object Repository is controlled by privileges. Instructor and Course Builder roles have access to the Learning Object Repository by default. Administrators may want to remove those privileges until their institution is ready to use the Learning Object Repository.
Copy objects into the Learning Object Repository - 3900.114
Impact: Administrators
Updated Help Topic: Learning Object Repository
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-3138
Administrators can copy objects to the new Learning Object Repository. Many institutions already have objects that are candidates for this repository, such as institutional policies, support information, technology requirements, and more. This feature allows administrators to copy existing objects directly into the Learning Object Repository, removing the need to create new objects from scratch and saving valuable time. To access the Learning Object Repository, select the Learning Object Repository button on the Tools page. To copy items, select the More options menu.
At this time, administrators can copy only Documents into the Learning Object Repository. We’re adding file uploads in a future release.
Image 1. The option to copy items is in the More options menu of the Learning Object Repository.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: Access to the Learning Object Repository is controlled by privileges. Instructor and Course Builder roles have access to the Learning Object Repository by default. Administrators may want to remove those privileges until their institution is ready to use the Learning Object Repository.
Content Designer: Print Document – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors and students
Updated Help Topic: Create Documents
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-95
Instructors and students can now print Documents or save them to PDF, providing more ways to engage with content. This new option allows users to:
- Review content offline
- Share content with students or peers
- Physically archive content
To print a Document, select Print. Use the browser to print options to select the following:
- A printer or the PDF option
- The page range
- The layout
When printing from a mobile device, the Document prints as displayed on a desktop web browser.
Depending on the size of some content (for example, images), items may shift to the next page depending on the page layout and scale.
Instructors
- Knowledge check blocks print with all the question and answer options.
- All other blocks print as displayed outside of editing mode.
Image 1. The new Print button for Documents is now available for instructors.
Students
- Knowledge check blocks appear in the same way that they are on the Document page when the student chooses to print.
- If a student hasn’t answered a knowledge check, the block prints as unanswered.
- If a student has answered the knowledge check, the block prints as displayed along with any instructor feedback.
Image 2. The new Print button for Documents is now available for students.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Achievements in course copies – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors and administrators
Updated Help Topic: Achievements
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-6344
Instructors and administrators
Achievements are now included with course copies. Previously, instructors had to create new Achievements for each course. Copying Achievements has multiple benefits:
- Saves instructors valuable time
- Helps instructors provide students with a more engaging educational experience
- Standardizes the use of Achievements between courses
Achievements can only be copied with whole course copies. Achievements can't be copied in a granular copy where content is selected individually.
Achievements carried over with course copies also includes badges from Anthology Milestone.
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Default state of Achievements changed to On – 3900.114
Impact: Administrators
Updated Help Topic: Achievements
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Achievements are now available to instructors by default. Institutions that had already adjusted the state of Achievements had their choices respected.
Achievements states:
- Default state before 3900.114: Off
- Default state after 3900.114: On
- State for institutions that had turned Achievements on before 3900.114: On
- State for institutions that hadn’t changed the state of Achievements before 3900.114: On
We made this change to bring attention to this feature for instructors who weren’t yet using Achievements. Achievements are a useful tool for motivating and rewarding students.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: To turn Achievements on and off, select Configure in The Ultra Experience is Here! module. Go to Achievements in Ultra and select On or Off.
Default state of Check for Achievements tab for students setting changed to Off - 3900.114
Impact: Administrators
Updated Help Topic: Achievements
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
The default state for the Check for Achievements tab visibility for students setting is now Off. In institutions using Achievements, students who haven’t earned any Achievements will have the Achievements tab on their course pages. Institutions that had already adjusted the Check for Achievements tab visibility for students setting had their choices respected.
Check for Achievements tab visibility for students setting:
- Default state before 3900.114: On
- Default state after 3900.114: Off
- State for institutions that had turned the setting off before 3900.114: Off
- State for institutions that hadn’t changed the setting before 3900.114: Off
We made this change so students will know that they can earn Achievements in their courses before they’ve earned any. Students who are aware of Achievements will be more motivated learners.
This change was pushed to production on April 1, 2025.
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: To adjust the Check for Achievements tab visibility for students setting, select Configure in The Ultra Experience is Here! module. Go to Check for Achievements tab visibility for students and select On or Off.
Achievements in Student Preview – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Topic: Achievements
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-6049
Instructors
Instructors can now access Achievements through the Student Preview. This helps instructors preview achievements from the student perspective, providing a more accurate representation of the student experience. Instructors can also verify that the Achievements page is available for students in their courses.
Image 1. The Achievements page is now in the Student Preview.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Communication & Collaboration
Course Activity improvements: Sending messages – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Course Activity Report
Instructors
We improved sending messages from the Course Activity report.
