At the 13th Annual Learning and Teaching Conference, Professor Anwen Jones announced a fund of £10,000 for colleagues to bid against to a maximum of £2,000 for projects related to the conference theme:
Compassionate engagement and assessment
Health and wellbeing in a learning and teaching context
Accessibility and inclusion (inclusive learning and teaching design)
The University is providing half of the total funding, with the remainder coming from Medr, the Welsh universities regulator.
We are looking for a wide range of projects across all areas of our community which would make a difference to our education and student experience.
In the October update, we want to draw your attention to a new feature with the Learning Object Repository. There is also an important and highly requested update to Fill in the Blank style question, and tagging questions in question banks to help colleagues with question organisation.
Updates to the Learning Object Repository
We were very excited about the launch of the Learning Object Repository. We have already made use of it for the Blackboard standardised template and for Generative AI statements.
This month’s update sees the ability for us to upload files to the Learning Object Repository which colleagues can then copy into their courses.
We can stipulate the availability of the content, so that it can be available or unavailable to students.
Updates to the Fill in the Blank Question for Students
The way that Fill in the Blank Questions displays has been updated. This is an enhancement that colleagues have requested so we are pleased to this available.
Fill in the blank questions now display the blanks inline with the surrounding text, whether the question is presented as a sentence, paragraph, or table. We also added hidden ARIA labels to blanks to improve screen reader accessibility.
Image 1: Before this update, the blanks appeared below the question.
Image 2: After this update, the blanks appear in-line with the question.
Tag questions with metadata in tests and question banks
Instructors can now tag questions with metadata when creating or editing questions in tests, forms, and banks.
Instructors
Questions can have multiple tags of the same type. Metadata is visible during question creation/editing and can be used to filter questions when reusing or adding to pools. Metadata is not visible to students during test-taking or review.
Supported metadata types include:
Category
Topics
Levels of Difficulty
Keywords
Image 1: Instructors can create and apply a tag to questions.
Image 2: Tags appear as filters in the question bank.
If you have any enhancements to request from Blackboard, please get in touch with us via elearning@aber.ac.uk.
Balancing Innovation and Integrity: Rethinking Assessment Design in the Age of Generative AI, Adjunct Associate Prof, Elaine Huber (University of Sydney)
Defining and evaluating original work in the GenAI age: what does it mean by “originality” in students’ assignments?, Assistant Professor Jess Jiahui Luo, (Education University of Hong Kong).
Webinar series European Network for Academic Integrity, ENAI monthly webinarsfree open webinars on various topics related to academic integrity.
Please see the Staff Training booking page for training offered by the LTEU and other Aberystwyth University staff. I hope you find this weekly resource roundup useful. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our team at lteu@aber.ac.uk. Social Media: BSky, X.com.
Webinar series European Network for Academic Integrity, ENAI monthly webinarsfree open webinars on various topics related to academic integrity.
Please see the Staff Training booking page for training offered by the LTEU and other Aberystwyth University staff. I hope you find this weekly resource roundup useful. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our team at lteu@aber.ac.uk. Social Media: BSky, X.com.
Over the summer there have been some updates to Blackboard Ally which colleagues will find help them to fix issues with images and PDFs in Blackboard.
AI Auto-generate description
The AI auto-generate description tool has been improved to write better alternative text for charts, text in images, STEM content, and handwriting in images. Like all the AI tools in Blackboard staff can edit any aspect of the AI output and adapt it if needed. The AI tool also provides a good starting point for learning more about writing alternative text. And if you use Blackboard in Welsh, the AI tool will create Welsh alternative text.
To use the AI tool:
Click on the Ally indicator for your image (or access it via Books and Tools > Ally Adroddiad Hygyrchedd / Accessibility Report > Content)
Under Edit image description, click Auto-generate description
You can then click Save to use the description or edit the description before clicking Save.
If you don’t want to use the description, click Remove from image, and type your own description.
OCR layer on scanned documents
Around 15% of PDFs in 2024-25 courses were non-OCR documents. This causes a problem for anyone who needs to change the size of the text or use a screen reader because the text appears as an image rather than readable text. Ally now provides tools to add a readable OCR layer on top of a non-OCR document. The quality of this layer will depend on the nature of the content (typewritten documents work better than images or handwriting) as well as the quality of the scan.
We suggest that you try the OCR layer tool and see whether it may help you to provide more accessible PDFs. Remember that you can also use the Library Digitisation service which provides OCR readable scans of journal articles and book chapters.
To use the OCR layer:
Click on the Ally indicator for your image (or access it via Books and Tools [Llyfrau ac Offer] > Ally Adroddiad Hygyrchedd / Accessibility Report > Content)
Click on the Preview and Apply button to add the layer
A preview will appear – use your mouse to highlight the text on the preview. This will show you what text will be add to the file.
If you are happy to use it, click Apply. If not, choose Cancel
If you don’t use the OCR layer, the Learn how to fix PDFs button will give you options for adding a library reference.
PDF Language and Title
PDFs without language or title set can now be fixed directly in Ally:
Click on the Ally indicator for your PDF (or access it via Books and Tools > Ally Adroddiad Hygyrchedd / Accessibility Report > Content)
Under Add PDF Language, select the language of the document and click Apply fix
Type the title of your document in the Set PDF Title box and then click Apply fix.
