Cancellation of Blackboard Upgrade

Testing of the new version of Blackboard has revealed a significant issue that has resulted in the decision to cancel the planned Blackboard version 9 upgrade for the forthcoming academic year.

Moving to Blackboard version 9 at this time would present an unacceptable risk to the University's Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) given the proximity of the new academic year. In addition, Blackboard themselves are unable to give any guarantees as to when a fix for the reported issue could be made available.

A move to Blackboard version 9, and the additional functionality it brings, is anticipated for the following academic session (2010/11). Meanwhile, the existing Blackboard version 7.3 system will remain in place, ensuring the provision of a stable VLE service at the University of Leicester.

Blackboard System Upgrade

IT Services plans to upgrade the Blackboard virtual learning environment to version 9.

The major change for Blackboard users is the redesigned and customisable user interface. The student view is predominantly the same as previous versions but there are some significant changes to the user interface for course instructors. These changes may require an amount of familiarisation – although, on the whole, the basic Blackboard functionality remains the same.

Quick Links

Things you need to know about Blackboard Version 9

Known Issues with Blackboard Version 9

Quick Tutorials

Tutorials available from Blackboard Inc.

Follow the link to access interactive tutorials on a number of the new features available in version 9 of the Blackboard system. These tutorials are not specific to the University of Leicester but do provide a good introduction to new functionality.

Tutorials available on YouTube

Examples of the new user interface and how to add various items of content into the new Blackboard version 9.0 system can be found on various external Web sites. Here are a few examples of YouTube videos covering some of the more popular topics.

Interactive Screen Shots of the New Service

To view interactive screen shots of the new Blackboard service, click on the thumbnail images or links below (links will open in a separate window/tab).

Further Help

If you have any questions or comments please email ithelp@le.ac.uk.