Blackboard Learn: Student Engagement & Collaboration at its Finest
September 25, 2019

Blackboard Learn: Student Engagement & Collaboration at its Finest

Anissa Harris | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Modules Used

  • Blackboard Learn
  • Blackboard Mobile

Overall Satisfaction with Blackboard Learn

Blackboard Learn is used as a classroom portal for the courses that I teach. It is how I share information, course content, messages, announcements, and threaded discussions with my students. It additionally includes a submission/extraction component for submitting assignments and a direct way to privately or group email any enrollee in the course.
  • Provides HTML quality course content that is easily retrievable and viewable.
  • Provides multiple methods of communication: email, threaded discussions, real-time "live" online discussions, as well as grade portal.
  • Allows facilitators multiple methods of grading or providing feedback: threaded discussions, rubric scoring, personal comments, inline viewer, or download/upload attachments.
  • Mobile access to Blackboard Learn is rudimentary and inconsistent. I can open the website in any browser but I cannot always click on the right control column--it sometimes moves around or buttons jump so that I cannot actually complete basic functions like posting a DQ. With asynchronous teaching, it is imperative that I have function-able mobile access to Blackboard in order to be successful.
  • The existing Blackboard Learn app for instructors is completely BASIC and needs much improvement. There is no ability to enhance text or use bold or italics. I can provide inline grading comments but cannot use a bank of grading comments--no copy/paste works in the inline grading of the app. I cannot grade discussion questions AT ALL in the app--only papers.
  • The Blackboard Learn instructor app needs to be compatible with voice commands so that I can use voice-to-text rather than typing everything on a mobile device. There is a lot of room for improvement but the app is crucial to my ability to teach effectively with Blackboard.
  • Blackboard Learn successfully houses all the student resources and interactions successfully.
  • Blackboard's reporting analytics are sophisticated but SUPER COMPLICATED to run/decipher. As a faculty member, I have no ability to run reports or more effectively analyze interactions in the classroom. I know Bb has the capacity to help me use these data but the complicated learning-curve makes it prohibitive to me.
  • It supports our collaborative nature by providing a platform for and the ability to connect many people from different venues.
  • Canvas
I am not a decision-maker about our learning platform but I have used both Canvas and Blackboard Learn for several years. From a teaching perspective, Canvas is SIMPLE and clean for a new user. However, Blackboard offers more options and creativity for integration and exporting data into other software for analysis.
My Blackboard support comes from the university I work with. They are responsive--eventually... but it takes them sometimes a week to respond to a reported issue. For example, I reported 2 issues last week and one was resolved and I was contacted about one still open option today. That is too long for a tech issue.

I have not contacted any support offered directly by Blackboard, which may be a completely different experience altogether.

Do you think Blackboard Learn by Anthology delivers good value for the price?

Not sure

Are you happy with Blackboard Learn by Anthology's feature set?

Yes

Did Blackboard Learn by Anthology live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Blackboard Learn by Anthology go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Blackboard Learn by Anthology again?

Yes

Blackboard Learn does a great job of integrating collaborative technology for teaching or community discussion. It encourages me to use other tools to innovate my instruction and to engage students differently--aspects that always improve learning as well as satisfaction with the learning and achieving process.

The most negative or inappropriate experience I have with Blackboard is when I use mobile access--using my iPad or iPhone or other device is a sketchy way to access Blackboard. I can easily get on it with my computer/laptop, but using mobile devices is quite frustrating b/c the typing blocks and buttons bounce around and do not properly populate on the device. In HTML language, the iFrames are not set up to function well on mobile devices.

Blackboard Learn by Anthology Feature Ratings

Course authoring
Not Rated
Course catalog or library
7
Player/Portal
7
Learning content
10
Mobile friendly
1
Progress tracking & certifications
9
Assignments
9
Compliance management
5
Learning administration
7
Learning reporting & analytics
5
Social learning
10