ManageBac+ updates in 2022

Custom CAS Learning Outcomes per IB DP Year Group

December 12, 2022

Other academic programmes have had the ability to create custom Learning Outcomes per year group and we took the opportunity to make that possible for IB DP and CAS outcomes now as well. 

Find the custom Learning Outcomes options in the Edit Year Group Settings page of IB DP Year Groups.

Newly created Year Groups come with no Learning Outcomes attached and can add the IB default CAS Learning Outcomes or create custom ones per the school's needs. 

Read more about all things CAS configurations related in our Configuring CAS Worksheets & Settings help guide. 

IB DP Group 1 Orals Forms export

November 30, 2022

The new Group 1 Oral forms released in August of 2022 for Language and Literature and Literature courses in the Diploma Programme have been added to ManageBac+ and can be exported via the Orals worksheets for students. 

To better support the export of these forms, we have also made updates to the List of Works in Group 1 classes. With Literary Form, Work Type (depending on course option) and Text Type information available, forms exported can properly identify the works selected for each Extract.

Read more about these update in our Managing Individual Orals in Group 1 and Group 2 classes article.

Improvements in Updating Individual Reports

November 25, 2022

We are delighted to reveal the new improvements in updating the individual report card of the students. We have created a separate page to Update Individual Reports and also a log of the updated reports.

The Update Individual Reports button is available on the right hand side of the Generate Reports page.

Step 1: Selecting a Report to update

To update an individual report, the admin should first identify the report they want to update. They can then:

1. Select the programme.
2. Select the Academic Term.
3. Select the student that has available reports for the selected term.
4. Select the desired report from the drop down menu.

When the report is selected, the admin can download it to confirm that it is the correct one.

Step 2: Update Report Generation Preferences

The next step is to update the report preferences. To do so:

1. Select a template which should be used for generating the updated report. 
2. Enter the desired Report Title.
3. Choose the fields to include in the file name.
4. Select a Preparation Date.

The Report title, fields to include in File name and Preparation Date are pre-filled from the current preferences on the Generate Reports page.

Step 3: Preview and Confirm the Report Update

The final step prior to generation is for the admin to download the report preview and read the confirmation message. The admin can click Update Individual Report to confirm the update.

Previously Updated Reports

The Previously Updated Reports tab on the Update Individual Reports page keeps a log of all the updated reports per programme so that the admin can keep track of whose reports were updated when and by who. This is organized on the basis of the academic programme.

Multi-user Chat & Audio Improvements

November 11, 2022

We are excited to announce that we have released the long awaited Multi-user Direct Messages! Additionally, we’ve made some improvements to the Audio Recording Controls and the Profanity Filter for KeyChat.

KeyChat Multi-user Direct Messages

ManageBac+ accounts which have KeyChat enabled can now create Multi-user Direct Messages with up to 21 users. 

Via Start Chat, the Member(s) dropdown has been changed from a single select dropdown to a multi select dropdown where teacher and admin users can add any user that has the appropriate permissions to the Multi-user Direct Messages. 

Multi-user Direct Messages are represented by a collage of avatars and the name of the Direct Message contains all the members listed in alphabetical order excluding the current user.

Restyled Audio Recording Controls

The audio recording controls have been restyled for a smoother experience. While recording, a waveform is shown to indicate how loud or quiet the user is. We have also enlarged the buttons to enhance user experience.

Profanity Filter

We have included three different options for the Profanity Filter in KeyChat to provide more flexibility for our schools:

• Disabled - Profanity Filter will not be applied to the school’s KeyChat
• Default Profanity Filter - A default Profanity Filter will be applied. This will prevent users from sending messages that contain words from the default profanity list.
• Custom Profanity Filter - Schools can customize the words to be applied in the Profanity Filter. Schools can use the CSV template to customize their own Profanity Filter list. The profanity filter supports all languages and scripts, allowing schools to fill it with words they would like to have filtered out in the KeyChat.

Schedule Report Card releases for future dates

October 28, 2022

Schools using ManageBac+ for Report Cards can now schedule the release of these reports to students and parents for future dates in the Reports Preferences section of the Generate Reports pages. 

