Assess Discussion Topic

Owned by Kelsey Hall (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Jun 21, 2024 by Gareth Seymour
4 min read

To grade a Discussion topic the assessment feature must be configured, by default it is not enabled. Instructors can alter the topic settings at any time, and can turn on the assessment feature, even after students have begun posting to the topic. So, if you forgot to do so don't worry!

For details on the Assessment options, and steps to enable it please visit this resource: Create New Forum Topic - Brightspace at Brock Documentation.

Instructors are able to see the authors of anonymous posts, but they are unable to grade anonymous posts. If the posts are going to be graded, instructors may wish to refrain from allowing anonymous posts. Learn more from Creating a new Forum or Creating a new Topic.

When the assessment feature is enabled for a Discussion topic, the icon below will appear under the Topic Title.

A grey prize ribbon image equal to the text height followed by the words Includes Assessment.
Click image to enlarge

How to View Assess Topic

  1. On the navbar, select the Discussions. tool

  2. On the Discussions List page, select the drop-down arrow on the topic to evaluate, then select Assess Topic from the list of options.

    Screenshot of the dropdown menu accessed through the chevron to the right of the forum topic name, highlighting the Assess Topic button.
    Click to enlarge image.

     

  3. On the Assess Topic Page select the Topic Score link beneath the name of the student to assess their topic posts.

  4. In the Evaluation page graders will see all of the students posts in a list. The list includes initial posts and replies.

Steps to Assess Students

  1. Enter the grade/score for each post and add contextual feedback.

  2. Select Save Draft or Publish. We recommended Saving feedback and grades as draft, and then release all student feedback at one time.

  3. Use the arrow buttons to go navigate forward or backwards through the list of students to assess their discussion posts.

  4. When finished grading all students remember to publish feedback or students will not be able to see their grades or any comments made. To easily publish feedback for the entire topic selects the Publish All Feedback button at the top of the Assess Topic page.

In the picture above, all posts are set to be evaluated, and the calculation rule is that the average score amongst all posts will be the assigned topic score.

To enable assessment of individual posts, follow these steps: Go to Discussions > select the drop-down arrow on the topic > select Edit topic> on the Assessment tab > select the Allow assessment of individual posts check box and set the calculation rule. For more information visit Create New Forum Topic for details.

  • To revert, simply clear the check box to assess the topic as a whole.

Views for Grading

This section provides an overview for the different viewing options when grading students work.

  1. Navigate to the Topic you wish to assess and click Assess Topic in the drop-down menu.

  2. Click on Topic Score under the user you want to start grading.

  3. To the right above the students post there will be Filter and Sort buttons.

  1. The Filter button can sort by Post or Score:

  • Post: select Threads to only threads posted by the student, Replies to only see replies posted by the student, or select both or clear to see both Threads and Replies at the same time.

  • Score: select Unscored to only see posts that have not been assigned a score, select Score to only see posts that have been scored, or select both or clear to see both scored and unscored posts.

  1. The Sort button organizes the students posts by Oldest First, Newest First, or Post Subject.

 

 

 

Please contact CPI at edtech@brocku.ca with any questions or comments about the contents of this site.