Video: Release Highlights
Announcements
Note the following important updates:
To view the change log for this release note landing page, see Document Change History at the bottom of this page.
Anthology Ally – Enable the Ally accessibility tool for any org unit in Brightspace | Updated
To help improve the ability of administrators to enable or disable the Anthology Ally accessibility tool in specific org units within a Brightspace instance, the following configuration variables will be changed:
| Old Configuration Variable |
New Configuration Variable |
Description |
|---|
| d2l.Tools.Content.AllyIntegration.ClientId ( Org ) |
d2l.3rdParty.Ally.ClientId ( OrgUnit ) |
Using the configuration settings provided by Anthology, configure the ClientID, for the Ally alternate formats account associated with this org unit. |
| d2l.Tools.Content.AllyIntegration.ClientSecret ( Org ) |
d2l.3rdParty.Ally.ClientSecret ( OrgUnit ) |
Using the configuration settings provided by Anthology, configure the Client Secret for the Ally alternate formats account associated with this org unit. Should be the same as your Ally LTI secret.
|
| d2l.Tools.Content.AllyIntegration.ScriptUrl ( Org ) |
d2l.3rdParty.Ally.ScriptUrl ( OrgUnit ) |
Using the configuration settings provided by Anthology, configure the Script URL for the Ally alternate formats script. Must have a hostname with the following format: {environment}.ally.ac. |
| d2l.Tools.Content.AllyIntegration.TokenExpiryTime ( Org ) |
d2l.3rdParty.Ally.TokenExpiryTime ( OrgUnit ) |
Using the configuration settings provided by Anthology, configure the expiration time (in hours) for the configuration token (JWT). This is a suggestion for Ally, and may be ignored.
|
There will be no change in functionality. Values from the current variables will be migrated to the new variables. Following this migration the old variables will no longer be used and will be removed from Brightspace in a future release.
This functionality is developed in partnership with Anthology. Additional settings within their Ally tool are necessary to support this new deployment model. Those additional settings will be developed and documented by Anthology.
Figure: Ally Integration enabled at the org unit.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to administrators implementing Anthology Ally accessibility tool.
Availability:
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Assignments – Expand or collapse list of aligned outcomes | Updated
When editing or creating an assignment or a discussion, instructors can now expand and collapse the list of aligned Learning Outcomes if the displayed list is too long. This is intended to keep the page clutter-free for instructors who are working with many outcomes.
On the Edit Assignment page, when the outcomes list exceeds two lines, a + # More button (where # is the number of outcomes not currently displayed) appears at the end of the second line. Instructors can click + # More to display the full list of aligned outcomes.
When the outcomes list is expanded, a Show Less button appears at the bottom of the list. Instructors can click Show Less to collapse the list of aligned outcomes back to two rows. This release also moves the + button to the upper right corner of the outcomes list and adds a Clear All button to the bottom of the outcomes list.
Previously, the Edit Assignment page always displayed all aligned outcomes and the + button appeared at the end of the list.
Figure: List of aligned outcomes on the Edit Assignment page before this update.
Figure: Collapsed list of outcomes on the Edit Assignment page after this update.
Figure: Expanded list of outcomes on the Edit Assignment page after this update.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to expand and collapse the list of aligned outcomes when creating an activity.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Awards – Share achievements with Public URL sharing for awards | New
Learners can now share their awards with a Public URL directly from the Awards tool using the new Awards Sharing option.
The new method simplifies sharing a badge or certificate to showcase achievements. The user can create a public URL for an award, which can then be shared on a digital resume or social media profile, for example, LinkedIn.
To share an award using a public URL, a learner can navigate to the My Awards page, select the desired award, click the Share link, and then click Create Link.
Figure: The Share option in Awards.
Figure: The Create Link button in Awards.
Figure: The Copy Link button in Awards.
As a result, the public URL of the award is generated and appears. Learners can copy and share this link or delete it if needed.
Previously, there were no methods of directly sharing learners' awards with external resources without first sharing them with another tool.
This feature implements the following PIE item:
Technical Details
Impact:
-
Slight impact to administrators due to the ability to enable a new method of sharing awards.
