Grading is the most important thing to get right in Canvas. These are the basic steps you need to know.
Setting up the grade book
1. Start by creating assignments. Be sure to specify the points possible.
You create columns in the Canvas grade book by creating assignments. This is done in the Assignments tab in the left-hand navigation.
Canvas automatically calculates a final grade percentage for each student by totaling the number of points the student earns by the total number of points possible for all assignments. Because of this, assignments for which points possible are not specified are treated like extra credit, so be sure to specify the number of points possible for all required assignments.
Assignment types can include standard assignments as well as quizzes and graded discussions.
- For more information about assignments, see How do I use the Assignments Index Page?
- For step-by-step details on creating an assignment, see How do I create an assignment?
2. Use assignment groups for special calculations.
You can organize assignments into assignment groups. Canvas gives options to
- Weight final grades by assignment group (See How do I weight the final course grade based on assignment groups?)
- Add rules to an assignment group, such as dropping the lowest x scores. (See How do I create rules for an assignment group?)
3. Set up a letter-grade scheme in the course settings.
In the course settings, you must specify a grading scheme for Canvas to associate a letter grade with a student's final percentage grade.
- For an overview, see How do I use grading schemes in a course?
- For step-by-step instructions on creating a scheme, see How do I add a grading scheme in a course?
- Once it's created, see How do I enable a grading scheme for a course? to apply it to your course.
- Note that USU does not offer a D- grade, so be sure to remove that from the scheme.
Grading assignments
1. Enter grades using the SpeedGrader or directly in the grade book.
The Canvas SpeedGrader is the primary tool, available with every type of graded assignment, for viewing student submissions and entering scores and comments.
- To get to the SpeedGrader, follow the steps found here: How do I get to SpeedGrader from an assignment, quiz, or graded discussion?
- For details on using the SpeedGrader, see How do I use SpeedGrader?
You can also enter grades directly into the grade book spreadsheet.
To prevent premature notifications to students, set a manual grade posting policy while you grade them. Don't forget to post when you are done. See How do I select a grade posting policy for an assignment in the Gradebook?
2. View student grades, grading history, and more in the grade book.
The grade book itself offers many options to search and filter for specific students, view grading histories, check class averages, and more.
- For details, see How do I use the Gradebook?
3. Give every student a score for every assignment. Don’t leave empty cells.
Canvas shows students their current score, which is their points earned divided by the points possible for the assignments they have received a grade for. This means that a student's score can look higher than it really is if the student doesn't have a score for a missing assignment that is past due. Be sure to give each student a grade for every assignment, even if that score is a 0, if you want students to see an accurate total grade.
Finalizing grades to Banner
1. Double-check your grades. Export to a spreadsheet.
Before you send your grades to Banner,
- Make sure everybody has a score for every assignment.
- Spot check several students to make sure their percentages meet your expectations.
- Make sure letter grades appear accurate.
- Export the grade book. See How do I export grades in the Gradebook?
Make sure the grades in the Current Score and Final Score columns match. The Current Score is what students see. The Final Score is what gets sent to Banner. If they do not match, check for cells with dashes in the grade book and check for muted assignments that need to be unmuted.
2. Sync grades to SIS (Banner).
Once you feel good about your grades, go to the link in the left-hand navigation titled Submit Grades to Banner to submit your grades.
- For step-by-step details, see How to use the Submit Grades to Banner Tool in Canvas
3. Double-check grades in Banner. Enter last date of attendance for F grades.
Once Canvas tells you your grades have been successfully synced to Banner, be sure to login to Banner and spot check a few to be sure.
If any students have received an F grade, be sure to enter that student's last date of attendance in Banner. For online classes, this may be the last time the student logged in according to the Canvas Student Access Report. (See How do I view the course access report for an individual student?)
You have until about 5:00pm every day to change grades in Banner, after which they are rolled to history and must be changed using a change-of-grade request. For more information, see the Registrar's Grading page.
Getting Help
If you need help setting up assignments and grading, scoring assignments, or finalizing grades to Banner, please contact CIDI at 435.797.9506. Dial 1 for a CIDI representative M-F 8am-5pm, or dial 3 for 24/7 phone support provided by Canvas.
Also, be sure to check out all of the Canvas Instructor Guides.