1. Creating an Assignment
    1. Creating an Assignment with Limited File Types
  2. Adding an Existing Assignment to a Module/Submodule
  3. Assignment Settings
    1. Adding Availability Dates and Conditions 
    2. Managing Special Access
    3. Adding Submission & Completion  
    4. Adding Evaluation & Feedback 
    5. Preview Assignments
  4. Editing Assignments
    1. Edit Assignment Settings
    2. Delete an Assignment
    3. Copy an Assignment
    4. Hide an Assignment
  5. Viewing Assignment Submissions
    1. View Student Submissions
    2. View Submission Log
    3. Restore a Deleted Submission
    4. Grant an Assignment Extension (Special Access)

An Assignment can be added to a D2L Brightspace course for online or offline student submissions. By adding an Assignment to a course page, the instructor creates a submission link that students click to submit electronic files (File Submission) or to type text in a text editor (Text Submission). 

NOTE:
 Student assignment submissions can be graded through the Progress link in the Navbar. You have the choice of grading through either Grades or the Quick Eval tool. For more information on how to grade assignments, visit the Grading pages (coming soon).

Watch the video tutorial below for an overview of how to create assignments in Brightspace

Creating an Assignment

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Content.         
    NOTE: You can also access the assignment tool through the Tools menu. When you create an assignment via Tools, students will only be able to access the assignment through the Tools menu in your course navbar. The assignment will not be visible in the content area of your course page unless you add it to a module/submodule using the existing activities menu.
  4. In the left sidebar under Table of Contents, click on the module/week section where you’d like to add the assignment (Week 1 is an example of a module in the image below). Alternatively, you can scroll down the Table of Contents page to locate the module/sub-module you want to add an assignment to.  For instructions on how to add a new module or sub-module to your course, see the Adding Modules and Sub-modules page.                                 
  5. Click the Upload/Create button.
  6. In the drop-down menu, select New Assignment.
  7. You will be taken to the New Assignment page where you can customize your assignment settings.
  8. Enter a Name for the assignment. 
  9. Click Ungraded to expand the grading settings.
  10. Enter a grade value in the points field.
  11. An In Grades drop-down menu will appear where you can select Choose from Grades to add an item to the course gradebook. In the Choose from grades pop-up window, you have the following options:
    • In Gradebook will be selected by default, meaning a new assignment grade item will be added to your gradebook. If you have set up categories in the gradebook, you will be able to select it from the Grade Category dropdown menu.
    • Edit or link to Existing allows you to link your assignment to a grade item you have already added to your gradebook. If you have already created a grade item for your assignment, you can select it from the drop-down menu.
    • Not in Gradebook – Choose this option if you do not want your assignment to appear in the gradebook.
    • Reset to Ungraded – If you do not want to create a graded assignment, you can reset to ungraded using this option.
  12. Enter a Due Date for the assignment. This date will automatically be added to your course Calendar. 
  13. Add assignment instructions (optional).  In the HTML Editor, you can format or attach/embed files or media to your assignment instructions using the insert stuff , insert quicklink , and insert image buttons.
  14. To add attachments, click the icons below to add File Uploads (attachments).
    TIP: You can hover your cursor over the attachment icons to view what each option attaches.
  15. Record audio or video, if needed. 
  16. On the right side of the page, you can click the arrows to expand the Availability Dates & Conditions, Submission & Completion or Evaluation & Feedback settings. Click on the links below for more information on the settings options for each section.
    • Availability Dates and Conditions – This section includes Start and End Dates, Release Conditions, and Special Access.
    • Submission & Completion – This section includes settings for the assignment type (individual or groups) and file submission type (file, text, on paper, observed in person). You can also customize how many files are allowed per submission and restrict file extensions for submissions.
    • Evaluation & Feedback – This section includes options for adding rubrics and learning objectives. You can also enable/disable annotation tools and anonymous marking.
  17. Click the Visibility toggle to make the assignment visible, otherwise it will remain hidden from students. The toggle will appear greyed out with a crossed out eye icon when hidden, and blue with an open eye icon when visible   
  18. Click Save and Close. You will be taken back to the Assignments page.  