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Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to determine whether awards from that course can be shared.
-
Moderate impact to learners due to the ability to share awards via a Public URL directly from the Awards without using other tools.
Availability:
To enable:
- By default, the config variable d2l.Tools.Awards.PublicAwardsEnabled is OFF. If it is turned ON, then a sharing option checkbox at the course level (found on the Course Awards page) becomes available. By default, it is checked ON when the config is turned on. Course instructors can then turn it off on a course-by-course basis if desired.
Brightspace – Share homepages, widgets, and navigation bars with multiple org units | Updated
With this release, the interface and functionality for sharing homepages, widgets, and navigation bars is changed from only being able to share with child org units to being able to share with multiple org units. This changes the interface from a basic select box to an org selection button. The ability to share to child org units remains unchanged. In additions, widgets are now also shareable to all child org units from Course Templates. Previously, sharing was limited to all child org units and not available at a template level.
Themes do not require additional sharing since they automatically share with all child org units. Link groups' existing function, Availability > Share with child org units, is unchanged. The setting of defaults for the org structure is not included in this release.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Moderate impact to administrators who can now target the sharing of homepages, widgets, and navigation bars to specific org units.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Brightspace Insights – Usability improvements in all Insights Dashboards | Updated
This release introduces the following usability improvements to the specified Insights dashboards:
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More information included in tooltips (all Insights dashboards).
-
Previously, when a user hovered over a point on an area chart, a tooltip appeared with data for that category and date. Now, when a user hovers over a point on an area chart, a tooltip appears with data from all categories for that date. This removes the need for users to hover over separate data points to compare them or zoom in to read values of different series.
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Updated chart and legend interactions (Learner Engagement Dashboard).
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When a user hovers over a category in a chart or a legend, all the other categories become dimmer in the chart and on the legend. When a user clicks on a category in a chart or a legend, all the other categories become dimmer in all charts and on the legend, and a Showing Only tag appears at the top of the dashboard to summarize the scope of the highlights.
-
"No data" state (all Insights dashboards).
-
Previously, if the user's filter selections retrieved no data, the graph axes appeared blank. Now, each card displays a message that there is no data retrieved.
-
Alert messages (all Insights dashboards).
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to administrators due to the updated user interface on all Insights dashboards.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients who have the Performance Plus package or who have purchased Brightspace Insights in the previous packaging model.
To enable:
- Users must have the Query Data Platform, See Insights Portal Tool, Can See Adoption Dashboard, Can See Engagement Dashboard, and Can See Assessment Quality Dashboard permissions enabled for their role. Administrators must set the d2l.Tools.Insights.Adoption.EnableNewExperience configuration variable to ON.
Creator+ – Engage learners with professional interactive content in your courses | New
On November 8,2022, D2L is launching Creator+ by Brightspace, an add-on package that aims to empower instructors to bring their courses to the next level by building professional, engaging, and interactive content in minutes. Creator+ authoring tools leaverage your current content workflows, making it easy for creators of all experience levels to create compellling content and media experiences that drive higher learner engagement in your courses. Specifically, Creator+ by Brightspace extends the Brightspace Editor in Content with Insert Element, and Practices. It launches a screen and video capture app from Media Library and broadens organizational control over brand and style with the Content Styler and Creator+ templates.
Also launching on November 8 is a Creator+ by Brightspace self-paced learning course on the Brightspace Community Learning Center that contains helpful videos, examples, and instructional design best practices to inspire and upskill content creators.
With Creator+ by Brightspace, D2L is evolving our Engagement+ add-on package to bring our deep instructional and multimedia design expertise to existing Brightspace workflows. Previously, the Engagement+ package provided enhanced engagement tools such as Course Catalog, Game Based Learning, the Awards Leaderboard, and an integrated Capture tool and Capture portal. All tools in the Engagement+ package continue to be available to Engagement+ subscribers, alongside the Creator+ package tools. All Engagement+ tools continue to be supported, excepting any announced sunsets related to legacy Capture technology. For more information, see Engagement+ to Creator+ FAQ.
