Summary
Streamline grading, stay organized, and maintain control by customizing your Canvas Gradebook to fit your teaching style. This article will guide you through customizing your Gradebook in Canvas, including dragging and dropping columns, adjusting view settings, hiding grades, and more.
Body
Summary
Streamline grading, stay organized, and maintain control by customizing your Canvas Gradebook to fit your teaching style. This article will guide you through customizing your Gradebook in Canvas, including dragging and dropping columns, adjusting view settings, hiding grades, and more.
Environment
Canvas
Content
The Canvas Gradebook is a powerful tool for managing student performance, but its default layout may not always fit your teaching style or course needs. Customizing the Gradebook helps instructors streamline grading workflows, improve clarity, and maintain control over grade visibility. This guide explains why customization matters and highlights key features you can use.
Why Customize the Gradebook?
- Efficiency: Organize columns and views to reduce time spent searching for assignments or student data.
- Clarity: Highlight important information and filter out distractions for a cleaner interface.
- Control: Decide when and how students see their grades, ensuring fairness and accuracy.
- Personalization: Adapt the Gradebook to match your grading policies and instructional approach.
Canvas Gradebook Customization Checklist
Before You Begin
- Review your course grading policy and decide on visibility settings for students.
- Confirm assignment groups and grading schemes are set up correctly.
Organize Your Gradebook
- Drag and Drop Columns - Rearrange assignment columns to prioritize grading tasks or group similar assignments.
- Sort Columns - Sort by due date, assignment group, or point value for easier navigation.
Adjust Views
- Switch Views - Toggle between Individual Student View and Assignment View as needed.
- Apply Filters - Filter by sections, modules, or assignment groups to reduce clutter.
Control Grade Visibility
- Hide Grades While Grading - Use the “Hide Grades” option to prevent students from seeing incomplete scores.
- Post Grades When Ready - Release grades manually or automatically based on your posting policy.
- Set Posting Policies - Choose manual or automatic posting for each assignment.
Enhance Clarity
- Customize Status Colors - Adjust colors for late, missing, or excused submissions for quick identification.
- Enable Notes Column - Add private notes for student-specific reminders or progress tracking.
- Adjust Total Column - Show or hide the Total column and choose points or percentage display.
Final Check
- Communicate grade posting policies to students.
- Verify all settings before releasing grades.
Key Customization Features and How They Help
- Drag and Drop Columns - Rearrange assignment columns to prioritize grading tasks or group similar assignments together. This makes navigation faster and grading more intuitive.
- Adjust View Settings - Switch between Individual Student View or Assignment View and apply filters for sections, modules, or assignment groups. These options help you focus on specific subsets of data without visual clutter.
- Hide or Post Grades - Control grade visibility by hiding scores during grading and posting them when ready. This prevents students from seeing incomplete or inaccurate grades.
- Apply Grade Posting Policies - Choose manual or automatic posting policies for assignments. Manual posting gives you full control over timing, while automatic posting shares grades immediately after entry.
- Sort and Filter Columns - Sort columns by due date, assignment group, or point value. Use filters to display only certain sections or statuses (e.g., late submissions) for streamlined grading.
- Customize Status Colors - Change color indicators for late, missing, or excused submissions. These visual cues help you quickly identify students who need follow-up.
- Use Notes Column - Add private notes for each student to track progress, reminders, or accommodations. Notes are visible only to instructors and support personalized feedback.
- Enable Total Column Adjustments - Show or hide the Total column and choose whether to display totals as points or percentages. This flexibility helps align with your grading policy.
Best Practices
- Review your Gradebook settings at the start of each term.
- Communicate grade posting policies to students for transparency.
- Use filters and color coding to quickly identify grading priorities.
Additional Resources
Need Additional Information?
On behalf of OIT’s Instructional Design and Technology (IDT) team, we hope this tutorial is useful. If you encounter any difficulties or have questions related to this procedure, please contact our colleagues in OIT’s Support Center to have a help ticket created and assigned to the IDT team. You may contact the Support Center via email (supportcenter@uhcl.edu) or by telephone (281.283.2828). Once we receive your inquiry, a member of the IDT team will contact you as quickly as resources permit.