Assignments – Improved Assignments Submissions layout with accessibility enhancements | Updated We refined the Assignments Submissions page by improving the layout in both standard and wide views, reducing the need for horizontal scrolling, and creating a cleaner, more consistent experience. All recent accessibility improvements remain in place. This change improves the visibility […]
How to Back Up Your Course Content and Grades
Avenue to Learn course content is regularly backed up by our vendor, D2L. However, it is strongly recommended that instructors create their own backups as an added precaution. Downloading Content Course content can be downloaded on a module-by-module basis using the Content tool (Classic Content Experience and The New Content […]
April 2026
Quizzes – Improvements to the Quizzes evaluation | Updated The quiz evaluation experience now includes an Incorrect filter that lets instructors quickly view quickly view answers marked incorrect. In addition, feedback fields automatically expand as needed, providing more space to review and enter feedback. Instructors can now filter the quiz questions to […]
March 2026
Classlist – export Classlist details to CSV and improved Print output | New Instructors can now export Classlist details to CSV. The Export button enables full or partial user exports, mirroring Classlist view content for offline or administrative use. Printed Classlists now include pronouns (if visible) and course identifiers, providing more […]
February 2026
General Announcements D2L is continuing to unlist outdated Brightspace Tutorial videos that no longer reflect the current interface and workflows. Updated tutorial videos are embedded in the documentation to align with the latest features. To review the list of added, unlisted, and removed videos, refer to the article: Brightspace Tutorial Video […]
January 2026
General Announcements From D2L As part of D2L’s ongoing commitment to accessibility, we partnered with an external auditor to conduct our annual review of Brightspace and Pulse against Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards. Based on audit findings and internal expertise, we implemented a wide range of accessibility and usability […]
A Quick Survival Guide for Instructors Using Avenue to Learn
Welcome! This guide will help you get up and running quickly with Avenue to Learn (McMaster’s learning management system). If you need immediate assistance or want your course set up fast, contact us at avenue@mcmaster.ca We can schedule a meeting via MS Teams or Zoom to get your course fully operational. […]
November 2025
Brightspace – Progress bar for uploading files | New With this release, Brightspace improves visual consistency and accessibility by updating progress bar indicators across several tools. These improvements enhance support for screen readers and assistive technologies. Visual indicators have been updated in the following areas: New Content Experience – Upload […]
October 2025
General Announcements Brightspace Editor is updated from TinyMCE version 7.7.0 to 8.0.2 for Test, Dev, and Staging instances of Brightspace. This update includes defect fixes but no functional changes. It will roll out to Production instances in December 2025/20.25.12. We recommend that users review their course content edited with Brightspace […]
July 2025
General Announcements To maintain performance, accessibility, and security, the minimum supported browser versions increases every January and July. This update increases the minimum supported browser versions to: Chrome 135 Edge 135 Safari 18 Firefox 137 The minimum legacy browsers are now: Chrome 103 Edge 103 Safari 16 Firefox 103 […]