D2L Features with comments
Feature/LMS
Create new/copy course solution for
faculty
Syllabus building tool
WYSIWYG editor and HTML utility to
author text
Drag-and-drop solution for course
content (quizzes, interactive media or
activity, content rearranging
Multi-language support within
instructor/student-generated content
Brightspace by D2L
Yes – copy tool for instructors
Yes – upload file or use HTML editor
Yes – includes insert objects such as
videos
Yes
All ASCII character languages (western
and European), almost 100%
compatible with Unicode languages
(e.g. Russian, Chinese, Japanese and
Arabic).
Languages supported
Spanish (Latin American), Chinese
(simplified and traditional), Japanese,
Russian, Latin, German, Greek, Arabic
(Saudi Arabian), English (UK and US),
French (Canadian), Korean,
Portuguese (Brazilian), Swedish,
Turkish
Globalization options (example: tools or Yes
template would change “gradebook” to
appear in selected language)
Work offline mode/sync
Yes – Binder and Assignment Grader
Dedicated print function from any page Yes
in course
Browser lockdown (to prevent printing
Third Party - Respondus
from pages)
Content repositories
Yes
Auto-saving features
Yes – quiz tool auto-saves as learner
moves from page to page
Math equations and special characters Yes
supported
one-click/easy setup access to LTI
Yes
(Youtube, publisher content, twitter,
etc)
Link to content or tools using a visual
Yes
editor
Selective release of course content
Yes
based on users, groups, dates, course
activity, grades, etc.
Style options for faculty to personalize
Yes – with set permissions
look/feel (colors/styles)
SoftChalk integration
Google apps (drive) integration
Publisher content integration
TurnItIn integration
Integration with polling system
(i>clicker)
SCORM compliant content
management tool
Multiple Class sections can be
combined into one course (enrollments
greater than 60)
Ability to select pre-defined document
templates when creating new
documents within the course
Yes
Yes
Yes – both deep integration and SSO
with redirect code embedded in course
Yes – integrated with Assignment tool
Yes - through Top Hat Monocle, they
offer attendance through an app or
i>Clicker. Integration is through SSO.
Yes
Yes – sections can be split into groups.
No limit to number of enrollments.
Yes - templates (defined styles) and
wizard-like functionality (quiz and rubric
building).
Natively render documents (PDF, MS
Yes – Supported file types for inline
Office) within the platform without users viewing include: Documents: .doc,
having to download the files
.docx, .pdf, secure .pdfs, Google
Drive™, PowerPoints®: .ppt, .pptx,
.pps. Also, the document viewer
includes full iPad® support (iOS 5+).
Visual timeline of content progression
or student progression through the
content in the course
Ability to create collapsible modules,
sub-modules or topics/units
Drag-and-drop from desktop for
uploading multiple files
Social networking integration
Link to internal/external websites
Glossary (including images and links)
tool
Frequently Asked Questions tool
Users can bookmark content
Yes – Content Progress summary and
User Progress tools
Yes
Yes
User Profile allows for links to
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and
Google+. Twitter widget can be easily
created for course or organizational
homepages, too.
Yes – Also includes embedding Flickr,
YouTube and Vimeo.
Yes – in courses, created by
instructors. Allows for text, links,
images and embedded video. Import
feature also available.
Yes – for campus and/or course
Yes – Bookmark icon is available in all
course. Bookmarks can be accessed
within Bookmarks area or widget.
Platform requires Cookies
Instructors can take on student role
within the course
Scheduling utility that enables setting
due dates/open/reveal availability from
one central location
Calendar/Schedule feature integrated
with course tools (multiple viewing
options: personal, course and
institutional events available)
Ability to set assignment due date
independently from the assignment
availability
Special access features for selected
users with different assignment due
dates than rest of the class
Email tool
Synchronous chat tool
Synchronous web conferencing tool
with chat, whiteboard, audio/video
conferencing
Announcement/news feed within a
course
Yes – expires upon logout/browser
closing. Using session cookies that are
time and session based, along with and
unique randomized identifiers reduces
the event of session hi-jacking.
Yes
Yes – Manage Dates tool for editing,
viewing, offsetting date availability and
setting the Calendar status of course
content.
Yes – instructors and learners can
create, manage, view, print timeline of
course events. Export to Outlook
Google, iCal feeds and mobile devices
Yes
Yes - D2L provides flexible options for
special access for situations in which
learners require additional time or
alternate availability, without the need
to create additional assignments
or assessments to accommodate this
need.
Yes – native tool OR send
only/connected to external TCU mail (If
TCU configures)
Yes - archives created/logged.
General and personal chats available
in chat Tool. Pager tool allows for
instant messaging, free group
conferencing, group collaboration and
video chat.
