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Get Announcements

get_announcements

Retrieve recent announcements from your Brightspace courses. Filter by course ID for a specific class or get updates across all courses.

Instructions

Fetch recent announcements from your courses. Can filter to a specific course or get announcements across all courses. Use this when the user asks about announcements, news, updates from instructors, recent posts, or what professors said.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
countNoMaximum number of announcements to return
courseIdNoCourse ID to get announcements for. If omitted, returns recent announcements across all courses.

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

  1. First observedv1.0.7

TDQS

A4/5.0
Behavior3/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Implies read-only operation via 'fetch', but omits details like recency definition or impact of missing parameters. No annotations present.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness5/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Two concise sentences with front-loaded purpose and actionable usage hints. No wasted words.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

Adequate for a simple 2-parameter tool with no output schema. Could clarify 'recent' timeframe but overall sufficient.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Input schema already describes both parameters fully (100% coverage). Description adds marginal value by linking courseId absence to cross-course results.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

Clearly states the tool fetches announcements, distinguishes from siblings like get_assignments or get_discussions, and specifies filtering options.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines4/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Provides explicit usage examples (announcements, news, updates) but lacks exclusion guidance or alternatives.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.