Category: Updates

Ultra Update – November 2025

Posted on by jamie.gilder

One of the advantages of our move to Blackboard Ultra is the ongoing potential for new feature releases and updates. New releases take place on the first Thursday evening of every month, which is much more frequently than for Blackboard Original. We will communicate about new features and changes via this blog. If you want to be kept up to date with the latest information, we recommend subscribing to the blog.

This release has new or updated features in the following areas:

  • Instructional design;
  • Tests and assignments;
  • Gradebook;
  • Blackboard Core.

These changes impact instructors, students, and administrators. Below you’ll find our highlights, and more detail on the most relevant updates.

Highlights

Option to include hidden items in Gradebook downloads

Instructors now have more flexibility when downloading the Gradebook for offline use. Previously, downloads included only the columns visible to instructors.

A new Include Hidden Items option appears when selecting Full Gradebook in Download Options. When selected, the download will contain all Gradebook columns, including those hidden from instructor view.

A screenshot of the Download Grades panel. In the 'download options' section is an option to download the full gradebook, with a toggle switch labelled 'include hidden items'.
Image 1. Include Hidden Items toggle switch in Download Marks panel.

Updated Gradebook column navigation

Some changes have been made to column navigation in the Marks view of the Gradebook. Changes include:

For Assignments, Tests, Forms, Discussions, and Journals:

  • The Edit option has been replaced with a View Submissions option.
  • When selecting a cell, the View option now reads View Submission.

For Manual Items, Calculations, and Total Calculations:

  • A View option has been added to the column header that routes to the submission page.
A screenshot of the Marks view of the Gradebook showing a grid of students, assignments and marks. A column header has been selected above an assignment labelled 'Check your knowledge'. The column options are visible, including the new View submissions option which has a small eye icon next to it.
Image 1. Updated column navigation in the Marks view of the Gradebook.

Please see the Release Notes for further information on these updates and others in this release.

Further help and support

For more guidance on using Blackboard Ultra, please explore Ultra Essential Guidance.

Students can view an Ultra orientation and advice on using Ultra from their Help for Students sections (or equivalent) in your Blackboard course.

Ultra Update – October 2025

Posted on by jamie.gilder

One of the advantages of our move to Blackboard Ultra is the ongoing potential for new feature releases and updates. New releases take place on the first Thursday evening of every month, which is much more frequently than for Blackboard Original. We will communicate about new features and changes via this blog. If you want to be kept up to date with the latest information, we recommend subscribing to the blog. 

This release has new or updated features in the following areas:   

  • Instructional design; 
  • Tests and assignments; 
  • Communication and collaboration. 

These changes impact instructors, students, and administrators. Below you’ll find our highlights, and more detail on the most relevant updates.

Highlights

Consistent Save and Cancel options in Assignment Settings

Save and Cancel buttons now appear more consistently in Assignment Settings. Changes include:

  • Timer settings: Removed the X icon and added Save and Cancel buttons.
  • Access code settings: Replaced Close and Continue with Cancel and Save.
Screenshot of Assignment Settings showing the time limit section. The time limit is set to 60 minutes. The save and cancel buttons are shown below this.
Image 1: Save and Cancel buttons are now shown when setting a timer in Assignment Settings.

Improved student experience for Fill in the Blank questions

Fill in the blank questions now display blanks in line with the surrounding text, whether the question is presented as a sentence, paragraph, or table. Blanks also now have hidden ARIA labels to improve screen reader accessibility.

Screenshot showing a fill in the blank question. Blanks are represented by labels, e.g. Blank 1, Blank 2, and 'add your answer' boxes appear below the question text.
Image 1: Fill in the blank question, view prior to this update.
Screenshot showing a fill in the blank question. Blanks are represented by answer boxes within the question text itself.
Image 2: Fill in the Blank question, updated view.

Please see the Release notes for more information on these updates and others in this release.

Further Support

For more guidance on using Blackboard Ultra, please explore Ultra Essential Guidance. 

Students can view an Ultra orientation and advice on using Ultra from their Help for Students sections (or equivalent) in your Blackboard course.

Ultra Update – September 2025

Posted on by jamie.gilder

One of the advantages of our move to Blackboard Ultra is the ongoing potential for new feature releases and updates. New releases take place on the first Thursday evening of every month, which is much more frequently than for Blackboard Original. We will communicate about new features and changes via this blog. If you want to be kept up to date with the latest information, we recommend subscribing to the blog. 

This release has new or updated features in the following areas:   

  • Instructional design; 
  • Tests and assignments; 
  • Communication and collaboration; 
  • Gradebook. 