- Instructors can now select all students for courses with over 3000 students. Previously, the option to select all students was only for courses with 3000 students or fewer.
- To be more user-friendly, the Recipients field now includes the following group labels:
- All students
- Selected students
- Selected students with alerts
- Selected students without alerts
These enhancements make it easier to communicate with students in large classes, including students with or without alerts.
Image 1. The Recipients field responds to instructor filters.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Activity indicator color changed to purple – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors and students
Updated Help Topics: Navigate Inside an Ultra Course for Students, Navigate Inside an Ultra Course for Instructors
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors and students
The color of the activity indicator for discussions, journals, and conversations is changed from blue to purple to better unify the color scheme of Blackboard. Users now have a more consistent and cohesive experience.
Image 1. The activity indicator now appears in purple beside a content item’s title.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Tests & Assignments
Improved student experience when test or assignment is changed to Hidden from Students - 3900.114
Impact: Students
Updated Topic: "Control what students can access" section on Create Content
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-3193
We've enhanced the assessment workflow for students when an instructor sets a test or assignment to Hidden from students. If an instructor sets a test or assignment to Hidden from students while the students are actively taking the assessment, students who have the assessment open can continue working on it without interruption. This ensures that students can finish their work without disruption.
Previously, if an instructor set an assessment to Hidden from students while students were actively taking the assessment, the students were abruptly kicked out of the assessment and redirected to the course content page.
Instructors
Instructors can continue using the Hidden from students setting for tests and assignments without worrying about disrupting students who are actively working on the assessment.
Students
Students are not disrupted when working on an assessment, even if the instructor hides the assessment from students. If students save and close the assessment, they cannot access that assessment again because of the hidden status.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Gradebook
Indicator if student has or has not reviewed feedback – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Not applicable
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-1612
Instructors
In the Gradebook, instructors now have enhanced ability to monitor student engagement with assessment feedback. An indicator on the student Overview page now displays whether a student has reviewed the feedback for a given assessment.
When a grade is posted, the indicator includes a label of Not reviewed with the existing Completed label in the Status column. When the student reviews the feedback, the status updates to Reviewed with a review timestamp.
If the new grade indicator is reset for the assessment, such as when a grade is updated or if the assessment has multiple attempts, the timestamp updates when the student reviews the feedback again. If all attempts are deleted, the Not reviewed or Reviewed label is removed.
Image 1: Instructor Gradebook view has Reviewed and Not Reviewed labels in the Status column.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Replace Feedback column with actionable Results column in student Gradebook – 3900.114
Impact: Students
Updated Help Page: Grades (Students)
Idea Exchange ID: LEARNU-I-4329, LEARNU-I-5949
To encourage student to review their submitted assessments in the Gradebook:
- A new Results column replaces the Feedback column
- A View button in the new Results column replaces the Feedback column's purple feedback icon
When a grade is posted and the new grade indicator (purple circle) is turned on, the View button displays for the assessment. By proving a clear call-to-action, students are more likely to review their submission and feedback.
Students
When students select the View button, the new grade indicator turns off, and students are redirected to their submission. If no submission is made, the side panels with feedback opens. The View button remains unless the instructor deletes the graded submission and all attempts.
Image 1: Previous view of the student Gradebook included Feedback column with feedback icon and new grade indicator when feedback is available for review.
Image 2: New view of the student Gradebook includes an actionable Results column, with the new grade indicator turning off after the student views the feedback.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Enhanced grading experience for group submissions – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Grade Group Assignments
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
We migrated group grading to Flexible Grading. Instructors now have a more streamlined experience when grading group assignment and test submissions in Flexible Grading. This update allows instructors to benefit from the more efficient grading interface and workflow of Flexible Grading when evaluating group submissions.
Some capabilities for individual submissions, such as per question feedback on group test submissions and pop-out rubric on group assignment submissions, will be added to group submissions after this initial release.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Learner Progression & Personalized Experience
Course Activity improvements: 3000 student limit removed – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Course Activity Report
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors
We removed the limit to how many students were included in the Course Activity report. Courses with over 3000 students now correctly include all students in the report. Previously, courses with over 3000 students would only include the first 3000 students in the Course Activity report. Managing larger courses is now more accurate and user-friendly for instructors.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Upgrade to Ultra
Moodle conversion: Improved support for embedded multimedia – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Topic: Migrate from Moodle
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors
All embedded audio, video, and images are now accessible after converting a course from Moodle to Blackboard. Previously, there were some cases where the embedded audio, video, or images didn’t convert. We resolved this issue, and instructors can be confident that their materials are transferring correctly.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Improved Support for LTI: Resize Requests – 3900.114
Impact: Instructors and students
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
LTI providers can now specify their desired height for embedded LTIs in Blackboard. Previously, all embedded LTIs were set to a fixed height, which often resulted in excessive white space below content.
