This article explains how to use the gradebook within a course.
A Tour of the Gradebook
To access your gradebook, click “Grades” from the left-hand side navigation, or click the “Grades” tab from within a Classroom. The “Grades” tab in a Classroom will show a limited version of your gradebook, with many settings missing. To view the full gradebook, click on “Go to Gradebook” at the top right of that section.
The following numbers and descriptions correspond to the numbers in the image below:
- Banner image: The banner image for the gradebook will match the banner image for its related classroom for your reference. When you change to a different classroom’s gradebook, the banner image will change with it.
- Classroom name: Clicking this will open a dropdown menu with all of your classrooms. Clicking a different classroom’s name will switch to that classroom’s gradebook.
- They are sorted by Live and Archived classrooms.
- Assignment types: Clicking this will open a dropdown menu with every assignment type. By default, all assignment types are displayed, but clicking on a single assignment type will make the gradebook only display assignments of that type.
- Show Non-Gradable: Toggling this on will make the gradebook display assignments that do not affect students’ overall grade. By default, this is toggled off.
- Search bar: Use this to search for a single student or activity. Once you begin typing, the gradebook will only show data that matches what has been typed. Once this field is cleared, all the data will return.
- Search type: Clicking this will open a dropdown menu that will let you switch between searching by Student Name or Activity Name.
Rows and Columns of the Gradebook
The following numbers and descriptions correspond to the numbers in the image below:
- Name column: Students’ names, sorted A-Z by last name by default. To sort by Z-A, click the three dots next to “NAME” and then click “Sort By” in the dropdown menu.
- Average column: Displays students’ grades as a percentage from 0-100, up to two decimal places. To sort by grade percentage, click the three dots next to “AVG” and then click “Sort By” in the dropdown menu.
- Letter grade column: Displays students’ grades as letter grades from F-A, according to ranges you set in your gradebook settings. To sort by letter grade, click the three dots next to “GRADE” and then click “Sort By” in the dropdown menu.
- Activity column(s): Displays students’ total scores for the specific activity. When activities are submitted but not yet graded, an italicized and grayed out number will display in each cell of the column in which a submission is waiting. This number will display the activity’s total points possible.
- Letter codes may also appear in these cells. Details on letter codes can be found in a later section.
- Activity columns are sorted by the oldest gradable activity first. So activities will display in chronological order from left to right.
- Title row: Displays the title of each column, identified and explained above. If an activity title does not fit in the cell, hover your mouse over the activity title to display it fully.
- Student row: Displays the student’s name, average, letter grade, and then total scores for each activity. The name, average, and letter grade will always display, even as you scroll left or right through activity columns.
Grading Using the Gradebook Directly
You have the option to enter point totals into cells directly in the gradebook. This only works for submitted activities that have not yet been graded. An italicized and grayed out number will display in each cell of the column in which a submission is waiting. This number indicates the activity’s total points possible.
To enter point totals into cells directly:
- Click on any cell of the gradebook that has a submission waiting to be graded. A flashing text entry bar will appear to indicate that you can type here.
- Type a number into the cell. You can also use backspace to delete a number from a cell if your changes have not been saved.
- Use the arrow keys to quickly move to adjacent cells, or click on any cell to move to it.
- When grading this way, changes aren’t saved until you click the purple “Save Changes” button that appears at the top right of the gradebook.
Default grade
You have the option to grant every student who is awaiting a grade in a column the same grade. This only works for students whose activities have not been graded. This function will not overwrite a grade that has already been submitted.
To set a default grade for an activity:
- Hover your mouse over the title of any activity, at the top of that activity’s column.
- Just to the right of the assignment title, you will see three dots appear. Click those dots to open a dropdown menu.
- From the dropdown menu, click “Set Default Grade”.
- A popup menu will appear with a small text field. The grayed out number in that text field represents the total points possible for this activity.
- Enter a number into that field, then click Save.
- Every ungraded submission in that column will now have the grade that you entered into the text field.
Grading Using the Grade Panel
You have the option to grade submissions using the grade panel, which will give you more grading options. You can even view your students’ submissions as you grade them using the grade panel.
To access the grade panel, hover your mouse over any cell in an activity column. Just to the right of the text field in that cell, you will see a small arrow symbol appear. Click that symbol to open the grade panel on the right side of your screen.
The features of the grade panel from top to bottom are as follows:
- The purple text at the top of the grade panel displays the activity title. The plain text below it displays the current student’s name.
