Assignments

The Assignments tool in Moodle allows you to create an assignment dropbox where students can submit work to you for grading. Students can either type text into the text box or upload files to the file upload box. Moodle can accept almost any filetype. Let students know what the expected file type they should use in the assignment instructions.

Note: Video files must not be uploaded directly as they are too large for the moodle.unbc.ca server. There are special instructions for students submitting video files here.

It is strongly recommended to set up all assignments you intend to accept at the beginning of your course – this lets you set up your moodle.unbc.ca Gradebook and calculated weights to make sure that everything adds up. Use the assignment names that correspond to your Syllabus assignment names to keep everything consistent.

Grading may be by simple points, percentages or custom scales, or more complex rubrics and marking guides may be used. If using Rubrics, contact your CTLT Instructional Designer. If there is an assignment that you wish to accept that is not graded (like a paper outline or draft), simply put 0 in the grade section of the assignment settings. It will create an “assignment dropbox” for students to upload the file and give you a space to provide feedback.

Assignments may be submitted individually or in groups. You are also able to use the Assignment activity when students are not submitting written text or documents to provide the assignment details, due date, enter grades and provide feedback.

Setting Up Assignment Dropboxes:

1. Navigate to your moodle.unbc.ca course
2. Create a Topic heading for Assignments, or go to the Weekly Module where you want your Assignment to appear.
3. Click on “Add Activity or Resource”

4. Select the “Assignment” icon

5. Type in the Assignment name and a short description.

6. Type Assignment Instructions or add files relevant to the assignment.

7. Set the date settings. There are multiple date settings.

“Allow Submissions from” = set this date to only allow submissions starting from this date

“Due Date” = the date the assignment is due, but students will still be able to submit files after this date (they will be marked late)

“Cut-Off Date” = you can enable this date if you do not want to allow any late assignments

“Remind me to grade by” = set this date if you would like a reminder to grade assignments

8. When grading, if you wish to grade the student’s document and re-upload the file as part of their feedback – make sure to check the box that allows you to upload files.

9. Notifications: If you are using graders or TA’s to grade assignments, you may wish to hide their identity from students. Otherwise the student will be notified who graded their assignment.

10. Group Assignments: Groups & a Grouping must be made in advance of setting up a group Assignment Dropbox. Contact your CTLT Instructional Designer and they can help set this up for you.

11. When done creating your assignment, click on “Save and return to course” to save all of your changes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I ask students to verify if the assignment is their own work?

Under the Submission settings heading, you can set the “Require that students accept the submission statement” drop-down list to Yes.

If this is set to yes, then before students can submit their assignment they must check the “This assignment is my own work, except where I have acknowledged the use of the works of other people” checkbox.

What are the group submission settings?

To make these settings visible, first select Yes next to student submit in groups:

Require group to make submission:

If you select Yes, then Moodle will not allow students who are not in a group to submit. They will see a message that says “You’re not a member of any group; please contact your teacher”.

Require all group members submit:

If you select Yes, then all students in that group must click the Submit button to show that they have all signed off on the submission. When one student has selected Submit, then the other members will be able to see who still has to submit.

Grouping for student groups:

Use this field if you are using groups in more than one activity in Moodle.

How do I restrict access to the assignment file?

If you have a detailed assignment description and you do not want students to have access to it until the the allow submission time and date, then you need to uncheck the “Always show description” checkbox under the availability heading.

If you leave it checked then students will have access to the file when they click the assignment to open it, if you uncheck the box they will not.

How do I stop notifications that students have submitted assignments?

Under the notifications heading, ensure the “Notify graders about submission” box is set to No, “No” is the default setting.