Creating an Assignment with Limited File Types

You can restrict which file extensions (i.e. .pdf)  can be uploaded as assignment submissions. When this restriction is enabled, students are presented with a list of acceptable file extensions for their assignments. If a student uploads a file that does not have the specified file extension selected by the instructor, an error message will appear indicating that the file type is invalid.

  1. Follow steps 1-6 above.
  2. You will see the New Assignment page where you can customize your assignment settings.
  3. Enter a Name for the assignment. 
  4. Enter a grade value in the Score Out Of field.
  5. Click Due Date to add a due date for the assignment. This date will automatically be added to your course Calendar. 
  6. Add assignment instructions (optional).  In the HTML Editor, you can format or attach/embed files or media to your assignment instructions using the insert stuff , insert quicklink , and insert image buttons.
  7. Click Submission and Completion to expand the submission settings in the side panel.
  8. Under Allowable File Extensions, click No Restrictions to expand the drop-down menu.
  9. Select one of the following file types:
    • Annotatable files: This option includes all file types that are supported by the Annotation tool in Assignments. For more information, see File types supported by Annotations.
    • .PDF only
    • Files that can be previewed without any conversion: This option includes file types such as .HTM, .HTML, .MHT, .MHTML, and .BMP
    • Images and videos
    • Custom file typesIf this option is selected, you will be prompted to enter one or more allowable file extensions.
  10. Customize your assignment settings by clicking the arrows to expand the Availability Dates & Conditions, Submission & Completion or Evaluation & Feedback settings. Click on the links below for more information on the settings options for each section.
    • Availability Dates and Conditions – This section includes Start and End Dates, Release Conditions, and Special Access.
    • Submission & Completion – This section includes settings for the assignment type (individual or groups) and file submission type (file, text, on paper, observed in person). You can also customize how many files are allowed per submission and restrict file extensions for submissions.
    • Evaluation & Feedback – This section includes options for adding rubrics and learning objectives. You can also enable/disable annotation tools and anonymous marking.                                                 
  11. Click the Visibility toggle to make the assignment visible, otherwise it will remain hidden from students. The toggle will appear greyed out with a crossed out eye icon when hidden, and blue with an open eye icon when visible   
  12. Click Save and Close. You will be taken back to the Assignments page.  

Adding an Existing Assignment to a Module/Submodule

If you have created an assignment via the Tools menu in your course navbar, it will not appear in the content area of your course unless you add the existing assignment to a module or submodule.

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Content.
  4. In the left sidebar under Table of Contents, click on the module/week section where you’d like to add the Assignment (Week 1 is an example of a module in the image below). Alternatively, you can scroll down the Table of Contents page to locate the module/sub-module you want to add an assignment to.  For instructions on how to add a new module or sub-module to your course, see the Adding Modules and Sub-modules page.                                           
  5. Click Existing Activities, then select Assignments in the drop-down menu.
  6. In the Add Activity pop-up window, select the assignment you want to add to the module/submodule.

The assignment will now appear as a link in your module or sub-module (see example below)

Assignment Settings

Adding Availability Dates and Conditions 

  • Start Date: The date from which students can start submitting their assignment.                                                               
  • End Date: The date when assignment submissions will no longer be accepted. 

When a Start/End Date is set, a description of the visibility setting will appear below. Click on the description to select from the following options:

  • Visible with access restricted. Students can see that the assignment exists. But they cannot view the instructions, rubrics, and attached files or make a submission.
  • Visible with submission restricted. Students can open the assignment to view the instructions, rubrics, and attached files. But they cannot make a submission.
  • Hidden. Students cannot see the assignment listed at all.     

Place a checkmark in the Add availability dates to Calendar to automatically create events for the Start/End Date in the Brightspace Calendar.