Launch Capture App and record experiences from within Brightspace
Capture (Version 10) strengthens the Brightspace audio-video product suite by introducing the Capture App. After selecting Create Presentation in Brightspace Media Library, administrators and instructors can launch the Capture App. Once the app is installed, users can then create new media files (from their webcam feed, desktop feed, or a combination of both feeds) and upload directly into Media Library.
Users can then use tools in the Media Library to edit the timeline, caption track, presentation title, or description.
Note the following:
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The maximum video resolution is 720p.
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You must install the Capture App to use Capture. The Create Presentation feature automatically prompts you to install the App if it is not already installed.
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Mac users must ensure that the Security and Privacy settings allow the Capture App to access camera, microphone, and screen recording.
For more information about using Media Library with Capture, refer to the Media Library – Quickly access, create, edit, and manage all audiovisual content with Media Library | Updated feature.
Figure: The Create Presentation option in Media Library.
Figure: The Capture Encoder dialog, which provides the ability to record and publish presentations.
Figure: The Record Info screen. Enter the title an description and choose your recording layout.
Create micro formative assessments to test learner knowledge comprehension with Practices
The Creator + Insert Practices feature in the Brightspace Editor > Other Insert Options menu allows you to create formative practice questions in Content HTML topic (both New Content Experience and Classic Content). Learners can get immediate feedback on their understanding of a specific topic outside of formal assessments.
When creating or editing an HTML document, users select a Insert Practice from the Other Insert Options menu, and then select a Practice type from a menu. Options include:
Figure: The Insert Practice option is available on the Insert Other Options menu.
Each practice has its own workflow to complete the required information, and a preview accompanies the build so that course creators can observe how learners will experience the created practice.
After Practice questions are added, you can edit or change the order of questions using other HTML page elements, such as accordions, videos, or text paragraphs.
Note: Learners can check their practice scores; however the scores are not saved or tracked; learners can retake the practice questions repeatedly to challenge their understanding of a concept by refreshing the page.
Add dynamic components to your content with the no-code experience of Insert Element
The Creator+ Insert Element feature enables users to build interactive elements in their Content HTML topics without HTML coding experience. Creators can use Brightspace Editor > Other Insert Options menu to select Insert Element and choose from dynamic components including:
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Accordion (Numbered, Unnumbered)
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Tabs (Vertical, Horizontal) and the ability to include images in tabs
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Click and Reveal (No Icon, Question)
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Callout (No Icon, Question, Attention, Jumbo)
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Timeline (Left-aligned, Alternating)
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Stylized Quote (Standard, Large Focus)
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Flip Cards
Figure: The Insert Element option on the Other Insert Options menu.
Each element provides information during the creation process to guide creators in instructional design best practices for using the element to convey information in a purposeful way. After inserting elements, creators can edit or change the order of elements using other HTML page elements, such as accordions, videos, or text paragraphs.
Create consistent CSS styles across HTML topics using Content Styler
Administrators can use Content Styler within Brightspace Editor to apply a global style to content pages and support consistent branding and styling of content pages. There are two options:
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Use the cloud-hosted default Creator+ cascading style sheet (CSS) that is maintained by D2L. The CSS can be moderately configured by using the Content Styler editor tool to modify four key parts of the default CSS, including headers, font and color, accent color, and accessible color. The Content Styler option is available in the Organization Related section or Admin Tools, and requires the Can Manage Content Style CSS permission. Modifications can be applied using the d2l.Tools.ContentStyler.CssOverride configuration variable to point to the location where you have saved the CSS.
Note: It is currently only possible to make one override per organization.
-
Link to a client-hosted CSS style using the d2l.Tools.ContentStyler.CssOverride configuration variable to point to the preferred CSS, and cascade to different areas of your organization as needed.
Note: The Content Styler changes are not retroactively applied to existing HTML topics; they only apply to new HTML content topics. Administrators use thed2l.Tools.ContentStyler.CssOverride configuration variable to define which courses should have the default Creator+ CSS applied or an override CSS.
Figure: The Content Styler editor is available from the Admin Tools menu under Organization Related tools.
Figure: The Content Styler dialog, providing the ability to edit accent, accessible accent, header, and font styles.
