Problems with Blackboard exams

By Catherine Zende
zendec@mytjnow.com

Some students taking online courses have reported problems with Blackboard exams. There have been reports that an error page appears when students click links to access their exams. Kimarie Whetsone, online learning coordinator for Winthrop University, says this is a widespread issue occurring in courses that have tests. Blackboard has recommended that students who encounter this issue when attempting to access an exam should clear their browser's cache and try again.

For more information on how to clear the browser cache, see below. Students still having difficulty accessing exams on Blackboard can contact Whetstone at whetstonek@winthrop.edu

How to clear your browser’s cache (Courtesy of Kimarie Whetstone, Online Learning Coordinator) :

Internet Explorer click to watch a how to video

1. From the Tools menu, select Internet Options The Internet Options dialog box appears
2. On the General tab, in the Browsing History section, click Delete
3. Select all of the checkboxes except for ‘Preserve Favorites websites data.’ This is the only checkbox that should not be selected
4. Click Delete
5. Click OK to close the Internet Options dialog box
6. Close Internet Explorer and reopen it to begin a new session

Firefox on Microsoft Windows click to watch a how to video

1. From the Tools menu, select Options
2. In the Options dialog box, click Advanced
3. Click the Network tab
4. In the Offline Storage section, click Clear Now
5. Click OK
6. Close Firefox and reopen it to begin a new session

Firefox on Mac click to watch a how to video

1. From the Tools menu, select Clear Recent History
2. From the Time range to clear pull-down menu to select everything
3. Click the down arrow next to Details to display the checkboxes, select all of the checkboxes,click "Clear Now," click "OK"
4. Close Firefox and reopen it to begin a new session 

Safari click to watch a how to video for MAC -- click to watch a how to video for PC

1. From the Safari menu, select Reset Safari
2. In the Reset Safari dialog box, select all of the checkboxes
3. Click Reset
4. Close Safari and reopen it to begin a new session

Google Chrome click to watch a how to video

1. Click the wrench icon in the upper-right corner of the browser to display its pull-down menu
2. Click Under the Hood
3. In the Privacy section, click Clear browsing data
4. In the Clear Browsing Data dialog box, use the Obliterate the following items from pull-down menu to select the beginning of time
5. Select all of the checkboxes
6. Click Clear Browsing Data
7. Close Google Chrome and reopen it to begin a new session