Wiggio is provided (real-time, text
based, video-based collaboration,
desktop sharing, file sharing,
whiteboarding, private messaging,
groups, etc. but does not have meeting
playback. If recording/playback is
needed, can integrate with third-party
tool, such as Adobe Connect,
Blackboard collaborate and WebEx.
Yes – Audience is completely
configurable to distribute to course,
group in course, all users. News
Dashboard solution such as activity
feed, either within the system home
page, user course list or within the
courses themselves
Opt-in notification options for system
and course notifications (news, due
dates, grades, etc.) via SMS, email,
RSS feed, in-course/platform.
Multiple modes for instructors to
communicate, even if students have
disabled one or more modes of
notification options
Threaded discussion tool linked to the
gradebook
Threaded discussion features: paste
from word, text formatting, linking,
embedding video, audio/video creation,
inserting images and quoting
All users can view number of unread
discussion posts, total posts, and views
Notifications can be set to link directly
to the post that prompted the
notification
Submission to a centralized area such
as a submission tool (dropbox)
Professors can allow/prohibit repeated
submissions of an assignment
Professors can extend availability to
accommodate students who may need
longer time to complete assignments
Instructors can evaluate and annotate
submitted attachments in the user’s
software of choice
Instructor can give feedback to
students, including edited copies of
student work, text, audio, or video
feedback, without having to navigate
away from the document viewer
Journal tool linked to the gradebook
widget can be set up at campus or
course level.
Yes – configurable at campus level to
aggregate content from across the
platform
Yes
Yes – email, posts within course
(discussion, homepage news item,
etc.)
Yes
Yes – paste from word, text formatting,
linking, embedding video, audio/video
creation, inserting images and quoting
Yes – user progress dashboard and
within topics.
Yes
Yes
Yes – Professors can set to
allow/prohibit repeated submissions of
an assignment. Instructors control how
many submissions students can make
to a Assignment folder.
Yes - Instructors can extend availability
of assignments for specific users,
without having to a create a separate
assignment for students who require
extra time.
Yes – or use in-line document viewer
(annotate action is offered, then stored
as attachment).
Yes
Yes – via Locker tool. Locker allows
Class web links feature (both students
and instructors can add to shared
website repository)
Document sharing location (both
students and instructors can add to
shared document repository)
Download/history count in document
sharing location
Blog tool
Polling tool
Wiki tool
Third-party synchronous
communication tool integration
Assign/earn digital badges
Gamification (other than badges) within
the course or platform
ePortfolio tool
Group creation tool
Options for students to self-enroll in
groups
Ability for instructors to share content
and/or assignments with specific
groups within the course
Team and class collaboration such as
group workspaces, randomized
them to upload files or create new files.
Learners can
also leverage the Blog tool to create
private or public journal items. Note
that blogs cannot be graded.
Yes - User links widget can be added
to a course homepage allowing faculty
and students to contribute useful links
that are shared.
Yes – via Discussion posts, group
locker tool (for class or sub-groups
within the class), Via Wiggio, and D2L
ePortfolio.
Yes - In the Learning Repository
Yes – The Blog tool provides an
environment for communication,
reflection, critical thinking, and longform response. Learners can read
peers’ blogs, leave comments, share
posts, and maintain a list of favorite
blogs. If a blog is made public, it can be
shared via Facebook, Twitter,
LinkedIn®, and Google+™. Blog tool
is not connected to gradebook.
With Wiggio, instructor can poll class
during meeting. Also, through Top Hat
Monocle, attendance/polling through
app or iClicker can be done
Third-party integration (such as
MediaWiki)
Integration Pack for Synchronous
Communication Tools available
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes – Self Enroll by Students or
Manual Enroll by instructor
Yes
Yes
Yes
grouping, and updates of groups when
new enrollments occur
Submission of group assignments
allowed
Private threaded discussions for
groups
Multimedia embedding tool to embed
YouTube, images from the web, embed
code provided by 3rd parties, such as
Prezi
Multimedia (audio/video) recording
directly in the course for faculty and
students
Customized content titles and
descriptions associated with recorded
content
FERPA-compliant gradebook tool
Ability to grade groups separately in
gradebook (example 1: one person
submits one assignment for the group
and instructor gives one
grade/comments that are pushed to all
group members; Example 2: multiple
sections in shared shell, gradebook
separated by section)
Gradebook import/export tool
Gradebook final grade export into
PeopleSoft
Dedicated option to add extra credit to
the final grade within the gradebook
Drop lowest grade from sub-set of
grades as indicated by instructor
Instructor can select manner in which
grades are displayed (letter, weighted
percentage, points)
Notification to students of returned
assignments, and comments/feedback
Grading options for assignments to be
excluded from calculations
Yes
Yes
Yes – “Insert Stuff” button accepts
Flash, video, audio, etc. Also embed
content from Flickr, YouTube and
Vimeo
Record and attach audio and video
files. Uploading previously created
audio/video is also available.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes either automatically (timed script)
or a button that faculty push to submit
grades when ready.
