Recent Updates

  • There are many options for setting up your Gradebook in Sakai. Most gradebooks fall into one of the following types. Examples of each scenario are provided to help you determine which setup option is the best match for your course.

  • Updated on: Dec 21, 2020

    How do I set up my Gradebook?

    The Gradebook is the hub for all graded activities and points earned in your site. There are several settings you can set up for your site, such as Grade Entry in points/percentages, Grade Release Rules, Categories and Weighting, and Grading Schema.

  • Updated on: Dec 21, 2020

    How are grades calculated in Gradebook?

    Gradebook automatically calculates a course grade based on the number of points scored out of the total points submitted (i.e., a running grade). Ungraded items will not be included in the course grade calculation, so the course grade will not necessarily reflect the student's true score. To include ungraded items in the course grade calculation, you need to enter a 0 (zero) for those items.

    To exclude a gradebook item from the course grade, you can edit the gradebook item and deselect Include this item in course grade calculations. The score for that item will appear in parentheses to indicate that it is not included in the course grade calculation.

    Extra credit points are excluded from the total possible points available, but included in student grade calculations for points awarded. See How does extra credit work in Gradebook? for more information on extra credit gradebook items and categories.

    Note: Students can't see their grades for an item unless you select Release this item to students when editing the gradebook item.

  • Updated on: Dec 21, 2020

    How do I add items to the Gradebook?

  • Gradebook allows instructors to calculate and store grade information for items that are completed either online or offline.  Manually added items may be entered and edited directly within the Gradebook interface.  

    Note: Grades that are being sent to the Gradebook from other tools, such as Assignments or Tests & Quizzes, are managed within their respective tools. You do not need to enter or edit them via the Gradebook.

  • The Gradebook offers several enhanced features for ease of navigation and information display. To access these and other features of the Gradebook:

  • Updated on: Dec 21, 2020

    What is Gradebook?

    Gradebook (previously known as GradebookNG) is a new core tool for instructors to calculate and store grade information and distribute it to students online. It has been designed based on the same back-end as the Gradebook Classic tool, but with a number of new features and enhancements.

    The following provides a high-level overview of the functional requirements guiding the development of the enhanced Gradebook.

    • Editable Spreadsheet View: The default “Grades” view within the gradebook will be replaced by an editable spreadsheet view, wherein gradebook items will be displayed as a series of columns. The layout and data-entry process will be familiar to users of modern spreadsheet applications such as Excel and Google Sheets. Gradebook actions will be available within the context of dropdowns in spreadsheet cells and columns. Modal windows (lightboxes) will be used for entering and editing information, thereby maintaining a sense of continuity and place for users.
    • Automatic Saving/Data Validation: Changes to data within the spreadsheet view will be automatically saved, with clear feedback confirming to users that their data has been saved. The interface will also provide data validation feedback.
    • New Course Grade Display Options: Course grades will benefit from additional display options. Instructors will have the option of displaying course grades to students as letter grades, percentages, points, or combinations thereof.
    • Student Summary View: Within the spreadsheet view, instructors will be able to view a gradebook item summary for each student. This view will display grade information solely for the selected student, providing an overview of the student’s grades in a vertical orientation whilst obscuring the grade data of other students.
    • Enhanced Import/Export Process: The existing Import/Export process will be simplified and consolidated into one page. The improved workflow will allow instructors to update existing gradebook items/comments and add new gradebook items in bulk. Users will also be able to export the gradebook as they can today.

    In Gradebook, Students can view their scores for all items; view their course grades, once an instructor releases them; and sort their items by title, due date, grade, and weight, where applicable.

    Gradebook is section aware, so teaching assistants can see grades only for students in their assigned sections.

    Using Gradebook, instructors can:

    • Auto-calculate course grades, with the ability to override any course grade.
    • Define course letter grades based on a 100% scale.
    • Choose between point- or percentage-based grading.
    • Add gradebook items for manually graded or offline activities.
    • Create categories to organize items and allow for weighting of grades.
    • Enter, view, edit, and release to students scores, grades, and comments.
    • Collect and display scores from tools such as Tests & Quizzes, Assignments, and Forums.
    • Export scores and grades to Microsoft Excel (in XLS format).
    • Import item scores from spreadsheet (CSV) files.
    • Export a printer-friendly (PDF) version of student grades.
    • Drop grades or keep the highest grades in a category.
    • Specify items or categories as extra credit.
  • Updated on: Dec 21, 2020

    How do I modify forum template settings?

    Template Settings control the default settings of each created forum. These settings can be overridden for a specific forum or topic, but must be manually changed after the default settings template is created.

  • Updated on: Dec 21, 2020

    How do I watch or subscribe to forums?

    In order to stay notified of recent posts on a forum, the Watch option is helpful in doing so.

    Note: New post notifications will be sent to the user's external/institutional email address, not via the Messages tool.