Blackboard Learn Software Reviews

“Appealing design and great functionality

Pros

Creating classroom webpages has never been easier. The interface feels professional which matters when parents, students and community members are viewing our content. Smooth for everyone who visits our sites and I've noticed that both students and parents actually enjoy logging in to check updates. The functionality combined with the appealing design makes it perfect for educational use.

Cons

Building a large site with lots of pages and links can get pretty frustrating when you need to make changes. Once everything is live, reorganizing becomes a real headache. Sometimes it's easier to just leave things as they are. The flexibility to create whatever size site you want is nice but managing it all can be overwhelming.

“Calculates grades automatically

Pros

Appreciate how it automatically tracks and calculates grades, making end-of-semester work significantly less stressful than before.

Cons

Setting up Excel spreadsheets every semester to track attendance is such a pain since my school requires it for all classes. Really wish this feature was built into the software and easy to find.

“Easy to update students

Pros

The classroom interface is easy to use and I really appreciate how smoothly the class connect sessions run. Updating students on assignments and essays happens so smoothly.

Cons

Getting used to the system takes some time initially and I found it pretty challenging to navigate when I first started using it. Once you get the hang of it though, everything becomes much smoother.

“Relevant info highlighted on the dashboard

Pros

I like how the dashboard puts all the important info right at my fingertips, everything's highlighted and super easy to find.

Cons

I can't really think of anything negative to say about it.

“Bridges the gap between students and professors

Pros

The platform is widely adopted across universities and really helps bridge the gap between students and instructors. Professors can easily upload lecture slides, homework assignments, quiz answers and study materials all in one place. I also appreciate how it doubles as a discussion forum where we can exchange ideas and collaborate. It's genuinely amazing for academic collaboration.

Cons

The only thing I really don't like is that there doesn't seem to be a mobile app available.

“Helpful plagiarism detection feature

Pros

It's easy to submit assignments through the platform and the plagiarism detection feature is really helpful. It scans documents and compares them against other submissions to catch any potential cheating.

Cons

Notification system is pretty annoying. When I get an announcement, it doesn't disappear after opening it once. I have to click on it several times before it actually goes away, which gets frustrating when youre trying to clear multiple notifications quickly.

“Hard to use

Pros

The grading platform offers incredible flexibility. I can set up gradebooks exactly how I need them and create student groups based on shared interests like pre-med. Students can join these groups themselves, which really helps with communication and collaboration.

Cons

The interface feels outdated and really hard to use. After we moved to Canvas, I couldn't believe how many extra steps I had to take just to complete basic tasks here. You'll find yourself constantly looking up tutorials and YouTube videos just to figure out how things work while other platforms let you learn as you go without needing external help.

“All in one system!

Pros

Being able to handle both assessments and assignment submissions in one place is really convenient for me.

Cons

System tends to freeze up frequently and my assignments end up not going through when I try to submit them.

“Not hard to submit assignments

Pros

I found submitting assignments really simple with this platform.

Cons

The site can be pretty slow at times which gets frustrating when you're trying to get things done quickly.

“Site crashes at times

Pros

I'm able to get to all my coursework and homework easily.

Cons

Site crashes occasionally and becomes completely unavailable

“Excellent platform for instructors

Pros

It's so user-friendly and I appreciate how instructors can build assignments and handle grading all in one place.

Cons

The grading system is pretty clunky. I end up having to print everything out instead of working digitally, which defeats the purpose.

“Offers wide range of options

Pros

The wide variety of options really stands out to me. This platform serves as the premiere hub for online courses and training, handling everything from complex university courses to simple employee training sessions.

Cons

Discussion board posting is really frustrating to work with. I always have to write my posts in a separate text editor first, then copy and paste them over. Once they're pasted, I can't make any changes because the formatting looks okay but completely breaks when I hit "Post."

“Go-to software for institutes

Pros

I've been working with this platform for years at my high school and there's a reason it's become the go-to choice across educational institutions. The reliability and comprehensive features really make a difference in our daily operations.

Cons

The platform could really use more interactive options like being able to embed quizzes directly into video posts would be a game changer.

“Too many restrictions

Pros

I appreciate being able to set up online exams and have them graded automatically. The weighted columns feature is really handy too, especially since I can drop certain grades when calculating final scores.

Cons

For such established software, there are way too many bugs and restrictions. The exam reports come out as CSV files that are nearly impossible to read because they're full of HTML code. Those weighted columns with drops are really inflexible and don't seem to function properly half the time. You can't copy gradable items between courses, which is frustrating. Reusing materials, questions or announcements from one course to another is incredibly difficult or sometimes impossible. Some test questions get confusing when answers appear in random order and there's no way to auto-grade coding questions.

“Highly customizable tool

Pros

The customization options are really impressive. I can tailor both the content and tabs to fit exactly what I need.

Cons

The quiz creation process feels pretty tedious and I find grading them to be somewhat challenging too.

“Lags at times

Pros

Latest update really improved the visual design and makes everything look much more polished.

Cons

The software tends to lag at times and isn't very user-friendly for newcomers

“Offers so many options :)

Pros

I like appreciate how many options this platform offers for handling classes, organizations and training programs. There's quite a bit to work with here. Students get tons of flexibility for managing coursework, booking appointments with staff and staying connected with various organizations and class activities. They can even add their own activities and student groups, which makes sending emails and creating events much simpler. Staff members can work through self-paced training modules and easily find new training opportunities to pursue.

Cons

Interface feels really outdated and hasn't seemed to change much over the past decade. When I compare it to what I remember from college years ago, it looks practically identical. Not sure if this is due to our institution's settings but the whole visual design feels dated. Better color schemes and more user-friendly nature would definitely help it compete better in today's market.

“poor notifications are frustrating

Pros

I appreciate how many tools are built right in including calendars, announcements, grades, quizzes, messaging boards, you name it. Having everything centralized made tracking my progress really convenient. The quiz interface was tidy and never gave me trouble.

Cons

The way tools are laid out could definitely be improved. Since every professor seems to use it their own way, it becomes less helpful overall. Another frustrating thing is missing notifications unless youre actively logged in. If I didn't have a reason to check the platform one day and an assignment got posted, I'd have no idea it was there.

“Doesn't need much learning

Pros

Creating tests, adding assistants, setting up layouts and grading all happen quickly and smoothly. Whether you're a student, professor or staff member, it's user friendly and doesn't require much of a learning curve.

Cons

Finding the right students and assignments can be confusing since the grading system isn't always the simplest.

“Simple to get the hang of

Pros

Really simple to get the hang of and I can monitor all my ongoing courses from anywhere. Plus, submitting assignments through the app is super convenient.

Cons

The app doesn't always show the most recent scores so I end up having to log into the computer version to get accurate info.