Academic Technology

How to submit an assignment on Blackboard in 5 easy steps

Image courtesy of Blackboard Help

1. Open the assignment. On the "Upload Assignment" page, review the instructions, due date, and download any files provided by your instructor. Some instructors will also include a rubric for grading, which can be viewed by clicking  "View Rubric" in the "Points Possible" box.  

2. Select "Write Submission" to expand text box into which you can type your submission. Use the options in the editor to format the text and/or add media (images, videos, etc.) to your submission. We do not recommend completing your assignment directly in this box, as it is easy to lose your work if your internet connection is interrupted or your browser quits unexpectedly; instead, complete your assignment in a word processor (Word, Google Docs, etc.), save it, then copy and paste the text into the "Write Submission" box if you plan to submit your assignment that way. 

3. Instructors most often ask students to attach files with their assignments rather than including them in the "Write Submission" box. There are three ways to upload a file to an assignment page on Blackboard:

• Select "Browse My Computer" and choose the file from the window that opens, then click "Open" 
• Drag files from your computer desktop or File Explorer to the "hot spot" in the "Attach Files" area (indicated by the dashed lines in the image above)
• Select "Browse Cloud Storage" and follow the steps to add your OneDrive, Box, Dropbox or Google Drive account if your assignment file is stored on one of these services. 
  • If you're having trouble accessing OneDrive, log out of OneDrive and log back in

You will know that your file has been uploaded when a file name appears under "Attached Files."  Edit the "Link Title" field to change the way the document title will appear for your instructor. 

4.  If you have any comments for your instructor about your assignment, type them in the "Comments" field

5.  Select "Submit" at the bottom of the page. You will be taken to the "Review Submission History" page (see image below), where you will see information about your submitted assignment and a success message with a confirmation number. We recommend that you copy and save this number as proof of your submission. If your instructor has enabled email notifications for submissions, you may also received an email (to your NECC email) with your confirmation number and details. 

Image courtesy of Blackboard Help

• Follow any instructions that your instructor provided, including how you should name your file.
• If you are having problems adding a file, try renaming it. Don't use special characters such as ?, !, #, /, %,: * or \ . Don't use symbols or blank spaces in the filename. Use only letters and numbers in the document name. 
• Keep the file name short - it should be less than 32 characters.
• Attaching files over 250 MB at one time may cause issues.
• Wait for the assignment submission confirmation before moving to another webpage or closing your browser.