These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Below you’ll find our highlights, and more detail on the most relevant updates.

Highlights

Block styling options for Documents

Block styling has been added to Documents, giving instructors new ways to add visual appeal and guide student attention. Each styling option adds colour and an icon to a block. The options are:

  • Question Mark 
  • Tip
  • Key points
  • Next steps
Screenshot showing the purple edit toolbar on a block in a Document. The Block styling option is highlighted, showing a dropdown menu containing the different styling options.
Image 1: Instructors can select styling options from a dropdown menu that appears in Edit mode on all block types.

Please see the Release Notes for further information and best practice guidance for using block styling.

Question titles in tests, forms and banks

Instructors can now add question titles when working on questions in tests, forms, and banks. Question titles are optional, they are not visible to students and they are non-unique. Question titles are recommended. They can help with the organisation of questions and to quickly identify questions that have presented issues during an assessment.

A screenshot of the question creation screen showing a single question: Question 1. The Question Title field is highlighted with a blue box. Just below the field is the text 'Question titles are not visible for students'.
Image 1: The question title field.

Question titles appear when: 

  • Creating or editing questions in tests, forms and banks 
  • Adding questions to pools (Add Question Pool workflow) 
  • Viewing questions in a pool (View Questions workflow) 

Titles do not appear when the instructor views or marks submissions for the test or form. Students do not see the question titles when they take a test or review their submission.

Other updates in this release include:

Please see the Release notes for further information on these updates and others in this release.

Further help and support

For more guidance on using Blackboard Ultra, please explore Ultra Essential Guidance. 

Students can view an Ultra orientation and advice on using Ultra from their Help for Students sections (or equivalent) in your Blackboard course.

Ultra Update – August 2025

Posted on by jamie.gilder

One of the advantages of our move to Blackboard Ultra is the ongoing potential for new feature releases and updates. New releases take place on the first Thursday evening of every month, which is much more frequently than for Blackboard Original. We will communicate about new features and changes via this blog. If you want to be kept up to date with the latest information, we recommend subscribing to the blog. 

This release has new or updated features in the following areas:   

  • Instructional design; 
  • Communication and collaboration; 
  • Gradebook; 
  • Blackboard Core. 

These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Below you’ll find our highlights, and more detail on the most relevant updates.

Highlights

Table of contents and full-width assessment panel in Learning Modules

Several user interface and navigation improvements have been made to Learning Modules. Learning Modules now include a collapsible table of contents and assessment items appear in a full-sized panel.

An image of a Learning Module table of contents. It's a panel showing a list of items in the module with a green tick next to those that have been completed and a green progress bar at the top. There's also an arrow in the top right of the panel which has been highlighted.
Image 1. a Learning Module table of contents. The panel can be collapsed by using the arrow button at the top.

With the Force sequence option on, students must use the Next and Previous buttons to move through content in order. Students can’t use the table of contents to jump ahead unless they have already completed the item they are navigating to.

An image of a learning module. The collapsible table of contents with a green progress bar and completion indicators is shown on left hand side. The Previous and Next navigation arrows in the top right of the interface are highlighted.
Image 2. The Previous and Next navigation buttons now appear closer to each other in the user interface within Learning Modules.
An image of a learning module with the assessment item full-width panel displayed. The panel shows the assessment due date, the maximum points and attempts remaining.
Image 3. Assessment items within Learning Modules now appear in a full-sized panel.

Please see the Release Notes for further information.

Other updates include:

Please see the Release notes for further information on these updates and others in this release.

Further help and support

For more guidance on using Blackboard Ultra, please explore Ultra Essential Guidance. 

Students can view an Ultra orientation and advice on using Ultra from their Help for Students sections (or equivalent) in your Blackboard course.

Ultra Update – July 2025

Posted on by jamie.gilder

One of the advantages of our move to Blackboard Ultra is the ongoing potential for new feature releases and updates. New releases take place on the first Thursday of every month, which is much more frequently than for Blackboard Original. We will communicate about new features and changes via this blog. If you want to be kept up to date with the latest information, we recommend subscribing to the blog. 

This release has new or updated features in the following areas:   

  • Instructional design; 
  • Tests and assignments; 
  • Gradebook; 
  • Learner progression and personalised experience; 
  • Blackboard Core. 

These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Below you’ll find our highlights, and more detail on the most relevant updates.

Highlights

Add captions to image blocks in Documents

Instructors can now add captions to image blocks in Documents. Added above or below an image, captions can provide context and aid understanding.

