Learn about Blackboard Supersections

A supersection is when you combine two or more Blackboard courses. Using the Blackboard Learn Section Maintenance tool in MyBama, instructors of record can combine courses to be more efficient. Often cross-listed courses, individual sections, or lab sections are combined.

How are Blackboard supersections made?

  • Instructors can merge Blackboard sections together with the Blackboard Learn Section Maintenance tool in myBama.

  • Instructors can request that CIT merge sections with more than one instructor. CIT will ask for all instructors to send email permission for this process.

  • The managing department, like UA Online, will merge sections together per instructions from an instructor or a department.

What happens when a sections are combined into a supersection?

When courses are combined into a supersection, a new course is created in which you can add content. Blackboard calls the supersection a “Parent Course.”

A supersection course name looks like this in Blackboard: 202410-SS-CIT-100-001-CIT-100-002

The individual sections, or “child courses”, contain the enrollment for the supersection. Instructors cannot add content to these sections. Your students will still access the individual courses but will see content from the supersection.

Child courses do not appear on an instructor’s Courses page.

Guidelines for combining courses

Do NOT combine courses that match any of the following:

  • Courses with overlapping enrollment, such as labs/recitation and lectures.

  • Courses containing student data/submissions. Student work that has been completed does not transfer to the newly created supersection.

  • Courses with content. The supersection will not retain the content when merged with the Section Maintenance Tool. Contact CIT to transfer course content.

What happens when a student drops a course included in a supersection?

Enrollments continue to sync with Banner. If anyone drops or adds, the Blackboard course roster will match the Banner roster.

Can instructors still import grades into myBama from a supersection?

Yes. You can still import grades into myBama for your course using the Import from Blackboard Learn button in MyBama.