Digital Learning Blog

BigBlueButton Updates

October 27, 2022  / Digital Learning  / Tags: BigBlueButton, Canvas Updates

BigBlueButton Conferences Updates

BigBlueButton remains a go to for many instructors.  It is integrated within the Canvas course and offers many of the same features as the larger video conferencing platforms (MS Teams and Zoom).  This month, BigBlueButton has made several notable updates.

1. Waiting Room: You can now schedule a waiting room for your meeting.  This is a great addition to BigBlueButton and can be used when meeting with students for virtual office hours or if you need a few minutes to get your meeting set up.  Now you can start your meeting early, and send the students to the waiting room until the meeting time begins.
2. Meeting Settings:  In the past, instructors needed to set meeting preferences (cameras on, enable participants to see each other, share mic, see chat, etc.) once the meeting was started.  Now, instructors have the option to make all of these decisions when the meeting is created. 
3. Course Calendar: You can now add your BigBlueButton meeting to the Course Calendar.  Students can join the meeting from the calendar (once the meeting is started) and the meeting is included on the Canvas student To Do List.  This is a great way to help students say organized.

For all the details and directions, please visit the Canvas Release Notes website. 

If you have any questions about these updates, please call one of our Instructional Technologists.

Can't get enough of BigBlueButton? Check out all of the new features that rolled out with version 2.5!