News for Staff | Digital Education Systems Help

Some staff have reported that student submissions are not loading inline when accessing them via the grading interface.

Vevox has updated its user interface within the the set up dashboard. You will notice a different look and layout when you log in to create or share a session.

The June Minerva update brings two new features to Tests.

Our supplier reported that Turnitin was affected by a service issue which may have affected users accessing Turnitin between 01:00 and 02:38 BST on 4th June 2026.

The May Minerva update introduces changes to the module switcher, updates to Gradebook discussion due dates and group filters, and improved handling of group filters when grading. It also highlights inherited release conditions and removes hidden discussions from the Discussions tab.

Our supplier reported that Gradescope was affected by a service issue which may have affected some users accessing Gradescope between 17:20 and 18:05 BST on 29th April 2026.

Join us on Thursday 18 June 2026, 10.00am-1.00pm (arrival from 9.30am) to be part of PebbleShare 2026 – a collaborative event for staff who want to unlock PebblePad’s potential for teaching, assessment, reflective practice and skills development. Whether you’re just getting started or already using PebblePad, this session will inspire new ideas and practical approaches...

The March update includes an option to specify the assignment type for Blackboard Assignment, some changes to how multiple choice/answer questions work in Blackboard Test and improvements to the flexible grading interface used for most Blackboard assessments. There is also the addition of 'substantive' and 'non- substantive' labels to posts when staff mark Discussions and an option to limit the number of messages a student can create when interacting with an AI Conversation. The Minerva recording tool also has an option to change playback speed and how images are handled in emailed Announcements is also improved.

Our supplier reported that Turnitin was affected by a service issue which may have affected some users accessing Turnitin between 04:00 and 06:11 BST on 1st April 2026.

Our supplier reported that Turnitin was affected by a service issue which may have affected some users accessing Turnitin between 11:50 and 13:07 GMT on 24th March 2026.

Read about the new features available in Vevox, the University's interactive polling tool.

The March update includes the introduction of AI‑generated Knowledge Checks, updated participation requirements for discussions, improvements to Blackboard Test and the Recording tool.

When writing a Minerva Message, the options to 'Send' and 'Send an mail copy to recipients' are pushed down the screen and cannot be selected as scrolling does not work.

In the February update there are updates to Minerva Document and the Banner image.

Upcoming major upgrades to ATLAS admin workflows and the external assessor dashboard in PebblePad.

In the January update, there are updates to navigation in Minerva, expanded options for True/False questions and some changes to multiple choice/answer question workflows. Large tests will also load more quickly.

In the December update, there are improvements to audio/video options for feedback in Blackboard assessment tools (e.g. Assignment, Test), Discussions and a new option for conditional availability. There are also some improvements to how Groups display when there are no members, and staff now see the Learning Modules table of content (available to students since September).

A redesigned ATLAS interface will be introduced in January 2026. ATLAS is the assessment space in PebblePad.

Read about the new features and updates available in Vevox, the University's interactive polling tool.

In the November update, there are improvements to Tests and Gradebook.

We reported that recordings made in the Announcements tool were failing to upload/save. This issue has now been resolved.

In the October update, there are improvements to Blackboard Tests.

In Minerva, there is currently an issue with the option to create recordings from Announcements.

The method of linking from Minerva to Microsoft Class Teams has been updated.

In the September update, there are new styling options for Minerva Documents, more options to improve the management of test questions, a minor change to Announcement creation and some improvements to group marking features for group submissions to Blackboard Assignments and Tests. Early in September, MathJax was also implemented in Minerva to render LaTeX.

A new MathJax integration now renders any LaTeX entered in the Minerva content editor.

In the August update, there is a new table of contents in Learning Modules for students, a new method for creating video/audio in Announcements, an AI option to help you format Minerva Documents and some minor changes to copying integrated assessment tools. Later in August, there will be a change to how LaTeX is rendered in Minerva.

The method of linking from Minerva to Microsoft Teams is being updated by our suppliers. Read about what this means for your teaching and how to troubleshoot any issues.

The way LaTeX is rendered will change in Minerva w/c 25 August (after resits). A new MathJax integration will instead render any LaTeX entered in the Minerva content editor

In the July update, there is a new Activity page for staff, a new option to add captions to images in Minerva Documents and the option to create Test Question Banks via QTI. It is also now possible to see which students have reviewed Announcements in your Minerva modules and, for colleagues who utilise Blackboard Group Assignments, navigation is improved. Finally, the option for configuring Progress Tracking has moved to Module Settings.

PebblePad LTI 1.3 is now enabled for Minerva modules and organisations. The LTI allows the integration of PebblePad's tools and resources within the Minerva platform.

Collaborate will transition to 'read-only' access on 30 June 2025 and will no longer be available at the University from 31 July 2026.

In the June update, there is a new Jumbled Sentence question in Blackboard Test, some Gradebook improvements and a new Discussion activity indicator.
There are also some updates to Annotate (the inline marking tool for Blackboard Assignment).

The April PebblePad update brings a few fixes and accessibility improvements, in addition to user interface updates to assignment managements.

AI Conversation is a new tool using artificial intelligence which supports student learning through interactive role-play scenarios.

Join us on Thursday 19 June 2025, 9.30am-1.00pm in Helix to be part of PebbleShare, our event to showcase the potential of PebblePad!

In the April update, there are changes to Gradebook to indicate whether students have reviewed assessment feedback, Group Assignments, and a new print option for Minerva Documents. There are also changes to Ally alternative formats in relation to maths notation.

The March PebblePad update brings small changes such as optimisations and fixes.

In January we reported an issue with the Activity Log in Minerva modules - access to integrated platforms (e.g. Turnitin and Gradescope) was not being recorded in the Activity Log. This issue was resolved by our supplier on 7 March 2025.

In the March update there are changes to rubrics in Blackboard Assignment, module settings, the AI Design Assistant tools and release conditions.

The February update introduces changes to Blackboard Assignment, rendering of files, image options in Minerva Documents, Group creation, and the AI Design Assistant.

An issue with the recording tool (as reported in December) is now confirmed as resolved by our supplier.

The January PebblePad update brings a new central hub for account settings and preferences, and shortcut navigation accessibility improvements.

As reported in December, there is currently an issue with the recording tool in Minerva. We have received reports of this not working correctly, specifically when adding recordings to feedback for Blackboard Assignments.

The January update introduces changes to how Minerva modules are made available to students. There are also changes to Gradebook, the AI Design Assistant and Conditional Release.

In Minerva there is a recording tool which can be used to create recordings directly in modules and organisations. We have received reports of this not working correctly, specifically when adding recordings to feedback for Blackboard Assignments.

The December update introduces an improvement to Learning Module navigation, new discussion posts and late assignment submissions are now easier to identify. There is also a fix to an accessibility issue with images in Minerva Documents.

The November update introduces an improvement to the file submission process for Blackboard Assignment. There are also some changes to the Print Tests functionality and a new option to download the Activity Log. The Minerva Document content item was also recently updated.

We invite all members of the teaching and learning community to join us in the evaluation stage of the tender process to procure a new lecture capture and multimedia management system.

Find out how the Digital Education Service gather feedback from staff and students on Minerva to ensure its continuous improvement.

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