Saving Time and Effort by Putting the Blackboard ‘Assignments’ Feature to Work for You

1. Saving Time and Effort by Putting the Blackboard ‘Assignments’ Feature to Work for You Presented for CSUEB Faculty Jodi Servatius, Professor Emerita Richard Cartwright, Program Assistant, OLP Blackboard Fall Workshops September 14, 2005

2. By the end of this session you will … • Be able to identify the major features of “Assignments” in Bb • Be able to contrast the features of “Assignments” with those of the “Drop Box” • Be able to identify the ways in which Bb’s “Assignments” feature can save an instructor time and effort • Be able to set up “Assignments” for a course you are planning to teach

3. Using Drop Box Open Drop Box Select student paper Open Check file label Save to hard drive Read, grade, write comments Email paper/comments Put grade in Gradebook Using “Assignments” Select assignment from Gradebook Select first student paper All from this ONE page, you: Read Grade Comment Return to student Automatically record grade Comparing Methods of Grading

4. How to Use “Assignments” • In order to grade student Assignments, go to the Gradebook, which is located in the Control Panel. • Locate the assignment column you wish to work on. • To downloadall student assignments in one convenient operation, select the assignment title at the top of the column. • Select Item Download on the next page. Use the checkboxes to download any and all assignments you want. Note: There will be a corresponding text file to each file you download. This file contains all pertinent student information and any student comments regarding the assignment.

5. How to Use “Assignments” • When you are ready to provide grades, and possibly even feedback, return to the gradebook to begin grading. When a student has submitted an assignment to you for grading, an exclamation point will appear in the gradebook under the assignment column and in the row that corresponds to the student’s name. Simply select the exclamation point to access the Modify Grade screen. Then select Viewto access the Grade Assignment screen. • The Grade box is where you can enter the grade for the assignment. Just type over the exclamation point.

6. How to Use “Assignments” • In the Feedback box you can provide feedback to your student, or even send an attachment along with the grade. For instance, you may choose to use this method to send a corrected paper draft back to your student. • In the Instructor Notes section you can leave notes for yourself regarding the assignment. You may also leave yourself an attachment. Note: The student will not see or have access to anything in the Instructor Notes section. It is for your own personal records. • When you are ready, select Submit to send the grade and any feedback you may choose to send to your student. Note: The grade will also automatically be recorded in the gradebook.

7. How to Set Up “Assignments” • Navigate to the area in your course you would like to place your Assignment in. • From the dropdown menu near the top right of the content screen, select Assignmentand select GO. • In the Content Information section enter a name for the assignment and any directions you may choose to include.

8. How to Set Up “Assignments” • Under Availability Options you can choose to make an assignment visible to your students, beginning when and for how long. You may also choose to track student views of your assignment. • The Assignment Attachmentsgives you the option of attaching a file to the assignment for your students. You might use this to provide them with a document which they will modify as part of the assignment. • Select Submit. And that’s all there is to it.

9. For future reference… • The presentation material from today will be available at the Faculty Development website: http://matsone.csuhayward.edu/faculty_dev/res_ofd/wrkshp_handouts.shtml -or- http://matsone.csueastbay.edu/faculty_dev/res_ofd/wrkshp_handouts.shtml