Select the Schedule Future Release Date option to enable the date and time picker that allows you set the release time for the report cards. The system will not send email notifications before the release time, if the Notify parents & students via email option is also enabled. 

Login with Clever integration

October 27, 2022

We are happy to announce that it is now possible for schools using Clever as identity provider to request and use Clever Single Sign-On for ManageBac+. Please see our Enabling Login with Clever (Single Sign-On) for further details. 

CAS, SA and SL Improvements 

October 25, 2022

We are delighted to reveal a new look for the IB DP Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS), IB MYP Service as Action (SA) and all other academic programme Service Learning (SL) user interfaces, which have been updated for admins, teachers and students to enhance navigation. 

Student Roster

Student Progress - The number of students per progress indicator will now display at the top of the page to give you additional visibility into students programme status. 

Student Activity Logs - At the base of the roster, you can now view student activity logs in chronological order. 

Student Worksheet

Worksheet Layout - Previously, the CAS worksheet was a single page. Now, the functionality has been divided across three tabs: Experiences, Documents and Notes & Interviews, to allow you to dive directly into what you need to action for that student.

Student Tile & Navigation - The students information tile will appear across all three tabs at the top of the page. The tile contains the student’s name, avatar, status, and arrow buttons to swiftly navigate between students.

Experience Ordering - The ordering of experiences on the roster has been updated.

• Upcoming experiences are shown first starting from the soonest to today’s date and extending into the future.
• Completed experiences are shown after the upcoming experiences.

Experience Status Update - You can now easily differentiate between experiences and quickly update the status of each one directly from the experience list.

Experience Content Quick-Access - We have also added two quick access icons

• Learning Outcomes - Open an info window that displays the linked learning outcomes
• Reflections - Jump straight to view Reflections for the experience.

Please note that these two icons will not appear if no comments are present. 

Updated Timeline - Displays experiences in a similar way to Class Unit calendars.

Hours Widget - The Completed Hours widget allows you to visualise planned versus completed hours for each of the experience types.

Experience & Activities

Experience Info - Under each experience or activity added, you will now find a tile that is displayed at the top regardless of which page you are on in the worksheet.

The tile contains a background theme that’s selected on the Add/Edit Experience form. The tile can be expanded to reveal the Description and Learning Outcomes.

Navigating Between Experiences - Clicking on the title of the experience will reveal a dropdown with all other experiences. This allows for quick navigation to another experience.

Notes & Interviews

Discussions - The Notes and Interview section has now been aligned to match the design in classroom Discussions. 

We hope you find this first release focusing on CAS, SA and SL updates, and look out for further updates in the near future. Please share any feedback to product@ManageBac.com.

Configure Plan Reminder Emails

October 22, 2022

We've now introduced the ability to send email reminders to students who have not completed their Plans Worksheet subject selection. You will be able to customise the body of the email and and set the frequency of the reminders. By default the reminders will be sent out every 2 weeks. 

Import Tasks Update

October 21, 2022

All Tasks previously created can be imported to Classes and filtered by Grade, Teacher, Type or Category. A filter for Archived or Active Classes has been enabled. 

Importing Tasks is now a two step process to allow teachers to import selected Tasks to multiple Class Sections at once. 

See our Adding & Managing Tasks article for more information on Importing Tasks. 

Discussions & Student Discussion Task

September 24, 2022

Messages have transformed into Discussions, providing threaded conversations all on the one page, expandable replies for space efficiency, reactions and E-mail notifications to engage your users. This release includes:

• The ability to customise the "Discussion" label via your School Terminology Settings
• The ability to pin "Discussions" to keep them at the top of the list
• A condensed layout to allow reading of a full thread on one page
• Specific sections for Key Discussions (from Year Groups, Classes & Activity Groups) and Calendar Discussions (from Events, Deadlines and Tasks)
• A new assessment type, the "Student Discussion Task"

The new Student Discussion Task requires students to make comments or replies in an auto-generated Discussion thread. Once a student completes the required number of posts their binary grade is set to complete in the GradeBook.

