Sakai Gradebook and help

Instructors who have been using Blackboard’s Grade Center may find that Sakai’s Gradebook is quite different.

In Blackboard

Instructors can use Bb Grade Center to manage student records of assignments, tests, and participation. Basic functions include collecting assignments, giving feedback, viewing answers, adding grades, clearing attempts and so on. When they create an assignment via Blackboard’s Assignment feature, the assignment’s entry is automatically added to the Grade Center.

In Sakai

Unlike in Blackboard, most grading takes place in individual tools instead of through the Grade Center. Instructors create, collect, comment, and grade assignments via the Assignments tool, and tests via the Tests and Quizzes tool. They mostly need to use the Gradebook to calculate and store grade information, enter manual grades such as attendance, choose how/when to distribute it to their students online, and export official grades to STORM.

When instructors create new assignments and tests, they must check “Add to the Gradebook” to add an entry to Gradebook and have the grades sent automatically.

What you need to know

Grades and gradebook settings from a previous Blackboard course will not migrate into the Sakai gradebook, and instructors are encouraged to download grades as needed via Blackboard.

FAQs and Workshop for assignments, assessments and gradebook

Tip – How can I allow a student to take (or retake) a test after the due date?

If you want your students to take (for the first time) a test after due date, you can reset the due date and set up a password so that those who have the password can take it.

If you want students to retake a test after the due date, you need to make sure the “Retract Date” in the test’s “Delivery Dates” is a future date. IMPORTANT: Sakai will not allow students to retake a test if the test is not set up to accept submissions after the current time/date.

You can adjust the Retract Date via the Tests and Quizzes > Published Copies > Settings > Delivery Dates

Set the permissions to allow student to retake the test:

  • go to Tests and Quizzes > Published Copies,
  • find the test, and from the Select Action pull-down menu choose “Score“and then,
  • click on Submission Status, to locate the student’s name,
  • click on “Allow retake?” for each of the individual students. See the screenshot below.

After you have done that, these students will be able to retake the test prior to the retract date.