- Use the arrow buttons to move to the next student in the column for the same activity.
- The “Enter Submission View” button extends a new panel to the left called Submission View. More information on Submission View can be found in the next section.
- The italicized due date displays the date that this activity was due.
- The italicized submission date displays the date and time that this student submitted this activity.
- The “Grade out of [x]” section allows you to enter a point total for the submission. This is not saved until you click Submit Grade.
- If a grade has already been given, a red “Reset Grade” button will appear. Clicking that will open a popup menu asking you to confirm.
- Confirming by clicking “Reset” will clear this submission’s grade and remove its total from being figured into that student’s overall grade.
- Wait a few seconds and you will see the grade reset in the column and in the grade panel.
- Toggling the switch in the Excused section will mark this submission as Excused. This activity will not be counted toward the student’s overall grade and a green E will appear in the relevant cell.
- Toggling the switch in the Late section will mark this submission as Late. The gradebook’s late penalty setting will be applied to this point total, and the number will turn red in the relevant cell.
- If the activity was submitted on time but the late switch is toggled on, no penalty will be applied but the number will still be red in the cell.
- In the text field under Notes for Student, you can type written feedback for this student’s submission. This is not saved until you click Submit Grade.
- This feedback will appear next to the point total in the student’s grades.
- The bottom purple button is contextual. Here are the functions of that bottom button:
- Before submitting anything from the grade panel, the button will say “Submit Grade.”
- After clicking “Submit Grade,” a symbol will spin while the work is saved.
- Once the work is saved, a checkmark and the word “Submitted” will appear.
- If you open the grade panel for a grade that has already been submitted, the button will now say “Submit Grade” again. You may edit anything within the grade panel and then submit it again by clicking this button again.
Grading using Submission View
Clicking “Enter Submission View” from the grade panel extends a new panel to the left called Submission View. Submission View displays the entire activity in an overlay over the gradebook, including the activity’s instructions and your student’s submitted work.
- To collapse the Submission View back into the grade panel, click “Exit Submission View” in the top right.
- To exit from the grade panel and Submission View simultaneously, click anywhere outside the overlay and it will disappear.
Submission View has different functionalities depending on the activity type:
Activities Without Sections (Discussions and Journals)
In these types of activities, you cannot grade from Submission View. Additionally:
- The top panel will display the instructions from the activity, as well as the requirements the student should have met to receive credit, if relevant.
- The bottom panel will display the student’s name, profile picture, and the submission date. Below that, it will display the student’s written submission.
- If the discussion requires the student to post replies to receive credit, it will display the student’s original thread, then any replies the student wrote.
Activities With Sections (Assignments and Tests)
In these types of activities, you can grade from Submission View, and there is more you can do.
- When Submission View first opens, each section will be listed on the right side of the new panel with a preview of each question in the section.
- Clicking on any section will open a new top and bottom panel to the left of the section preview.
- The top panel will display the instructions from this section of the activity.
- The bottom panel will display questions and the student’s answers from this section, one item at a time.
- The phrase “This question has not been graded yet” will be written in red above each question that has not been graded.
- Submit a score for each question in the text field above the question, where “Graded out of [x] points” is displayed in purple. There will be a grayed out number in the field indicating how many points that question is worth.
- As you enter grades for each question, you will see the “Grade out of [x]” section update automatically in the grade panel. The red text indicating ungraded questions will also disappear.
- Questions with correct answers already indicated, like multiple choice or True/False questions, will be graded automatically.
- To move to the next section of the activity, scroll to its preview in the middle column of the overlay and then click on it.
Remember that this is just one of your options for grading! Grades can also be entered from the grade panel or directly into cells of the gradebook.
Letter Codes and Text Colors
There are several different one-letter codes that may appear in a cell of the gradebook. Those codes communicate certain information and are tied to automatic functions in the system. Text colors also communicate certain information, all explained below:
- Red M: Missing. It is past this activity’s due date and this student has not submitted their assignment. This red M is figured as a zero into the student’s overall grade.
- Green E: Excused. This activity has been excused by the instructor for this student. This assignment is not figured into the student’s overall grade at all.
- Red number: Late. If a student has submitted an assignment after its due date and the instructor has marked it as late, the gradebook’s late penalty setting has been applied to this point total.
- Green Letter Grade: The grade is either an A or a B.
- Orange Letter Grade: The grade is a C.
- Red Letter Grade: The grade is either a D or an F.