Guidance for students
To help you encourage your students to use the Ally Alternative Formats, we have a Learning Object Repository (LOR) item on Ally that you can use in your course. See our FAQ on adding an item from the LOR to your course.
More changes are planned for Ally over the next three months, and we’ll keep colleagues updated via the blog. For more information on Ally, have a look at the Ally help pages
Webinar series European Network for Academic Integrity, ENAI monthly webinarsfree open webinars on various topics related to academic integrity.
Please see the Staff Training booking page for training offered by the LTEU and other Aberystwyth University staff. I hope you find this weekly resource roundup useful. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our team at lteu@aber.ac.uk. Social Media: BSky, X.com.
In the September update, we want to draw your attention to a number of test and question updates, including the ability to add question titles.
In addition to this, there are enhancements to group tests, time consistency, and enhancing documents with block styling options.
New: Add and manage question titles in tests, forms, and banks
This feature has been requested by colleagues so it’s great to see this live in Blackboard. It’s ideal for colleagues managing large numbers of questions for online exams.
Instructors can now add, view, edit, and delete question titles when working on questions in tests, forms, and banks. Titles are optional and non-unique. Titles are recommended, as they enhance searchability and reuse workflows.
Image 1: Instructors can enter or edit the question title.
In the keyword search in the Reuse question panel, instructors can now search for questions on the question text or the question title.
Titles appear when:
Creating or editing questions in tests, forms and banks
Viewing or selecting questions via the Reuse questions workflow 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 grades the test and form submissions. Students do not see the question titles when they take a test or review their submission.
Use see-more functionality in Add Question Pool
In the Add Question Pool screen, the filter panel now includes See more functionality for Sources, Question Types, and Tags when the number of values in that filter section exceeds 10. Selecting See more expands the list, revealing the full list of values.
Image 1: Selecting See more expands the list, revealing the full list of values.
Display per question feedback to students on group test submissions
Blackboard tests include the option for students to take part in a group submission – answering questions together. This is great for an in person formative style activity, or might offer colleagues other opportunities for group assessment solutions. Group tests use the same options that are available for Group Assignments. Take a look at Blackboard’s support page and contact elearning@aber.ac.uk if you have any questions about this feature.
In this month’s update, Blackboard has improved how feedback is displayed to students with group test submissions.
Students can now view per-question feedback on group test submissions. Instructors have been able to provide per-question feedback, but it was not visible to students until now.
With this update:
Students reviewing a graded group test can see feedback for each question.
Feedback supports all formats: text, file attachments, and video recordings.
Per-question feedback appears alongside overall feedback and rubric scores.
This enhancement ensures that group submissions benefit from the same detailed feedback experience as individual submissions. It also supports:
Originality reports (when enabled via SafeAssign).
Attempt-level score overrides for individual group members.
AI Rewrite for both overall and per question feedback.
Navigation between group submissions using Previous/Next controls.
Display time limits and extra time consistently across roles
Blackboard has improved how time limits and extra time are communicated in Assessments. This change ensures that all users understand exactly how much time is available, including any accommodations or overrides.
Now, all users have the time limits and extra time presented in a consistent format:
Example:
“Time limit: 20 minutes + 10 minutes extra time”
This format appears:
When instructors configure or review assessment settings.
When students begin or review an assessment.
In the preview mode for instructors.
Enhance Documents with block styling options
Last month we highlighted the new block styling available in Documents. This month, this feature has been developed further with highlight options appearing alongside each text box.
The highlight option gives you the opportunity to clearly indicate whether your content is:
Question: Use for prompts or reflective questions. Keep questions concise and open-ended to encourage critical thinking.
Tip: Use for tips, insights, or helpful suggestions. Ensure tips are actionable and relevant to the content.
Key points: Use to highlight key points or essential facts. Keep these blocks brief and focused to reinforce retention.
Next steps: Use for next steps or instructions. Present steps in a clear, logical order and consider using numbered lists for clarity.
If you’re looking to make your Blackboard Documents more appealing, we’re running a special 30 minute masterclass on becoming a Document Pro. You can book your place online.
If you have any enhancements to request from Blackboard, please get in touch with us via elearning@aber.ac.uk.
Haxton, K. J. (4/9/2025), Hollow Knowledge, KJHaxton, quote from the article: “My concerns about genAI knowledge being largely hollow come from the generic nature of it. Many suggestions look great on the surface but there’s very little substance in the middle.”
Webinar series European Network for Academic Integrity, ENAI monthly webinarsfree open webinars on various topics related to academic integrity.
Please see the Staff Training booking page for training offered by the LTEU and other Aberystwyth University staff. I hope you find this weekly resource roundup useful. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our team at lteu@aber.ac.uk. Social Media: BSky, X.com.
Over 180 colleagues across the University made use of Vevox, our polling tool, last year.
Close to 4000 polls were created across nearly 1000 sessions, with over 27,000 participants.
Vevox allows your participants to use their mobile devices to respond to a series of questions.
You can use this for many activities in the classroom:
Q and A
Knowledge checks
Quizzes
Opinion gathering
Decision making
Team games
Revision activities
Mind mapping
Resource creating
And so much more…
With our institutional licence, all members of the community can make use of Vevox. Students can use it in their presentations; colleagues can use it in their meetings. Last year, we were really pleased that Vevox was used in the University welcome talks which will continue again this year.
We’ll also be running our enhanced training session on designing learning activities using polling software in November. See this and our other enhanced sessions and book online.
