Create Assignments

Why Do This?

The Assignment activity allows instructors to collect work from students, and then to grade and provide feedback for that work. Assignment submission types include file submissions, online text submissions (which can include text, images, and links), online PoodLL (short audio or video), offline activity, or a combination. Don’t know which assignment type and options to choose? Please first see our guide Which Assignment Type and Options Suit Your Purpose?

General settings

In your course, go to the topic/section where you want the assignment and at the bottom of the section click "Create Learning Activity" in the lower left.
On the Activities tab, click on Assignment.
Type the name of the assignment in the Assignment name box. Type in a brief description and/or instructions of the assignment in the Description box.
To show the description on the homepage, check the box next to Display description on course page.
Set the Due Date and time. Note: time uses the 24 hour clock (so 11:59pm would be 23:59). Any submissions submitted after this time will be marked as late.

Note: If you want to attach related files for students to use, that section is now in the Common Module Settings section.

Availability

On the right hand side, click on Availability to expand. "Allow submissions from" is the date and time students can start submitting. Before this date and time students can view the assignment, but cannot submit. "Cut-off date" is the date and time students no longer submit. If you uncheck Enable for Cut-Off date, students are able to submit indefinitely (will be marked late if submitted after the due date).

enable start date, due date, and cutoff date

Submission types

File Submissions:

Select if you want students to upload a file (or files), or to permit supplemental attachments to an online text assignment. Set the Maximum number of uploaded files. We recommend leaving the Maximum submission size at 20 MB. As most video or audio files will be larger than this, we recommend students upload their file to Youtube or another site and submit the link. To do so, we recommend using Online Text. If you allow file types you can also choose to restrict submissions to only accepted file types.

Online Text:

Select if you want students to write a short response or submit a link to an external URL. If desired, you can set a Word limit which prevents students from submitting responses that contain more words than the limit.

Online PoodLL:

Short (< 3min.) audio or video recordings. Please see our help guides on setting up PoodLL Video Assignments or PoodLL Audio Assignments.

Offline Activity:

If you want to provide feedback and/or a grade for something students are doing offline, you can uncheck all of the submission types. Students will see the Assignment name, description, dates, etc. but will not be asked to submit anything. You can still provide feedback and/or a grade that will go into the gradebook.

Feedback types

Feedback files: If selected, allows the grader to upload files to give back to the student such as a marked up submission or other document when grading a submission.

Feedback comments: If selected, provides a comment box for overall comments when grading a submission.

Annotate PDF: If selected, displays submissions within the browser when grading and provides some markup options. Not all file types can be displayed within the browser (Word and PDF can).

Feedback PoodLL: Allows the grader to use the PoodLL audio or video recorder to provide feedback to the student.

Offline grading worksheet: If selected, the instructor will be able to download a grading worksheet to fill out offline and then upload back to the assignment later.

Comment Inline: If set to Yes, the online text submission is automatically copied into the Feedback Comment box, which you can then edit.

Submission settings

Require students to click submit button: If Yes, students can upload draft versions of their submissions until they click the Submit button to declare their submission as final. They cannot change their submission after they click Submit. If No, students can make changes until assignment due date or even after if the cut-off date is not enabled.

Require students accept submission statement: If Yes, students must click to accept the following statement before submitting: "This assignment is my own work, except where I have acknowledged the use of the works of other people."

Attempts reopened: Default is Never; however, an instructor can set this to Manually and reopen it themselves to allow specific students to resubmit. If set to "automatically until pass" the student must then keep resubmitting until they get a passing grade. The Maximum attempts setting can limit the number of resubmissions even if a passing grade is not achieved.

Group Submission settings

IMPORTANT: Please ensure that all students are in groups and, if you have more than one set of groups, all groups are in a grouping before submissions are made. Please see our help guide on how to Create Groups and Groupings.

Students submit in groups: If set to Yes, students submit to the assignment in groups. Only one group member needs to submit for the group. When grading, the instructor can assign a common grade and feedback to the entire group, or elect to give individual grades.

Require group to make submission: If set to Yes, students that are not in a group cannot submit.

Require all group members submit: Only enabled if "Require students click submit button" was selected in Submission Settings (above). If set to Yes, all group members must go to the assignment and click the submit button for assignment to be recorded as submitted.

Grouping for student groups: Select the grouping from the dropdown.

Notifications

Notify graders about submissions: If set to Yes, graders will receive a message each time a student submits to this assignment. By default messages generate an email notification.

Notify graders about late submission: If set to Yes, graders will receive a message each time a student submits late to this assignment.

Default setting for "Notify students": On the grading form for each student there is a checkbox for "Notify student." If checked, the student is notified via email that they have feedback. This setting determines the default for that setting.

Grade

Type: If this is an ungraded assignment, set this to None. If it is a graded assignment, leave the default Point.

Maximum Grade: Enter the maximum point value for this assignment.

Grading method: If you want to create and grade by with a rubric or grading guide, change the grading method from "Simple direct grading" to Rubric or Grading Guide. When you finish editing the settings and save, you will be need to go to the Advanced grading screen to create a rubric or grading guide. Please see our help guide on how to Add a Rubric/Grading Guide to an Assignment.

Grade category: If you have created categories in your gradebook, use the dropdown menu to select the appropriate category for this assignment.

Grade to pass (optional): If this setting is used, grades above the entered number will be green in the gradebook (on the grader report page), while grades below will be red. Only instructors will see these colors.

Blind grading: If enabled, the grader will not see the names of students who have submitted. Instead, they will see randomly generated numbers. Grades are not released to the gradebook until the identities are revealed.

Grading Workflow: If enabled, grades go through several steps before being released to students. This can be useful if there are multiple graders.

Use Grading Allocation: Only available if Grading Workflow is enabled. If enabled, graders can be assigned to particular students.

Common Module Settings

Group Mode: This allows the submission page to be sorted by groups. If you are having students submit in groups, choose Separate Groups.

Grouping: If you are having students submit in groups, set the grouping.

Additional Files: Add any additional files (template, worksheet, directions, etc.) for the students here.

Restrict Access

Optional: see the faculty help guide on Restrict Access for more information.

Activity Completion

Optional: see the faculty help guide on Activity Completion for more information.