E-Learning

Blackboard Learn Portal

Faculty:  Blackboard Learn Section Merge Request Form | Training Support 

Have you ever heard of E-Learning or want to know what Blackboard Learn is all about? Would you like to incorporate videos and other media into your online or on-ground courses? Or learn how to engage the students more? Did you know that Blackboard Learn can be used in other collaborative ways other than in the classroom – for clubs, organizations, committees, training, etc.? If you would like more information or answers to these questions, please continue to read further.

Blackboard Usage:

• Western currently uses Blackboard Learn as its E-Learning course management system. Its primary usage allows faculty to supplement their on-ground courses with online components, or to use for fully online courses. With a compliant Web browser, students and instructors can login from anywhere in the world to access their class materials and interact with one another. Blackboard includes a virtual course environment built to support different teaching styles and learning needs, and is designed to provide the tools for faculty to prepare, deliver, and manage their courses.
• In addition, Blackboard can be used as an ‘Organization’ which is similar to a Blackboard course, but designed for use by non-academic community groups. Organizations provide a collection of web-based tools, making it easy for group members to participate in online activities.

Please let us know if you have any questions, or how we can further assist your technology needs by sending an email to requestIT@wcsu.edu.

Blackboard Learn Access:

ALL courses are available in Blackboard Learn, regardless if Faculty are planning on using the Learning Management System (LMS) or not. If you have sections that you want to combine into one course shell, please use the online merge request form. No need to request cross-listed sections; they are created automatically.

Students please note: Not all professors use Blackboard Learn. If you do not see your course listed, or the course contains no content, please check with your instructor to verify if they are using Blackboard Learn, and/or when the course will become available to the class. Most courses are not available until the first day of classes, but instructors control when they want their content available to students.

Important Notices

Blackboard Learn Ultra is coming! We are excited to share important news about the ongoing and final stages of transitioning to Blackboard Learn Ultra Course View. As part of our continued efforts to improve the technology experience for faculty and students, we are moving towards a new, more streamlined and intuitive version of Blackboard Learn which will significantly enhance your teaching experience and improve the way students interact with course materials.

Anthology (Blackboard) has announced that they will no longer be supporting their legacy environment, Blackboard Learn Original View, after December 2026. Courses prior to this date will be available in ‘read only’ mode going forward.

We are taking a phased approach transitioning to Ultra as follows:

• Spring/Summer 2025: Phase I consists of the School of Professional Studies (SPS) who has kindly volunteered to be early adopters (along with a few other non SPS faculty) to teach their Fall 2025 courses in Ultra Course View. Training begins at the end of May and will continue throughout the summer and fall.
• Fall 2025: Phase II involves continued training for the SPS faculty, in addition to providing training for all remaining faculty.
• Spring 2026: Phase III and the final stage in which all courses and organizations will be migrated and conducted in full Ultra Course View. Training will be an ongoing process.

Please check out our webpage for continued updates on the Ultra transition project.