Blackboard Ultra New Features
(Update May 2025)
Blackboard releases usually occur once a month and include features or updates requested by customer input. The following list is not exhaustive but consists of features released within the past semester and those considered the most relevant items to U of R faculty and staff. If you have questions about these updates or want to learn more, please get in touch with the Teaching and Learning Support Services team at univithelp@rochester.edu.
AI Tools
- AI Design Assistant: Create up to 20 learning modules, 20 test questions, and 20 Question Bank questions at a time to create content in bulk.
Please remember that any time you use AI Tools, it is your responsibility as the instructor to review AI-generated content for accuracy and relevancy.
Content
- Print Documents: Documents created in Blackboard can be printed or saved as a PDF by instructors and students. This is a great feature for students with limited data or internet access, as they can access content offline.
- Learning Module to Folder Transition: Ability to transition between learning modules and folders, which is particularly useful if you bring content from Original into Ultra.
- Image Block: Blackboard documents have a new content block allowing uploading, searching, and resizing images. You can choose between uploading your images, generating images using AI, or searching for images using Unsplash.
Discussions
- Participation Metrics: Instructors can see participation metrics on the discussions homepage to easily see who is/isn’t engaging in course discussions.
- Improved Discussion Layouts: Larger avatars and relocated timestamps for easier replies, easier access to edit button for posts, text for students creating a post says “Post a response to the discussion,” text area entry moved directly below the discussion prompt, and tags to indicate drafts as well as instructor posts.
Tests
- Access Code: If you use a password for students to access tests, the password is now hidden from students, which would allow you to copy in a code for a student to access.
- Student Test Continuation: If a student is in the process of taking a test when an instructor hides the test, students can continue and submit the test.
- Test Result Setting: Instructors can set up a new test result setting to allow students a one-time look at their test results immediately after submitting their test, with immediate feedback while maintaining test security. Issue noted for essay questions.
Gradebook
- Text-Based Columns: You can create columns for text input/grading in the gradebook.
- Rubrics: If you use rubrics for grading, you can now create rubrics without point values. You can also pop rubrics out of the grading window when assessing student work.
- Student Feedback Review: You can now see whether students have read the feedback you provide to them in Blackboard.
- Group Grading: The experience of grading group assignments now mimics the experience of grading individual assignments.
- Accessibility Enhancements: The gradebook is now navigable using the arrow and Enter keys on the keyboard. The gradebook was also optimized for screen reader users.
Settings/Features
- Release Conditions: When using release conditions, you can now see the due dates of items you’re using to set up the conditions.
- Course Settings Page: Within the course settings page, the explanations of course status (i.e., open or closed) were updated to be clearer.