Description
During the August release (4000.21.0), a fix was pushed to ensure that items such as Discussions properly respect their Learning Module or Folder release conditions, rather than remaining accessible through other course areas like the Discussions tab or Gradebook. However, this fix caused unintended issues with course links for institutions depending on how their course content is designed or structured. After hearing from clients about this impact, the decision was made to revert the fix on September 4th. Please note that because of this revert, the original issue this fix was meant to address (items appearing outside of their intended release conditions in areas like the Gradebook or the Discussions tab) will resurface until a permanent solution is implemented.
Symptoms
Discussion forums, discussion posts, or other gradable items are visible and directly accessible through the Discussions tab, Gradebook, or Calendar, even when the parent Learning Module or Folder has release conditions applied (such as date/time restrictions, adaptive release rules, or membership restrictions).
Students may be able to view or access these items before their intended release date, or without meeting the criteria set on the containing Learning Module or Folder.
This occurs because the item does not inherit the release conditions of the Learning Module or Folder in which it resides when accessed from outside the course outline.
Cause
Items, like Discussions, are linked in other areas of the course, such as the Discussions tab or Gradebook, and can be accessed directly, outside of the Learning Module or Folder where the release conditions have been applied. Because the fix intended to enforce inherited release conditions in these areas has been reverted, items will once again be accessible outside their intended release conditions when accessed through these alternate course areas.
Resolution / Workaround
Release conditions and visibility settings must be applied directly on the item itself, such as the Discussion post, rather than relying solely on the settings applied to the containing Learning Module or Folder. This ensures the item is not accessible from other areas of the course, such as the Discussions tab or Gradebook, outside of the Learning Module or Folder where it would otherwise respect the inherited permissions.