Each module has a Learn Ultra VLE site containing content like:

• module materials: lecture slides, reading lists, quizzes etc.
• access to lecture recordings.
• assignment submission points and online exams.
• interactive tools for discussion and collaborative work.

You'll also find other important sites like the Academic Integrity Tutorial, Turnitin training and academic skills support.

Note: York Online programmes use the Canvas VLE, which has its own guidance

Introduction video

This video covers logging in, general navigation, changing notification settings, and accessing feedback, lecture recordings, and reading lists. 

Blackboard Learn - Navigation (Students) [YouTube]

You can also view this as a written guide:

• Favourite your modules so they appear at the top of your Courses list.
• Use the Search feature on your module sites to quickly locate items, even if they are in folders.
• Use the mobile app and view or listen to your resources on the go.
• Alternative formats can be useful in different ways.

The Courses page contains your module sites and other support sites such as the Academic Integrity Tutorial and Turnitin Tutorial.

You can customise this page in a number of ways:

1. Layout: select list or grid layout (grid layout contains image thumbnails)

2. Search courses by module/site name or keyword

3. Terms: select a specific academic year

4. Filters: various course types (which aren't used at UoY)

5. Items per page: Show 25, 50 or 100 sites per page

6. Favourite your modules: click the star icon to pin to the top of the default all sites list and any applicable search/filter results.

Missing VLE sites?

If you can't see a site in your Courses page that you expect, this may be becuase:

• You've used a Courses search filter that doesn't apply - reset filters and search again.
• The site exists but you haven't been enrolled onto it. Contact your lecturer or departmental administrators if you think this is the case.
• There isn't a VLE site for that module (they don't all have one). 

If you can see a site on your Courses page but it's marked as Closed, the lecturer hasn't made the site available for students yet. Sites are usually opened by the start of the first week of the semester, but if you can't access after that, let your lecturer know.

Selecting a module will make it open in a layer over the Home Page of the VLE. (Your modules are called 'courses' on Blackboard). To return to the Home Page, click the X in the top left corner of the screen. 

Across the top of your module site, you'll see Content, Calendar, Announcements, Discussions, Gradebook, Messages and Groups. Just click where you want to go!

The left hand pane shows your Course Staff and Details & Actions pane.

Course Content

The Course Content area is where you will want to focus and spend most of your time. In this area you will find

• Module information section: learning outcomes, staff details, key departmental info
• Assessment section: instructions, assignment submission points, past work etc.
• Replay Lecture Capture (Panopto): lecture recordings and other video resources
• Reading Lists: the important books, chapters and articles you'll need for the module
• Module materials section(s): in most cases this should be weekly sections

Some items will be held within Learning Modules (LM) or Folders. Click the title and it may expand to show a list of further items. Click the first item to open it. Look for an arrow in the top left to navigate to the next item in the LM or folder.

Files

Click on a file to preview it in Blackboard. (Works for PDF and Microsoft Office files).

The next available option allows you to download alternative formats.

Finally the last option is where you can download the original file.

Search bar

Along the top of the Course Content is a search icon. It looks like a magnifying glass. Clicking the search icon will allow you to search for items.

Lecturers often send course updates and other important information through Blackboard Learn Announcements.

Within an individual module site, Announcements is often a module's homepage. You can also open the Announcements from the module's left hand menu.

You can also access Announcements from all your sites in one place in the Activity Stream.

The Activity Stream also has other notifications from sites, such as:

• new materials or sites
• due dates in the next seven days
• marks posted for assessments within Blackboard

Find out more about Activity Stream and adapting your notification settings:

Use the right browser

Use either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox to make sure the site works well.

Don't use Safari.

Beware session timeouts!

If pages aren't loading or functions stop working, log out and log back in.

Still having problems? See our Troubleshooting guide for more things to try: