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Check here for admin-specific info about Blackboard Instructor.

This page contains information about Blackboard Instructor that is especially relevant to administrators. For similar information about the student app, see What's new for admins in the Blackboard app.

Current Support for Apple Pencil and Pencils for Android Devices: Our intention as a progressive and forward thinking IT company is to support the use of the Apple pencil and similar devices for Android, wherever possible: grading, navigation or, for instance, writing essays. Although we intend to support these features, at present we can't guarantee they will always work as we can't possible test all functionalities using these devices.

Bb Annotate

Bb Annotate replaces New Box View as the inline annotation tool for assignment file submissions in Blackboard Learn during the May 25 through August 10, 2020 timeframe. Please see the release plan to find out when your institution will upgrade. When your institution has Bb Annotate, you'll also see it in Blackboard Instructor.

More on inline grading in the app

Bb Annotate release plan (login required)

Bb Annotate transition frequently asked questions (login required)

There's a known issue with Bb Annotate in Blackboard Instructor where users can't print or download submitted assignment files or annotations.

Support for Bb Annotate in the mobile apps

Planned support for Bb Annotate in the mobile apps
 

Blackboard App

 Blackboard Instructor App
Submit Assessments with Document Attachments to Bb Annotate (Ultra) Supported
No
Submit Assessments with Document Attachments to Bb Annotate (Original) Supported
No
View Annotated Documents (Ultra) Supported
No
View Annotated Documents (Original) Planned Q4 2020* Supported
Create Annotations in Bb Annotate (Ultra)
No
 Planned 2021*
Create Annotations in Bb Annotate (Original)
No
 Supported for Assignments

Edit announcements

Blackboard Instructor version 3.2 included an option to edit course announcements.

  • In Original courses, the edit option is available in Blackboard Learn 3800.7.0+.  Instructors can edit the title and release options, but can't edit the announcement content.
  • In Ultra courses, the edit option is available in Blackboard Learn 3800.15.0+.  Instructors can edit all announcement options, including the announcement content.

Blackboard Data

The Blackboard Data integration provides institutions the ability to run reports that catalog usage of the Blackboard and Blackboard Instructor mobile apps. User activity in downloaded offline content is also logged in Blackboard Data.

More on Blackboard Data

Custom logo in app navigation

If your Blackboard system has the Ultra experience, your institution's logo displays in the app's navigation panel. Blackboard Learn system administrators can add a navigation logo in the Administrator Panel.

How to add custom logos

Grading

The Blackboard Instructor app helps instructors and graders easily identify courses where they need to grade student submissions. They can review, annotate, and grade submissions and quickly publish the grades back to students.

The initial release of the app's grading feature is available for assignments in Original courses only. Users need devices running Android 4.2+ or iOS 9+.
 
At this time, your institution needs Blackboard Learn SaaS 3400.7.0+ or Blackboard Learn 9.1 Q2 2018 CU4+. Clients on Blackboard Learn versions prior to Q2 2018 need to upgrade to Q2 2018 in order install the necessary CU to enable grading capabilities.

More on availability of grading in Blackboard Instructor (login required)

Administrators can disable grade pill colors

Known issues

  • Assignment instructions are rendered as plain text in the app. Rich text and media are not shown. Attachments remain with the assignment and can be viewed in the app.
  • Assignment comments are rendered in plain text in the app. If a user tries to edit a comment previously drafted on the web, they will be informed that editing comments in the app will result in a loss of the rich text or media created on web.
  • Comments provided by students as part of their submissions aren't supported currently.
  • Smart Views for grade center in Original courses aren't supported currently.
  • Group submissions aren't supported currently.
  • Anonymous and delegated grading for assignments isn't supported currently. These types of assignments are listed separately from other items in their own dedicated section and are read-only. An update to Blackboard Learn and the apps will be available in Q4 that will support these assignment types and display them in the same manner as other assessments.*
  • Grade distribution graphs are only available for point, letter, and percent grades.

Institution terms of use

Schools can provide a link to their institutional terms of use in the app if they are on a version of Blackboard Learn that supports Blackboard Instructor 1.9.1+ and have properly configured a link to their institution’s terms of use. In the app, the link is found in Settings and at the bottom of the Blackboard Terms of Use acceptance policy shown at login.

Discussion attachments and new announcements features

Attach files to discussion posts and schedule announcements and send email copy of announcement features require a scheduled update to the Mobile Building Block that is included in these releases:

  • SaaS 3400.5.0 (see SaaS release schedule)
  • Q2 2018 CU1 (3400.0.1)
  • Q4 2017 CU3 (3300.0.3)
  • Q2 2017 CU8 (3200.0.8)
  • Q2 2107 CU7 (Mobile B2 94.9.11 upgrade available on BtBb or SU)

Offline content

Offline content is available only for Original courses in Blackboard Instructor at this time.

Users can download course documents and view them later when they’re offline or don’t have internet access. We recommend that your institution install one of the minimum supported versions for the offline content feature.

  • Q4 2018
  • Q2 2019
  • Q4 2019
  • Blackboard Learn SaaS

For older versions of Blackboard Learn, check this table for the required minimum B2 version for offline content.

Mobile Web Services B2 needed for offline content feature
Blackboard Learn Version Mobile B2
Prior to Q2 2017 94.9.7 or later
Q2 2017 CU3 (3200.0.3) or later
SaaS 3200.10.0 or later

Learn more about offline content in Blackboard Instructor.

Edit the username label

One way to help users log in without problems is to change the username label that shows when they log in to the mobile apps. You can match this label to the term used for the login for mobile apps at your school.

How to edit username label

App to app launching

Interested in launching the Blackboard app from your school's app or website? It's possible! We provide a simple way to link into the app from other applications. With deep linking, a uniform resource identifier (URI) links to a specific location within a mobile app rather than simply launching the app. App to app launching is available for the iOS and Android versions of the Blackboard app.

For example, a school can link to an assignment or other area in the Blackboard app from a website or mobile app.

Use the provided schemas to link to specific features in the Blackboard app.

App to app linking schema

Mobile usage data

Ever wanted to know more about how and when users at your school are using the mobile apps? You can use activity accumulator SQL queries for the Blackboard Learn database to obtain activity information for Blackboard mobile usage on hosted Blackboard Learn systems.

Query mobile usage data

Statements about future development

*Statements regarding our product development initiatives, including new products and future product upgrades, updates or enhancements represent our current intentions, but may be modified, delayed or abandoned without prior notice and there is no assurance that such offering, upgrades, updates or functionality will become available unless and until they have been made generally available to our customers.