1 of 26

Mini Byte: �Grade Schemes in Brightspace

Welcome

View this topic �on YouTube

2 of 26

In this session you will learn:

What schemes are

Info on grades being imported to SOLAR

How to create a scheme

Different scheme types

How to apply schemes

How to copy schemes

Objectives

3 of 26

A grade scheme enables you to organize learners performance on grade items into levels of achievement (IE: Letter Grades, Pass/Fail, Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory, etc). Schemes can be applied to an entire course or specific grade items, and they can be transferable to multiple courses.

Please reference your syllabus when creating your grade scheme. If you are unsure if your department uses a specific scheme, please contact your department chair.

What are Schemes?

4 of 26

When applying schemes to your gradebook in Brightspace, it is possible to apply the scheme to an entire course, or a specific grade item, including the final grade.

When a final grade has a scheme applied to it, the grade can be imported from Brightspace, into SOLAR to report grades.

Please note however, that the symbol used for the grade, must be an accurate grade used in SOLAR. For more information on prepping your gradebook before importing grades to SOLAR, check out this article.

Important Note

5 of 26

To create a scheme, follow these steps:

Go to Grades

Select Schemes

Choose New Scheme

How to Create a Scheme

1

2

3

6 of 26

Title your scheme

Optionally, you can add a short name

How to Create a Scheme

4

4a

7 of 26

In the Ranges table, you can begin to create your scheme. By default, you will be given three rows in the table to start with.

In the Symbol column of the Ranges table, in descending order, type the lowest to highest possible symbols a student can achieve (IE: For letter grades, the lowest possible symbol would be “F”, the next highest would be “D” or “D-”, etc).

How to Create a Scheme

5

8 of 26

For each row in the Start % column, type the lowest possible score a student would need to achieve each symbol. For example, in row #2 in the image below, a student would need to score at minimum a 60% to receive a D for a letter grade. Then in row #3, a student would need to score at least a 70 to receive a C for a letter grade.

How to Create a Scheme

6

9 of 26

Optionally in the Color column, you can assign a color to each symbol that will be displayed in the gradebook for each grade item.

Please note, you should not make this color visible to students to prevent them feeling discouraged on their grade progress.

How to Create a Scheme

7

10 of 26

In the Assigned Value % column, for each row, you can type in an assigned numerical value for a symbol. This is useful for select box grade items. When using a select box grade item, you can assign your scheme to the grade item and choose which symbol to assign a student. The assigned numerical value typed for each symbol would then be entered for the grade calculation. If you do not type in an assigned value, it will default to show the start percentage for each symbol.

In the example below, if I used a selectbox grade item to give a student a C, they would receive a 75% for their score.

How to Create a Scheme

8

11 of 26

In the Remove column, you can select the trash can icon in each row (except row #1) to remove the row entirely

How to Create a Scheme

9

12 of 26

If you wish to add more rows, you can do so in the Number of Ranges Field. Type the amount of rows you wish to add to the table, and then select Add Ranges. Then you can fill out your remaining desired rows.

When finished, select Save and Close

How to Create a Scheme

10

11

13 of 26

Pass/Fail Example

14 of 26

Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory Example

15 of 26

Letter Grade Example

16 of 26

Letter Grade Example

If your student receives an Incomplete (I) for their grade, you may want to consider applying an I into your scheme, otherwise you will have to manually input an I for a student in SOLAR.

One way you can do this is by setting the first symbol as I. Then the second symbol can be F, and the start percentage can be 1%. So if a student receives a 0 for the course, their grade would display as I. Please note that a grade scheme with an I should only be applied to a final grade column, not an entire gradebook.

17 of 26

To apply a scheme to your entire gradebook, follow these steps:

Go to the Enter Grades tab of your Grades

Select arrow next to the grade item you wish to apply the scheme to

Select Edit

Apply Scheme to Individual Grade Item

1

2

3

18 of 26

In the Grade Scheme area, select the scheme you wish to apply to this grade item

Select Save and Close

Apply Scheme to Individual Grade Item

4

5

19 of 26

To apply a scheme to your entire gradebook, follow these steps:

Go to the Schemes area of your grades

Select the checkmark next to the scheme under the Set As Default column

Apply Scheme to Entire Gradebook

1

2

20 of 26

Confirm your changes to apply to your entire gradebook

Apply Scheme to Entire Gradebook

3

21 of 26

Now each grade displayed for your student will have a symbol from the scheme applied:

Apply Scheme to Entire Gradebook

22 of 26

Go to Grades

Select Settings

Choose Org Unit Display Options

Unselect Grade Scheme Color under Student View Display Options

Hiding Scheme Colors from Students

1

2

3

4

23 of 26

To copy a scheme from one course to another, follow these steps:

Go to the course you wish to copy a scheme into

Select Grades

Choose Schemes

Copying Schemes

2

3

24 of 26

Select More Actions

Choose Copy

This will show you every scheme that is present in each course where you are listed as an instructor.

Select the scheme you wish to copy into your course

Copying Schemes

4

5

6

25 of 26

Type the new name of the scheme that will be applied in the new course

Select Copy to finish

Copying Schemes

7

8

26 of 26

Contact Us

Thank you for attending our workshop!

Join us on Yammer

DoIT

TEL: 631.632.9800

service.stonybrook.edu