May 2023 TOK Prescribed Titles Updated

September 21, 2022

The TOK Essay prescribed titles were updated for all TOK Essay project-based learning templates that were imported from our template library. Students in November session schools will now see the updated May 2023 titles when editing their TOK Essay Proposals. These were updated in English and Spanish.

Schools who previously edited their TOK prescribed titles via Settings > IB Diploma > Project-based Learning > TOK Essay template > Framework > Proposal, will not have received this update to not overwrite the custom data entered.

Prescribed titles can be edited via the Framework page of the TOK Essay template in Settings and by selecting the 3 dot button. Please see Configuring & Enabling Theory of Knowledge (TOK) Worksheets for further information on how to customise project templates.

Android Events & Deadlines

Sep 21, 2022

Following our early September release for iOS, the ManageBac+ Android app now also supports redesigned native pages for Events & Deadlines. 

In addition, other features including Zoom support for Events, Rich Text Options, Task rosters and eCoursework submissions have been refined for an improved user experience. Please make sure to update to the latest version of the app!

iOS Events & Deadlines

Sep 1, 2022

Redesigned pages for adding and editing Events and Deadlines have been released for the iOS ManageBac+ app. These pages were optimized for mobile devices to help improve the navigation, readability, and overall user experience. 

This update also includes the new Rich Text Editor for native iOS pages. The mobile text experience is now responsive and fine-tuned for smaller screens.

Audio Recording & Text Colours

Aug 22, 2022

We have completed the final releases of the new Rich Text Editor. This provides the ability to

• Make audio recordings to share feedback to Students
• Adapt text colours and additional formatting options
• Improved handling of file and image uploads

Updated Format Options for Rich Text Editor

July 27, 2022

Some of the updated options for rich text editor boxes are available right away and others will follow in the next few weeks. 

For this update we focus on simplifying the rich text editor interface as well as expanding certain formatting options. In detail, we did the following:

• All supported resources can now be added through the new  button. This button helps organize and declutter the text box options bar.
• The general layout of the RTE was improved for quick access to all important text formatting options.
• Drag and Drop functionality supports multiple files dropped into the text editor at once.
• Formatting from Google Docs or Sheets is preserved after pasting content into the text box.
• Table formatting was updated for a more intuitive, visual, and direct interface.

Speed Grade on Task Roster

July 19, 2022

The Tasks section of Gradebooks have been updated to include 1) sorting options for the Tasks within the selected term and 2) provide the ability for teachers to enter Task marks and scores directly from the Task roster without needing to open the Task itself. 

The pop-out for grades entry can be closed with the X icon or by clicking into another cell of the gradebook roster. If comments are included as assessment model of the Task, the rich text editor options will be available as well. 

Demo Account Access & Tour

July 16, 2022

Access to the ManageBac+ Demo account is now available to all admins via the Settings page. A guided tour will help highlight each user role.

We highly encourage using the demo account, which is populated with realistic data, to run your internal training sessions, induction days or parent evenings, and to become familiar with the latest ManageBac+ features. 

Custom Event Category colours are available

July 12, 2022

Event Categories in Calendars can now have differentiated colours. Not all Events will need to appear in the same colour any longer. 

Behaviour & Discipline Module updates

July 11, 2022

Schools with Behaviour & Discipline module enabled can now relabel this in the Settings > School Settings > Terminology page. That will then change the tab name in student Profiles accordingly. 

Teachers can now also be granted access to the Behaviour Notes History pages via Settings > Security & Permissions > Teachers & Advisors pages. This can be set for all teachers in general, or per individual teacher. 

Furthermore, it is now also possible to make Behaviour Notes visible to students per each individual note. Only notes that are marked as visible to students via the tick box can also be sent to students as email notification. 

Home Widget Customisation

July 7, 2022

A further enhancement of the Home Menu now offers users to enrich their experience, setting headline-level views from the pages that matter to you most.