- Adjusting height for embedded LTIs is supported through the lti.frameResize post message. This applies to all locations where LTIs can be embedded within the rich content editor.
Instructors and students
This enhancement ensures a more visually appealing interface for users. The cleaner layout helps users focus better on the content.
Administrators
Availability: Available for all Ultra courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Premium
Course Catalog – Access certificate details from student dashboard – 2.15
Test/Stage: week of March 24th; Production: week of March 24th
Impact: Students
Updated Help Page: Dashboard
Idea Exchange ID: not applicable
Students can now access details about a course certificate by selecting the certificate tile on the student dashboard. A pop-up appears with details about the certificate, including certificate requirements. This empowers students with a clear understanding of how to earn certificates.
Students
When a student selects a certificate tile on the Achievements page, a pop-up window appears. This window displays
- certificate status
- course that the certificate is aligned with
- certificate requirements
If the certificate is earned, its expiration date and a download button appear. The student selects Download to download a PDF copy of the certificate.
Image 1. A pop-up window now displays details about the certificate.
Administrator
Availability: Available for all Course Catalog courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Course Catalog – Award an achievement based on percentage score – 2.15
Test/Stage: week of March 3rd; Production: week of March 3rd
Impact: Managers
Updated Help Page: Create an Offering
Idea Exchange ID: not applicable
Managers
Managers can now award achievements based on a percentage score in addition to awarding based on points. They can make this selection based on the Blackboard configuration for the grade item. Managers save time awarding certificates or badges because they no longer need to convert percentages to total points in the Assign Certificate panel.
Image 1: A percentage of 100% now appears as an option along with points next to a grade item's name in the Gradebook Items menu.
Administrator
Availability: Available for all Course Catalog courses.
Activation: None needed.
Configuration: None needed.
Premium
Video Studio - Analytics for student engagement – 3900.116
Impact: Instructors
Updated Help Page: Video Studio (Instructors)
Idea Exchange ID: Not applicable
Instructors using Video Studio can now access analytics to gain valuable insights into student engagement with recordings. With user analytics, instructors can make data-informed decisions about their recording content and instructional strategies to promote engagement with a course.
Instructors
An instructor can access recording analytics from the editing workflow. Select Edit Content and then the pencil button that appears when you hover over or tab to the recording screen. On the panel that appears, select Analytics.
- Total Views: Track the total number of times a recording has been accessed by students.
- Individual Users: Identify the unique users who have opened a recording.
- Average Time Viewed: Monitor the average duration students spend listening to or watching a recording.
- Total Watch Time: Know the total duration of time students spend listening to or watching a recording.
These analytics can reveal which parts of a recording are most and least engaging by analyzing engagement patterns and timestamps. Once a user has accessed a recording, it may take up to 20 minutes for this data to be represented in the analytics.
If analytics data is not yet available for a specific video, the Analytics tab is displayed, but each metric will show dashes as placeholders. For GovCloud clients, analytics are not available, and the Analytics tab is not displayed.
Image 1: Instructors can now view user analytics when they select the Analytics menu item in the Edit Contents page.
Administrator
Availability: Video Studio is a premium solution.
Activation: We are offering customers a free trial until June 30, 2025. This trial provides access to the full version of Video Studio. Video Studio is set to OFF as a default in test/stage and production environments. If you want to enable it in your institution’s environment, you can do that for free until the end of June 2025.
Configuration: In the Administrator Panel, select Configure in The Ultra Experience is Here! module. Select Enable creating/uploading videos using Video Studio. Beyond June 30, 2025, your institution will have to purchase Video Studio to continue using it.
Ally - Math Support for Microsoft Word Documents Now Available for HTML Alternative Formats - 2.13
Production: March 19, 2025
Impact: Instructors and Students
Idea Exchange ID: not applicable
As part of our ongoing efforts to support students through the power of flexibility and choice, Ally's document conversion process has been upgraded to include the first version of support for Office Math found in Microsoft Word documents. Students downloading the HTML and BeeLine Reader Alternative Formats will now see the math equations rendered as MathML via MathJax in their browser. This is an important first step to support math content in a wider range of Ally Alternative Formats and means that students will no longer be missing important math equations when downloading their preferred HTML option.
Image 1: HTML Alternative Format with rendered Math.
This conversion happens automatically as part of Ally's processing pipeline and does not require any configuration from the administrator. To be considered for conversion, the math content must be inserted as an equation in Word. Otherwise, Ally will not recognize this as math.
This is the first of multiple releases to support math within Ally's Alternative Format options. Support for additional formats, including Audio and Immersive Reader, will be handled in subsequent releases in order to continue to provide immediate benefits to the students. Support for math in PowerPoint will also be included in a future release.
Looking for older release notes?
Check out the Blackboard Learn Release Notes Archive for more information on past releases.
