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Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS)

Adding a Turnitin Assignment

Contents

Overview and Differences

Turnitin assignments allow instructors to collect work from students and have that work checked against other student papers, the Internet, and journals/periodicals/publications. Each student submission receives an Originality Report with the results of these checks. Turnitin recently introduced a new type of assignment, Turnitin Clarity Assignment, which provides a space within Turnitin for students to compose their submission to provide greater visibility into their writing process. Instructors can see a playback of each student's composition and view a report on pasted text, typing patterns, and revision history. 

There are two methods for adding a Turnitin assignment in Canvas: the plagiarism framework method and the Turnitin LTI/external tool method. Which you should use depends on what settings you need.

  Plagiarism Framework Turnitin LTI (Standard, Clarity, or Multipart)
Can students submit as a group? Yes No
Can you use peer review? Yes No
Are all submissions/resubmissions by a student kept? Yes No, submissions and related feedback/grades are overwritten with each resubmission
Where do you provide feedback and/or annotations? Canvas Speedgrader Turnitin interface or Canvas Speedgrader (pick one for consistency)
Does it provide a space for students to compose their submission? No Yes, if you use a Clarity Assignment
Can you use Turnitin Quickmarks and Rubrics? No Yes
Does it detect AI writing? No* No*

*IMPORTANT NOTE: Turnitin's AI Detection is turned off at CSUSM due to concerns with inaccuracy and potential harm to students due to bias. The Faculty Center cautions against using third-party AI detection tools for two reasons: 1. their accuracy is disputed and analysis shows they are more likely to negatively impact non-native English speakers and diverse student populations, 2. student data and information privacy can be compromised by inputting student work into a tool or application not verified by the campus. For more information about CSUSM's Faculty Guidance and Suggestions on Generative AI, visit the Faculty Center's page Generative AI and Teaching.

Adding a Turnitin Assignment via the Plagiarism Framework

Using this method, students or groups will submit a file or text, and you will do all the grading and feedback in the Canvas Speedgrader. The Canvas Speedgrader does allow for annotated comments, there is a Comment Library you can build out, and you can create rubrics to use for efficient grading. Note: QuickMarks, Turnitin Rubrics, and Turnitin Clarity are not available when using the plagiarism framework. All resubmissions and related feedback/grades are preserved.

  1. In your Canvas course, go to the Assignments Index Page by clicking on Assignments in the course navigation.
  2. Click the +Assignment button in the upper right.
  3. Give your assignment a name and enter any instructions in the text box.
  4. Set the Point Value, Assignment Group, and "Display Grade as" settings.
  5. Set the Submission Type to Online and check the box for File Uploads and/or Text Entry.
  6. Scroll down to the Plagiarism Review section and set the drop down to “Turnitin-Plagiarism Framework.”
  7. Enable any desired Turnitin-specific settings.
  8. If this is a group assignment, check the box and designate the Group Set.
  9. Set the Due Date and availability dates.
  10. Select “Save & Publish.”

Adding a Turnitin Assignment via LTI

Standard Assignment

Using this method, students will submit a file or text, and you can do the grading and feedback in either the Turnitin interface or Canvas Speedgrader (use only one for consistency). Note: Standard assignments do not work with groups or peer review. Also, if you allow resubmissions, each resubmission will overwrite the previous submission and any related feedback/grades.

  1. In your Canvas course, go to the Assignments Index Page by clicking on Assignments in the course navigation.
  2. Click on the three dots in the upper right of the page (at the very top - to the right of the +Assignment blue button).
  3. From the dropdown menu, choose "Turnitin"
  4. Let the pop-up window load. Choose Standard Assignment.
  5. Set the details for your assignment. For more on these details, see this help guide on Creating a Standard Assignment.
  6. When ready, click the blue Submit button at the bottom of the window.
  7. Your new Turnitin assignment will be listed as unpublished on your Assignments page. You will need to manually publish for students to be able to see it and submit to it. You may also need to move it to the appropriate assignment group.
  8. Note: Do not set an availability end date in the assignment settings (in Canvas) as that will prevent students from viewing your feedback when released.
  9. Optional: post this Turnitin Student Support helpguide for you students.

Clarity Assignment

Turnitin Clarity provides a space within Turnitin for students to compose their submission to provide greater visibility into their writing process. Instructors can see a playback of each student's composition and view a report on pasted text, typing patterns, and revision history. Instructors also have the ability to enable optional features that include AI chat for limited guided writing support (it is not genAI), grammar feedback tools that help students identify and revise writing issues, and citation checking features that encourage stronger attribution and academic writing practices. Clarity is not an AI detection tool. Note: Clarity assignments do not work with groups or peer review. Also, if you allow resubmissions, each resubmission will overwrite the previous submission and any related feedback/grades.

  1. In your Canvas course, go to the Assignments Index Page by clicking on Assignments in the course navigation.
  2. Click on the three dots in the upper right of the page (at the very top - to the right of the +Assignment blue button).
  3. From the dropdown menu, choose "Turnitin"
  4. Let the pop-up window load. Choose Clarity Assignment.
  5. Set the details for your assignment. For more on these details, see this help guide on Creating a Clarity Assignment. See the Additional Help Guides section below for more information on creating rubrics and grading forms.
  6. When ready, click the blue Submit button at the bottom of the window.
  7. Your new Turnitin assignment will be listed as unpublished on your Assignments page. You will need to manually publish for students to be able to see it and submit to it. You may also need to move it to the appropriate assignment group, and add it to the appropriate module on the Modules tab.
  8. Note: Do not set an availability end date in the assignment settings (in Canvas) as that will prevent students from viewing your feedback when released.
  9. Due to lingering accessibility issues, if you choose to use Clarity, please fill out our Equally Effective Alternate Access Plan (EEAAP) form here. An EEAAP simply outlines the steps an instructor will take to provide the same information/services offered by a technology should a student not be able to use the technology due to the accessibility issues.
  10. Optional: post this Turnitin Student Support helpguide for you students.

Multipart Assignment

A Multipart Assignment allows you to connect related Standard and/or Clarity assignments. Though connected, each part has its own title, instructions, dates, settings, submission, and grade. For example, students can compose their first draft in a Clarity assignment and then submit their final draft in a standard Turnitin Assignment. When two Clarity parts appear one after another, instructors can allow students' earlier submissions to appear in the next part's writing area, allowing them to continue revising their existing work instead of starting from scratch. Learn more about creating a multipart assignment here. Note: Standard and Clarity assignments do not work with groups or peer review. Also, if you allow resubmissions, each resubmission will overwrite the previous submission and any related feedback/grades.

Additional Help Guides

Plagiarism Framework

LTI - Standard Assignment

LTI - Clarity Assignment

LTI - Multipart Assignment