The aim is to provide at-a-glance real-time information, as well as short-cuts to get to specific pages without the need to navigate through them using the menus. Different options are available for each user type, please try it out!

KeyChat with 1-1 Direct Messaging functions

July 4, 2022

Schools now have the ability to enable one to one Direct Messaging in ManageBac+ for their schools. As administrator, look for the Chat icon at the top right of any ManageBac+ page to learn more or review our Chat: 1-1 Direct Messaging article for additional details. This is the first phase of the Chat features with more to follow soon.

IB DP TOK, EE and IB CP RP Classes grade scales update

June 23, 2022

Classes linked to IB DP Theory of Knowledge, Extended Essay or IB CP Reflective Project subjects will now display the Term Grades grade scale using A-E letters instead of 1-7 marks. This applies to all future classes created in these subjects or existing classes without edited grade scales. Review our help article on Configuring Gradebook Calculation Options for further information on editing grade scales per class if further changes are needed. 

IB DP Plans views for Teachers

June 7, 2022

Teachers have now the ability to view IB DP Plans for students. They are able review the information but not edit for those students they are not assigned to as Homeroom Advisors. Full editing permissions are admin privileges. Teachers with Full Access Permissions to the Student Directory are also able to update Candidate Personal Information in Plans. Assigned Homeroom Advisors can also change student Subject and Levels on the Plans worksheet. See our IBIS Exam Registration Quickstart Guide for additional information.

First-Login Experience

May 26, 2022

Task Gradebook interface updates

May 6, 2022

Task page of the Gradebook can now be sorted in ascending, descending or upcoming due dates for Tasks. 

Task views of a given Task with the Gradebook allows for additional information like Task Description and linked Unit. All Tasks have the ability to use Gradebook Field Checker options, with field checkers for the enabled Assessment models per Task. The Progress Bar Graphs and Annotation icons have also been updated. 

Please see our tutorial on Adding & Managing Tasks for additional information.

Wallpaper & Personalisation Options

May 4, 2022

Wallpapers Further enhancing a user’s or school's ability to curate their experience, we have deployed a selection of Wallpapers which can be applied through the Personalisation page.

Profile Personalisation A new page has been created where an Admin, Teacher, Parent or Student can manage their own profile customisations. Set your wallpaper background, adapt your colour and theme, and choose what your default landing page is for each time you log-in to ManageBac+

Brand Customisation Admins can now manage their Schools customisations, setting default Wallpapers, Landing and Login Pages for all users.

eCoursework Dashboard

May 3, 2022

A major update has released to support IB eCoursework submission for IB DP schools. This includes updates to the following:

• Generate IB Forms The ability to generate or re-generate IB forms from all possible DP 2 classes on a students portfolio.
• Subject Registration Guidance Based on subjects selected on the student’s Plans Worksheet registrations, an outline of requirements for each subject registration is provided. This allows teachers and coordinators to easily see what is still outstanding for the student’s portfolio.
• Uploading to the eCoursework checklist Files can now be added directly to the eCoursework page without leaving the student’s Portfolio.
• Tagging Individual Upload Requirements Each file submission can now be individually tagged, and the students eCoursework checklist will track progress for all requirements. Additionally, all files are now validated to ensure the proper file type, size, and quantity are selected for each upload requirement (ex. one cannot upload an MP3 for the Extended Essay).
• Portfolio Roster Updates (DP 2) eCoursework Portfolios will now be accessible directly on the Portfolio Roster for quick access. 
• Support for Additional Forms Forms for Literature & Performance (16LPIA form) and Global Politics (CSGP form) are now available on ManageBac+.

Android update for Home & Overviews

April 29, 2022

A Home page has been added for all user types (Admins, Teachers, Students, and Parents). The Home page replaces the current Menu and it’ll serve as the central navigation system for the mobile application. From this page, users will be able to navigate to all critical areas within the application.

Overview pages, as released last month for iOS, have now been rolled out for Android devices. The new Overview pages are accessible by clicking on a Class, Year Group, or GroupThese tiles provide quick access to all relevant pages.