Build content in the language of your learners
The content creation workflows of Insert Element and Practices support localization using the HTML file language attribute. The language setting in Brightspace Editor > Other Insert Options > Page Attributes > Language define the tool-related language seen by learners, such as buttons to expand content, viewing solutions and scores on Practices, and ARIA labels. All tools are available in all supported Brightspace language packs.
This feature implements the following PIE items:
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact overall to content creators who now have additional tools available.
- Moderate impact to administrators using the Content Styler features due to the availability of additional configuration variables
- Slight impact to instructors who may see new styles applied when creating or editing HTML files depending on how their implementation is configured.
Availability:
-
Engagement+ clients are entitled to Creator+ tools on the November 8 launch, and the Creator+ features are automatically installed on Release November 8, 2022. These tools must be enabled at the Administration Level before they are visible to users.
Clients who participated in the Creator+ early access program continue to have access until December 31, 2022.
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Creator+ by Brightspace is a paid add-on to Brightspace and is available November 8, 2022. To purchase Creator + for your Brightspace implementation, contact your account representative.
Note the following:
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Legacy Capture clients cannot have both Capture App with Media Library integration and Legacy Capture (version 9.x) running at the same time in their Production environments. Clients with existing Legacy capture configurations on production will not see Capture App features and must contact their customer success representative if they want to migrate their settings to Creator+ Capture App. In your test environment, you can upgrade to Creator+ features including Capture App regardless of the version you have on your production environment.
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The Capture App supports Windows 10 and 11, and Mac OS V11 and 12. You must install the Capture App on your computer to use Capture.
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Brightspace Editor features (Practice and Insert Element) are only available to Creator+ subscribers. If you are not a Creator+ subscriber, these features do not appear in the Brightspace Editor.
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Brightspace Editor features are available in both Classic Content experience and the New Content Experience (Lessons).
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An online course containing Creator+ templates, examples, and instructional design best practices will be available in the Learning Center on Brightspace Community on November 8, 2022.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically entitled to all Creator+ subscribers on November 8, 2022, but is only visible to users who have completed the following enablement steps:
Unless your institution was a participant in the Early Access Program, all Creator+ tools (Capture App, Content Styler, Insert Element, and Insert Practice) are turned OFF by default in the Organization Tools menu for your organization. They must be turned ON to become active.
Creator+ subscribers that had Legacy Capture implementations must contact D2L when they are ready to migrate from Legacy Capture to Capture App.
The d2l.Tools.CreatorPlus.IsEnabled configuration variable must be set to ON. You can use this configuration variable to restrict the number of org units that have the Creator+ features enabled as you roll out the Creator+ tools in your organization.
Mac users must ensure that the Security and Privacy settings allow the Capture App to access camera, microphone, and screen recording.
To use the Content Styler feature, administrators require the Can Manage Content Style CSS permission. The path for the client-hosted CSS or the CSS that was generated using the Content Styler UI must be updated in the d2l.Tools.ContentStyler.CSSOverride configuration variable to take effect in the new content topics.
To indicate which courses should have the updated CSS styles applied, ensure the d2l.Tools.ContentStyler.AddStylesOnContentCreate configuration variable is set correctly. This configuration variable cascades to all courses within the setting you define. For example, if you select a specific semester, all courses in that semester will have the updated styles.
If you want content creators and instructors to be able to set the language attribute in their content, ensure the d2l.Tools.Content.ApplyPageLangAttribute is set.
Data Hub – Report on changes made to rubrics with the Rubrics Edit data set | New
This release adds the new Rubrics Edit Brightspace Data Set (BDS) to provide administrators with an audit log of any edits made to assessed (locked) rubrics. For more information about the new ability to edit assessed rubrics, refer to the Rubrics – Clarify grading criteria by editing text fields in assessed rubrics | New release note.
Each row in the data set represents an edit of a rubric that was already used for evaluation and provides information about what changes were made, when they were made, and who made them.
The Rubrics Edit BDS only captures data from November 2022 onwards and does not contain historical information.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to administrators due to the addition of a new data set.
Availability:
- This feature is available to Brightspace Insights and Brightspace Core clients in all regions.