Screenshot showing the Edit File Options menu. The menu has Display Name and Image caption fields, and a caption position option. The above image position is selected.
Image 1. Instructors can use the Edit File Options menu to choose the position of the caption.
An image of a tabby cat with a caption above that reads 'Tabby is one of the most common fur patterns in cats'.
Image 2. An example of an image with a caption above.

Expanded activity page for instructors

The Activity page now has a courses section which shows new activity in current, open courses since an instructor last logged into Blackboard. The courses section includes shortcuts. These are numbered indicators for each course which instructors can select to view:

  • Items that need marking 
  • Messages
  • Students with alerts
A screenshot showing the activity page. The activity stream is on the right hand side, and the courses section is in the middle of the page. The top of the courses section reads 'Current courses' and there are four courses, with an image for each, displayed below it. On several of the courses, numbered purple indicator icons are shown.
Image 1. The new Activity page has a courses section as well as the activity stream.

Please see the Release Notes for further information.

Render mathematical formulas with MathJax

The formula rendering experience in the Content Editor has been enhanced through the implementation of MathJax, a powerful tool for displaying mathematical notation. This update improves the visual accuracy and consistency of LaTeX-based formulas, aligning them more closely with scientific and academic standards. 

MathJax offers a more precise rendering style preferred by many STEM instructors. When activated, MathJax will automatically render LaTeX code entered directly in the Content Editor across supported areas of Blackboard. MathJax in Ultra is currently only working with $$…$$ delimiters, not \(…\) or \[…\], but it will work for creating inline maths with the $$…$$ delimiters, not just standalone formulae. Please see this MathJax support page for information on Tex and LaTex support.

Other updates include:

Please see the Release notes for further information on these updates and others in this release.

Further help and support

For more guidance on using Blackboard Ultra, please explore Ultra Essential Guidance. 

Students can view an Ultra orientation and advice on using Ultra from their Help for Students sections (or equivalent) in your Blackboard course. 

Ultra Update – June 2025

Posted on by jamie.gilder

One of the advantages of our move to Blackboard Ultra is the ongoing potential for new feature releases and updates. New releases take place on the first Thursday of every month, which is much more frequently than for Blackboard Original. We will communicate about new features and changes via this blog. If you want to be kept up to date with the latest information, we recommend subscribing to the blog.

This release has new or updated features in the following areas:

  • Instructional design;
  • Communication and collaboration;
  • Tests and assignments;
  • Learner progression and personalised experience;
  • Gradebook;
  • Blackboard Core.

These improvements impact instructors, students, and administrators. Below you’ll find our highlights, and more detail on the most relevant updates.

Highlights

Add dividers to documents

Instructors can now add divider blocks to Documents. Dividers provide a clear way to structure a Document into sections. They can be resized to span up to four columns.

Screenshot of the Document block creation screen: Divider is shown as a block type and highlighted with a blue square.
Image 1. Dividers are now included as a block type.
Screenshot of a Document with several columns: text stating learning outcomes and an image of three people kayaking. The divider at the bottom has been expanded across multiple columns.
Image 2. Dividers can span multiple columns in a Document.

Create jumbled sentence questions

Instructors can now create jumbled sentence questions for tests. This question type lets instructors define one or more paragraphs with blanks for students to complete. Additionally, instructors can:

  • Add distractors
  • Add automated feedback for correct and incorrect answers
  • Designate questions as extra credit
  • Use accessibility tools, such as keyboard-only workflows, to create this question type. 

To create a Jumbled Sentence question, enter the question text and define the blanks by enclosing the correct answers in square brackets (see image below).

Screenshot of creating a jumbled sentence question. The question text reads: Single water molecules are held together by [covalent] bonds and multiple water molecules are held together by [hydrogen] bonds. The kind of bond where atoms are sharing electrons but are not sharing them equally is [polar covalent bond].
Image 3. Creating a jumbled sentence question.

Please see the Release Notes for further information.

Unread discussion post indicator

An indicator has been added to the Discussions tab which shows the number of unread discussion posts from anywhere in a course.

A screenshot showing an 'Introduction to Humanities' course. The course has one unread discussion post which is indicated by a purple 1 next to the discussions tab.
Image 4. New unread discussion post indicator.

Other updates include:

Please see the Release Notes for full details on other updates in this release.

Further help and support

For more guidance on using Blackboard Ultra, please explore Ultra Essential Guidance. 

Students can view an Ultra orientation and advice on using Ultra from their Help for Students sections (or equivalent) in your Blackboard course.