Finally, all native pages have been optimized for tablets. The user interface dynamically resizes depending on your device screen size. This update covers all possible device sizes.

MYP Binary Assessment Updated

April 19, 2022

In the IB Middle Years, we have now added the assessment option of "Binary (Complete/Incomplete)" for MYP courses. Binary – Permits marking a task as either Complete or Incomplete, Achieved / Not achieved, Pass/Fail etc.
 
Any admin or Teacher (with permissions) can enable Binary assessment via Settings > IB Middle Years > Assessment > Framework > Check "Binary". Ticking Enabled by Default will mean when your teachers add a new task, this option is enabled, however, they can still disable it if needed.

November 2022 TOK Prescribed Titles Updated

April 13, 2022

The TOK Essay prescribed titles were updated for all TOK Essay project-based learning templates that were imported from our template library. Students in November session schools will now see the updated November 2022 titles when editing their TOK Essay Proposals. These were updated in English and Spanish.

Schools who previously edited their TOK prescribed titles via Settings > IB Diploma > Project-based Learning > TOK Essay template > Framework > Proposal, will not have received this update to not overwrite the custom data entered.

Prescribed titles can be edited via the Framework page of the TOK Essay template in Settings and by selecting the 3 dot button. Please see Configuring & Enabling Theory of Knowledge (TOK) Worksheets for further information on how to customise project templates.

New Home Menu is available as landing page upon login

March 29, 2022

Following our announcements earlier in 2022 in this blog, we have now released the new Home Menu page. It is available as default landing page for all ManageBac+ users and provides greater flexibility for customisation to meet users' workflows and processes. 

Changing the Landing page is possible via the user avatar and Landing menu.

Expand the left menu via the top left icon to access ManageBac+ pages from the Home Menu as previously done. From any page in ManageBac+, click the school name to return to the Home Menu and use the right side button to customise the layout and order of your Home Menu contents.

Archive Term Grades rubrics for DP and non-IB classes

March 16, 2022

Administrators can hide different rubrics from the Term Grades pages of Classes via Settings > Select programme (DP and non-IB) > Assessment > Assessment Models > Term page. The active/archived toggle switch will hide the rubric and grades entered for it from the Term Grades page of classes in present and future academic terms if rubrics are archived. 

Past academic terms will also show any archived rubrics with grades entered. Archived rubrics can still be included in Report Card templates for previous terms. 

See our Drafting, Proofing & Publishing DP Report Cards article for additional information. 

Introducing the DP Passport

March 10, 2022

ManageBac+ Passport is the result of our 15+ years of experience supporting IB DP and CP schools to better manage their programmes.

It links all essential teaching, learning and assessment tools seamlessly. With all your data in one place, ManageBac+ does away with the clunky divisions between LMS, course content, assessments and professional development. Our aim is to enable schools to focus on education with a comprehensive solution – everything on a single platform, at an affordable price.

Find out more via http://ManageBac.com/passport

The New ManageBac+

March 5, 2022

Look out for the new MB logo, which release marks the celebration of 15 years of ManageBac+. Thank you for all of your support, and look forward to many new updates this year!

Term Grades Data Validation for all Classes

February 22, 2022

Previously, only IB DP Classes would apply data validation when teachers entered Term Grades, i.e. grades had to match IB DP 1-7 numbers. Now, this kind of validation is added to all Classes where teachers enter Grades based on the Term Grades scale available in the class. Teachers are only able to enter grade values that are listed in the Term Grade Scale in the class or configured for the programme.

Zoom integration for Calendar Events

February 19, 2022

The same Zoom integration that is allowing for Online Lessons to be created and linked to Zoom is now enabled for Calendar > Events. Add a new Event to the Calendar using the Add Event button to see the updated Event interface with Create Zoom Meeting button. Events differentiated for different students will show and allow only linked students to join the Zoom call. 

The location field also supports custom meeting room URLs. If a URL is detected in the location field a “Start” or “Join” button will be shown on the Event tile. 

For Events that have corresponding Zoom Meetings MB will automatically make any recordings available in MB. After Zoom processes the cloud recordings, which can take up to an hour, MB will show a Download Recording button to immediately download the recording file and a Play Recording button that will open in a new tab and allow for recording playback.