To enable:
- Ensure the Can Access Brightspace Data Sets permission is granted to administrators at the org level and the d2l.Tools.BrightspaceDataSets.Version configuration variable is set to version 7. New and changed data sets appear the first time the data set runs after the version update.
Data Hub – Track any issues or failures with the SAML Provisioned Users Log data set | New
This release adds the new SAML Provisioned Users Log Brightspace Data Set to support the introduction of data collected for the SAML User Provisioning function. This new feature can be used to track any issues or failures with the provisioning of users utilizing SAML.
You can use this data set to answer questions about how many users have been created via SAML for troubleshooting or auditing purposes.
Each row in the data set represents a log of action (for example, created or updated) taken on users provisioned using the SAML feature. It provides information about the users, their provider type, the provider's ID, and the date and time that the users were provisioned (UTC).
Technical Details
Impact:
Availability:
To enable:
- Ensure the Can see data hub permission is granted to administrators at the org level and the d2l.Tools.BrightspaceDataSets.Version configuration variable is set to version 7. New and changed data sets appear the first time the data set runs after the version update.
Grades – Override Email on Export with External Email based on a new config variable | New
This feature allows instructors to obtain a learner's external email address (for example, campus email address) instead of their internal Brightspace email when exporting Grade data. This new option helps to upload grades to SIS and send external emails if required.
Clients who use internal-only mail can now obtain an external email for users as part of their grade export file. When grades are exported using the Gradebook export workflow, the email value is the user's username. This feature adds the config variable d2l.Tools.Grades.ImportExport.OverrideEmailWithExternal for overriding the internal email value in the export with each user's external email. An empty value will be exported if a user does not have an external email value entered.
Previously, only internal email value was included in the grade export file.
Technical Details
Impact:
-
Slight impact to Administrators due to the need to set the value of the d2l.Tools.Grades.ImportExport.OverrideEmailWithExternal.
-
Slight impact to instructors due to new options for overriding Email on Export with External Email based on a new config variable.
Availability:
To enable:
- Ensure the d2l.Tools.Grades.ImportExport.OverrideEmailWithExternal configuration variable is enabled for overriding the internal email value in the export with each users' external email.
Group/Section Management – Create sections with unique section ID codes | New
Bringing Section management in line with Groups, this feature adds the new configuration variable d2l.Tools.Groups.IncludeOrgUnitIdInSectionCode. When enabled, this configuration variable appends the Org Unit ID to the beginning of the section code whenever a section is created either through Brightspace or using an API. The configuration variable is set to OFF by default.
This allows users to successfully perform manual enrollments using the unique section code via Bulk User Management, APIs, or through Brightspace.
Note: This feature does not apply to sections created via IPSIS. IPSIS-created sections are already created with unique codes.
This feature implements the following PIE item:
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to administrators due to the ability to create sections with a unique section ID.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Group/Section Management – Descriptions now available for sections and self-enrollment groups | Updated
Expanding on the Group/Section Management – View Section Descriptions | New feature released in September 2022 / 20.22.9, this feature makes section descriptions visible to users. This applies to sections created in Brightspace and with APIs.
When creating or editing sections in Brightspace, Instructors have access to the new Make category and section descriptions visible to section members option in the section, where they can add and enable a section description. This description is visible to learners with the See Sections permission.
In addition, this feature allows learners to view descriptions for self enrollment type groups before they choose a group. Instructors need only add a description once, instead of copying and pasting the description into all child groups. Previously, the description only appeared after users had self enrolled.
This feature implements the following PIE item:
Figure: The Available Groups table with the new category description highlighted.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to create descriptions for sections and self enrollment-type groups.
- Slight impact to learners due to the ability to view descriptions for sections and self enrollment-type groups.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Group/Section Management – Improved clarity when performing deletions of associated activities | Updated
This feature implements a change to the message users receive in the Delete Category dialog when deleting associated activities (i.e., Assignments and Discussions). The dialog now includes a count of how many assignments or discussions the user is deleting. Previously, this information was not clearly indicated to the user.
In addition, when users create a new Group Category and associated activities, then reach the Workspace Summary page, they are automatically returned to the Manage Groups page. Previously, users would have to re-click Save to return to Manage Groups.
