Posts related to Grading assessments in Brightspace
The Brightspace Gradebook is a tool that stores and organizes student grades and calculates final marks based on the marking scheme established by instructors. Setting up a well-organized and balanced gradebook before the semester begins is essential and allows for ease of editing throughout the semester if adjustments are required.
Gradebook Setup [PDF]
Along with a change to the assignment creation experience, Brightspace has also released an accompanying change to the assignment evaluation experience. The new evaluation workflow has begun as optional, but as of August 2021 it will become permanent and mandatory. The following document will introduce the key changes from this update.
The ability to grade assignments anonymously eliminates unconscious bias during the grading and feedback process. When anonymous grading is enabled, instructors can only identify their students as anonymized learner names on the assignments (i.e. Anonymous User 1). It is imperative that instructors inform their students to omit any identifying information in their assignment submissions. When grades are published to the gradebook, the identities of the students are revealed.
In order to grade a Discussion, a Discussion Topic associated with a grade item must have been previously set up. Once students have posted their replies, instructors can begin the grading process. There are multiple ways in which you can go about grading a Discussion, some more efficient than others. This document will outline the steps on how to grade a discussion most efficiently.
Grading a Discussion [PDF]
The most common issue instructors have with the Brightspace gradebook is the system’s default settings. The fact that the gradebook defaults to a Points system rather than a Weighted system has caused a number of issues. We strongly advise instructors to change this setting before setting up the gradebook items. There are very few marking schemes that lend themselves well to a points-based system, it is very likely instructors will need to change the settings in the gradebook to reflect a Weighted system.
While many Brightspace quizzes are graded automatically, there are circumstances where manually grading is necessary or preferred. For instance, manual grading is necessary when quizzes contain written response questions, or when overriding or regrading a question.
Brightspace features a Grades Setup Wizard, that can help guide you through the process of setting up a grade book that will work best for you. Brightspace also defaults to displaying a percentage grade scheme, but it is possible to convert the grades to the corresponding letter grades.
Grades Setup Wizard [PDF]
Display Dalhousie Letter Grade in Gradebook
When creating Groups, it’s possible to create group-specific Discussion Topics and to set these discussions up to be graded. There are two ways to go about this, but the more common workflow is by using a Grade Category.