Note: The recording buttons will be available for as long as the recording is present on Zoom Cloud.

Student Differentiation for Class Events and Deadlines

February 19, 2022

Class Events and Deadlines can now be assigned to specific students only, similar to Tasks. Open the Calendar within your class and click Add Event/Deadline. Then select the Student Differentiation section when creating new Class Events or Deadlines and pick the students this Calendar entry is assigned to. Year Group Events and Deadlines to follow shortly. 

User Profile Design Updates

February 18, 2022

All user profiles have been updated to follow the same design structure as our previous updates across the interface. This includes moving away from tabs across the top of the profile and using individual profile pages instead. It also meant to move the Theme selection for all users to the top right avatar so that themes can be selected directly in any ManageBac+ page.

Student Academic Overview information also has been updated to reflect the recent layout and information of all Classes pages in ManageBac+. Further updates will be made to ensure teachers and administrators have the same access levels as prior to the user interface updates.  

Assign Head of Subject users via Subject Home pages

February 17, 2022

Administrators can now assign Head of Subject users for each subject of any academic programme via the Classes > Explore Subjects pages. 

Head of Subjects will appear to all teachers on the Subject pages with their email and contact information. In the future, we are planning to deploy additional permissions for Head of Subjects. 

Please see our Explore Subjects pages for overview of subject contents article for additional information about the Subject pages.

Selectable Project-based Learning Fields for Report Cards

February 7, 2022

Schools using ManageBac+ for Report Cards can include information about Project-based Learning templates on Report Cards.

Now, it is also possible for schools to select which fields they wish to include on the Report Card per PBL Template. A tick box to indicate Showcase on Reports per field in the PBL template Framework serves as selector of whether the content of the field appears on Report Cards or not.

The same selection also adds this field to the roster page of the project template when enabled in year groups. See below for reference. 

Task Due Date Extensions per Student

January 24, 2022

Teachers can extend the due date of Tasks for individual students in all Tasks with Coursework submission options enabled. Use the Extend Due Date button to set how many days the due date should be extended per student. A bell icon indicates to the teacher the due date has been extended for the student. 

See our Adding & Managing Tasks article for further details. 

iOS Mobile Overviews

January 22, 2022

Overview pages for Classes, Year Groups, and Groups have been redesigned and optimized for iPads and iPhones. The new Overview pages are accessible by clicking on a Class, Year Group, or Group (from each respective Roster page).

Student Profile Pop-ups

January 19, 2022

Click the avatar of any user in any page of ManageBac+ to expand a floating overview menu. For students, information such as Homeroom Attendance status and upcoming Tasks due will be included. Local time and date for all users is also included based on the Timezone the user set in their profile. All floating menus include a button to access the user's Profile if access is granted for that.

Reviewing Options for Term Grades

January 18, 2022

We have released a major update for all Classes > Gradebook > Term Grades pages. It is now possible to enable or disable Gradebook Options which allow teacher to utilize Field Checker options or hide or make previously existing options visible. 

The Term Grades layout was also adjusted to better accommodate the new reviewing options. Every Student now has a gradebook table of their own with Rubrics, Grades, Final Grade, Comments and Progress Charts. 

The Field Checker options will highlight fields that are incomplete or not matching as expected. Above we show a Criterion that has not been marked yet and the name in the Comment box does not match the student's name. The enabled or disabled options will indicate how many fields could use additional review. 

Include up to 4 terms of Term Grades on Report Cards

January 18, 2022

It is now possible to show up to 4 sets of Term Grades on a Report Card in Summary of Achievement or Class Reports for all academic programmes except IB PYP. 

With "Cumulative" Term Grades enabled, all Teacher Comments are hidden from the Summary of Achievement section. 

Timetables include Grade level of the Class

January 10, 2022

All Timetables have been updated to include the grade level of each class next to the class name. If long names of classes hide the grade level, the timetable can be exported to PDF to reveal the grade level for each class.