Figure: The updated Confirmation dialog showing details of associated activities to be deleted.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to see how many associated activities are being deleted.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
LTI – Manage grade associations for LTI content in New Content Experience | Updated
This release adds the ability to manage grade associations for LTI content topics for New Content Experience (Lessons) users. LTI 1.1 links support managing one grade item and LTI 1.3 links support managing multiple grade items.
Previously, to modify LTI grade associations, users had to make the change on the LTI Provider side directly or switch back to the Classic Content experience.
This feature implements the following PIE items:
Figure: New LTI Link page for an LTI 1.1 link, which supports one grade item.
Figure: New LTI Link page for an LTI 1.3 link, which supports multiple grade items. Click Add and Manage Grade Items to launch the dialog in the next image.
Figure: Add and Manage Grade Items dialog for an LTI 1.3 link with two grade items associated.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to manage LTI grade associations in New Content Experience (Lessons).
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients who have enabled the New Content Experience (Lessons) and the new create/edit workflow experience enabled.
To enable:
- Ensure the d2l.Tools.Content.LessonsCreateExperienceOptIn configuration variable is enabled for the org unit.
LTI Migration – Easily migrate legacy LTI links in a course | Updated
To help administrators to easily update legacy LTI links within their courses, administrators will be able to use a Migrate button to manually migrate LTI 1.1 links to LTI 1.3 on a course-by-course basis. The Migrate button will be available through both the Course LTI Advantage/LTI 1.1 legacy pages and in the Migration Log.
Note: For more information about D2L’s migration plan, refer to Brightspace Legacy LTI to LTI Advantage Migration Plan.
Previously, migration from LTI 1.1. to LTI 1.3 was only available to administrators through an API or through an import or copy process.
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Figure: The Migrate button of the Manage Tool Links (Legacy) tab.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to administrators due to the ability to update legacy LTI links within their course using the Migrate button.
Availability:
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Media Library – Create content with webcam recordings | Updated
This update introduces a webcam feature as an option in Media Library. Users can create both video and audio-only recordings, which improves their ability to directly record content for their course within Media Library.
Note: The Video Note record bar is now changed to show the New Recording option and the Audio only toggle. To record a video, or video note, click New Recording. To record only audio, or an audio note, toggle the Audio only switch to ON.
Figure: The Add drop-down menu in Media Library, with the Record Webcam option selected.
Figure: Webcam Recording session in Media Library.
Figure: Record Webcam dialog box with the Title and Description fields, as well as auto-captioning options in Media Library.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Moderate impact to administrators and instructors due to the ability to record video and audio directly within Media Library.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
Instructors and administrators must have the following permissions:
- Content Service > Can Access Media Library Management Tool
- Content Service > Can Manage Objects (instructors) or Content Service > Can Manage All Objects (administrators)
Media Library – Easily search content with improved filter-sort options | Updated
Media Library now offers improved filter-sort functionality when searching for files. Audio-visual content is now easier to find and improves options for finding content in Media Library.
Users can search for specific pieces of content using the following old and new filters:
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(NEW) Content Type: Audio, Video, or Both
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(NEW) Source: Where content was added from. Multiple filters can be selected. Filters include:
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Content - Uploaded from the Content tool
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Media Library - Uploaded or created in Media Library
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Audio or Video Note - Content created in Audio or Video Note
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Capture App - Created and published via the Capture App
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Imported - Added from course imports
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Other - Content added prior to the addition of source tracking
Note: Quicklinks are not available with this release, but will be available in a future release with the same options.
Figure: Search filters in the Media Library Management tool.
Figure: Search filters in the Media Library ISF plugin.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Moderate impact to administrators and instructors due to the availability of additional filter and sort options in Media Library.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Media Library – Improve the content consumer experience by viewing and downloading audio-video transcripts | Updated
Users can now view and download transcripts from audio-video content in Media Library with the new Transcript View. This update consolidates and ensures that the media player experience is the same for all files uploaded to Media Library.
Transcript View allows users to pair playback of a video file with the captions scrolling as opposed to the standard bottom of the screen. This introduces a button in the media player that allows users to download the transcript in TXT format or the caption track in VTT format to their device. The ability to turn on Transcript View is an option in the media player's menu.
