Blackboard is a Software as a Service (SaaS) application and consequently has regularly scheduled updates during the first week of each month to deliver new features and bug fixes. On Thursday, September 5, Blackboard will upgrade to version 3900.100.

General Updates

Course Content Outline page redesign

To make better use of screen space, the Course Faculty area and Details and Actions menu in the Ultra course outline will move from the left side of the page to the right side of the page. Course Content will move to the left side of your screen for improved focus.

Updates for Students

New assignment submission review page

The submission review page is also being redesigned to make better use of screen space across device sizes. The assignment grade is also more prominently displayed at the top of the page.

Access assignment feedback for assessments that are hidden

Previously, if an assignment was set to unavailable students were unable to view any faculty feedback (if provided) for that assignment. This issue is fixed in the September 2024 Blackboard release.

Updates for Faculty

New Overview page in the Gradebook

The Gradebook Overview will display any work that needs grading as well as work that has been graded but not yet posted for students to view.

New Student Activity Log

In your Gradebook, select “Students” to bring up the list of your students. Select a student’s name from the list to access their Grades, (Internal) Notes, and Activity Log. The new Activity Log provides time stamps for when a student accesses a course, begins an assessment, or submits an assessment.

Additional Instructor Updates

• Instructors will notice improved visibility for ungraded late work when the auto-zero setting is enabled.
• Instructors will be able to exclude student attempts while grading.
• Instructors may notice that the embedded WIRIS editor received a minor upgrade.

For more information about the September 2024 release, access Blackboard’s Release Notes.