Yes - Instructors can add bonus points
or extra credit
on top of a final grade.
Yes
Yes
Yes - In the Updates widget available
on the course homepage users are
notified about returned assignments
and unread feedback.
Yes
Grading utility allows you to weigh,
combine, and summarize other scores
Instructor offline grading options
Instructors can restore inadvertent
gradebook item deletions without
having to log an incident with the help
desk
Support for grading large classes (200
or greater)
Rubrics tool (builder, importer,
assessment)
Automatic transfer of grades and
comments from rubrics to gradebook
and comment area – visible to students
Third-party integration to gradebook
(iGrader, publisher content, etc)
Attendance and/or participation tool
User activity
Exam/Quiz tool
Question builder for quiz/exam tool
Import utility for quiz/exam questions
Exam security addressed with features
built into platform
Yes
Yes – either export to spreadsheet
application or use D2L Assignment
grader
Yes
Yes
Yes - Instructors can use rubrics to
manually or automatically evaluate
student performance on activities
linked to competencies and learning
objectives conducted through a variety
of course tools including the Quizzes
tool, the Assignments tool, the Grades
tool, the Discussions tool, and D2L
ePortfolio items.
Yes - supports holistic and
analytic rubrics with a virtually unlimited
number of achievement levels.
Yes – iclicker/igrader
Yes – two tools. Attendance tool and
Seating Chart tool.
Yes
Yes – Arithmetic, Fill-in-the-blanks,
Long Answer, Matching,
Multiple Choice, Multi-Select, MultiShort Answer, Ordering, Short Answer,
Significant
Figures, True or False
Yes
Yes – IMS QTI format, delimited files
(text, spreadsheet, csv, etc) and
Respondus
Yes – password protection (Passwords
are 40 or 128 bit
encryption and SSL enabled),
timeframe, randomization of questions
and answers, timed test, restrict by
location (IP address), test pools, Full
logging of start time, finish time, and IP
address of every participant.
Allowance for extra time granted for
quizzes/exams (accommodations)
Display quiz/exam grade with/without
questions options
Multi-take quiz/exams
Auto-grading options for quiz/exams
Variety of customizations for quiz/exam
which allow for robust test design,
randomized questions from multiple
pools, limited time and date of access
Exam statistics for a course or
instructor in the shell, drilling down to
question level statistics
Utility for managing and reporting
Learning Outcomes
Campus/departmental learning
outcomes repository
Learning outcomes tracking capability
integrated with the assessment tools
Learning outcomes artifact storage
integrated with assessment tools
Native adaptive learning component,
which all instructors to determine gaps
in learner’s skill set, and address these
accordingly
Adaptive learning solution does not call
for additional hardware to be acquired
by TCU
Platform allows for instructors to use a
variety of content types in adaptive
learning solution
Adaptive learning solution allows
instructors to influence the
recommendations made by the tool
Customized user profiles
System-wide roles (course editor,
admin, TA student, staff,) that may be
adjusted to provide specific privileges
Unlimited custom user roles with
granular permission rights as defined
by TCU
TCU can configure features/tools
campus wide
Yes - From the Restrictions tab
instructors can create special access
for specific users.
Yes
Yes
Yes – except long answer/essay
questions
Yes
Yes
Yes – Competencies tool
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes – LeaP learning engine uses
language processing and analytics to
determine gaps in a learner’s skill set
and then provides tools, content, and
techniques to address those gaps.
Correct
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Test campus for admins to review new
features prior to adoption
SSO via campus portal AND a
separate branded gateway
Early notification alerts to instructors for
students who have not logged in or are
falling behind
Localization without code modification
(time zones)
Mobile options
Instructor grading/authoring mobile
app/solution
Instructors can grade and add freehand notes, mark-ups, strikethroughs
and audio commentary directly to
student submission from a tablet
device.
Yes
Yes
Yes – Intelligent Agents tool, includes
both manual and automated monitoring
and responses.
Yes, user and system defaults. Admin
can set defaults for pages and courses.
Mobile web (iOS, Android, Windows
Phone, Blackberry), Assignment
Grader (iPad), Binder (iPad, Android,
Windows 8), ePortfolio Mobile)
Yes - Assignment Grader and Mobile
Web
This functionality is supported through
D2L Assignment Grader (iPad only):
Instructors can grade and leave
feedback (text, audio, video) using the
app.