This feature fulfills the following PIE item:
Figure: Media Player with the View transcript option highlighted.
Figure: Media Player in the Transcript View mode.
Figure: Media Player Transcript and Captions download options.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Moderate impact to all users due to the ability to view, download, and scroll through audio-video transcripts in the media player.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients. Due to current limitations of the iOS Media Player, this feature is currently unavailable on this platform.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users. Transcript View can be turned on by selecting View transcript in the media player menu for transcribed media files.
Note: Transcript view and the download function will only appear if transcripts have been generated for the content.
Media Library – Quickly access, create, edit, and manage all audiovisual content with Media Library | Updated
To improve audiovisual content management options for users of Brightspace Core, we are excited to announce that Media Library will be included in the November 2022/20.22.11 release.
Media Library offers a consolidated media processing, storage, and streaming option for all audiovisual materials. Media files uploaded using Record Audio, Record Video, Video Note, Content Tool (Add video workflow), Lessons, or Capture App (Creator+ only) are stored in the same Media Library repository.
The new Media Library management tool provides the following options:
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Filter content based upon audiovisual type.
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Update file information, such as the title and description.
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Edit video timelines using the editor.
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Add chapters to video content.
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Create manual and automated captions for video content.
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Download audiovisual content to a device.
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Preview content.
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Delete files.
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Transfer ownership of audiovisual content. (Administrator only).
This feature implements the following PIE items:
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D6447 (Ability for instructors to manage video notes more effectively).
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D9189 (Edit Video Note Title).
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D3840 (Add a title to Audio Notes 2.0 & Video Notes 2.0 file name).
Figure: Use the Context Menu of the Media Library to preview, edit, update the title and description, or delete the media content object.
Figure: Use the Add button of the Media Library to upload media files and record webcams.
Technical Details
Impact:
-
Large impact to administrators and instructors due to the ability upload, view, edit, and manage all audiovisual content using the new Media Library management tool.
Availability:
To enable:
Org Unit Management – Improved consistency of Org Unit Editor page design and navigation | Updated
This feature improves the usability of the Org Unit Editor landing page by introducing additional columns to the tables displayed, as well as page design that is consistent with other areas of Brightspace. This feature does not impact existing functionality. These changes include:
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Page header updated to be consistent with other Brightspace page headers.
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Action buttons moved to the left side of the page and aligned with the page title.
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The search bar is in line with the action buttons.
Figure: The updated Org Unit Editor page header.
Figure: The previous version of the Org Unit Editor page header.
Figure: The new left navigation pane, with the additional Org Unit ID and Type highlighted for each entry.
Figure: The previous version of the left navigation pane.
Figure: The new Org Unit Editor table containing the new ID and Date Created columns.
Figure: The previous version of the Org Unit Editor table.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to administrators due to changes in appearance of the Org Unit Editor page.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Org Unit Management – Improved consistency of User Interface elements in Org Unit Editor | Updated
This feature updates the visual appearance of buttons and filters on the Org Unit Editor Search Results, Recycle Bin, Orphans and No Children pages to bring them in line with the rest of the Brightspace Platform. This is a visual change only; existing functionality and workflows are unaffected by this feature.
Figure: The Recycle Bin page with the updates to layout and appearance of buttons and filters.
Figure: The previous layout and formatting of the Recycle Bin page.
Technical Details
Impact:
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Org Unit Management – Improved table display and filtering for Org Unit Properties and searches | Updated
This feature improves the user experience with management of Org Unit Properties by adding a table display for Org Unit Parents as part of a new layout consistent with the rest of Brightspace. In addition, the feature includes an updated search dialog that presents results in a consistent tabular format with the ability to filter by Org Unit type.
Updates from this feature include:
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The Edit Properties and Delete Org Unit actions are replaced with action buttons to improve visibility. Previously, the Edit Properties and Delete Org Unit actions were presented in a drop-down menu.
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Delete Org Unit is renamed to Move to Recycle Bin to reflect the nature of the action more accurately.
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Two new property fields are added with this release:
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ID (read only)
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Date Created (read only)
Note: The order of the property fields is also changed.
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Parent Org Unit listing is removed from Properties and is displayed in a Parents table. This table's design is consistent with the existing Children table.
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Select an Org Unit dialog is updated with a new table view and the ability to filter results by Org Unit type.
Figure: Select an Org Unit page with the new table view and Filter by Type option.
Figure: Select an Org Unit page with the previous layout.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to administrators due to the improved functionality of search results tables, as well as changes from drop-down actions to buttons.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Pulse – Personalize notifications for email and SMS | Updated
This feature builds upon the Personalize push notifications feature originally released in October 2022/20.22.10. With the release of this feature, you will be able to choose which email or SMS notifications you receive by accessing settings directly from the Pulse app. Previously, you could only personalize email notifications through Brightspace.
This feature implements the following PIE item:
Figure: The Instant Notifications section of the Email/SMS Notifications page in Pulse.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Moderate impact to users due to the ability to configure which email or SMS notifications they receive using Pulse.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Quizzes – Improved population method for calculating standard deviation | Updated
With this release, in Quizzing statistics, the method of calculating standard deviation from the sample standard deviation is changed to the population standard deviation.
The population standard deviation (Excel STDEV.P) is a more appropriate method since sampling is not conducted when calculating statistics. This new method ensures that the values in Quizzing are consistent with the ones calculated in the Performance+ Assessment Quality Dashboard and are statistically more correct. The updated value appears in the Brightspace Quizzing tool after viewing Quiz Statistics or downloading reports.
Technical Details
Impact:
Availability:
To enable:
- This functionality is automatically enabled for all users.
Rubrics – Clarify grading criteria by editing text fields in assessed rubrics | New
Users with the new Edit Assessed Rubrics permission can now edit the text fields in rubrics that have already been used for evaluation. This feature is intended to let instructors correct spelling errors, clarify wording, and make other minor changes that do not impact the academic integrity of the rubric. Instructors still can't make structural changes (such as adding evaluation levels or criteria), edit points, or add outcome alignments to assessed rubrics.
Previously, after an instructor used a rubric for an evaluation, the rubric was locked and couldn't be edited. To make changes, instructors had to completely remove the rubric, make edits to a copy of the rubric, attach the copy of the rubric to the grade item, then redo all the assessments.
Figure: Alert box on the Edit Rubric page with new Edit Text button.
Figure: The Edit Rubric page showing which text fields can be edited within an assessed rubric.
Technical Details
Impact:
- Slight impact to instructors due to the ability to edit the text fields in assessed rubrics and notify learners.
Availability:
- This feature is available to all clients.
To enable:
- Ensure the Edit Assessed Rubrics permission is enabled for instructors.
SAML – New user provisioning option using SAML Authentication | New
Now users can take advantage of SAML Authentication (Just-In-Time User Provisioning) function to sign into Brightspace and automatically have their Brightspace user account created immediately without an administrator intervening to create the account. This feature helps to reduce the number of operations for administrating accounts.
Each time users log on using SAML Authentication (Just-In-Time User Provisioning), their data is updated with the data obtained from the identity provider. If a user has no account in Brightspace, it is created when the user logs in for the first time in time using details provided by the SAML user claim attributes.
Previously users' accounts already had to exist in Brightspace.
Technical Details
Impact:
Availability:
To enable:
- Ensure the Manage SAML Authentication and Manage SAML JIT Provisioning Configurations permissions are granted to administrators at the org level.
- Added on 3-November-2022 Updated the Media Library – Create content with webcam recordings | Updated feature to include additional information about recording with video and audio only.
- Added on 3-November-2022 The Group/Section Management – Descriptions now available for sections and self-enrollment groups | Updated feature has been updated with a more correct and informative screenshot regarding the Groups description category.
- Added on 3-November-2022 Updated the Data Hub – Report on changes made to rubrics with the Rubric Edit Audit Log data set | New feature to change the name of the data set to Rubrics Edit.
- Added on 3-November-2022 Added the Creator+ – Engage learners with professional interactive content in your courses | New feature to align with the November 8, 2022 release of the Brightspace Creator+ package. Note that Creator+ features will not be available until that launch date.