  • Release Conditions: Creating or adding release conditionto assignments means students will not be able to view the assignment unless they meet the release conditions. For more instructions on creating release conditions in Brightspace, see the Creating Release Conditions page.                                              
    • To add a release condition
      1. Click Add Release Condition 
      2. Choose either Add Existing or Create New. 
      3. Click Create New and a pop-up window will open. 
      4. Select the Condition Type from the dropdown menu. 
      5. Select the Condition Details from the dropdown menu. Additional steps will vary depending on the Condition Type selected. 
      6. Click Create. 
  • Special Access: Creating special conditions for users such as user overrides means assignments will be available to only a select group of users or individualized due dates for certain users. These conditions are equivalent to Overrides in cuLearn and they are needed for students with PMC accomodations. 

    Managing Special Access

    1. Locate the assignment you want to edit and click the arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.
    2. In the drop-down menu, select Edit Assignment.
    3. Click Availability Dates & Conditions.
    4. Click Manage Special Access. 
    5. Choose either Allow users with special access to submit outside of the normal availability dates for this folder or Allow only users with special access to see this folder.
    6. Click Add Users to Special Access. A pop-up window will open. 
    7. Add specific dates as needed (due date, start date, end date) 
    8. Scroll down to Users.
    9. Select specific users. 
    10. Click Save to close the pop-up window. 

Adding Submission & Completion  

  • Assignment Type: The default is Individual Assignment. If groups have been created, then Group Assignment will become the second option. Selecting this option leads to a choice of Group Category with a dropdown menu to select the group.                                                                                           
  • Submission Type: There are four options:  
    • File submission: Students submit a file or files which includes any digital content, such as word-processed documents, spreadsheets, images, or audio and video clips through the Brightspace system.  
    • Text submission: Students type text directly into the text editor inside of Brightspace.  
    • On paper submission: Students submit a paper copy in person. 
    • Observed in person: Students will be graded for work that is observed in person. 
  • SubmissionsThe default is to keep all submissions, but you can also choose to allow only one submission, or to keep only the most recent submission.                                                          
  • Allowable File Extensions: You can restrict which file extensions (i.e. .pdf)  can be uploaded as assignment submissions. When this restriction is enabled, students are presented with a list of acceptable file extensions for their assignments. If a student uploads a file that does not have the specified file extension selected by the instructor, an error message will appear indicating that the file type is invalid. You can choose from the following file restriction options:
    • Annotatable files: This option includes all file types that are supported by the Annotation tool in Assignments. For more information, see File types supported by Annotations..
    • .PDF only
    • Files that can be previewed without any conversion: This option includes file types such as .HTM, .HTML, .MHT, .MHTML, and .BMP
    • Images and videos
    • Custom filetypesIf this option is selected, you will be prompted to enter one or more allowable file extensions.                                                                                
  • Notification EmailThere is an option to receive an email notification when an assignment is submitted. Enter an email or multiple emails separated by a comma, to receive notifications when an assignment is submitted.

Adding Evaluation & Feedback 

  • Rubrics: You have the option to add a rubric to your assignment. Two types of rubric are available: Analytic or Holistic
  • Learning Objectives
  • Annotation ToolsThe default is for the annotation tools to be available for grading. You can deselect the checkbox to disable annotation tools.
  • Anonymous Marking: The default is for this to be unchecked but checking the box will hide student names during assessment. 

 

Preview Assignments

You can preview an assignment to view how students see your assignment submission page. When previewing an assignment, you can upload a test file and grade your test submission. If you are using a rubric for your assignment, you can view how the rubric appears to students. 

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Click the More Actions button.
  6. Select Preview from the drop-down menu.   
  7.  Click the assignment you wish to preview. You will now see a preview of the assignment submission page.
  8. To submit an assignment, click Add a File and select the file you wish to upload.
  9. Click the Allow this preview submission to be available in the folder checkbox
  10. Click Submit. You will receive an email notification confirming that your submission was successful.
  11. To exit preview mode, click Exit Preview.

To view a Preview Submission:

  1. Click the arrow next to the assignment.
  2. Select View Submissions.
  3. Click Show Search Options.                                               
  4. Click the drop-down menu under Submissions and select Users with Submissions.
  5. Click the magnifying glass icon to update your search results.
  6. You will now see a list of preview submissions. Click on a submission to view the file.

Editing Assignments

Edit Assignment Settings

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Locate the assignment you want to edit in the Assignments table and click the downwards arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.             
  6. In the drop-down menu, select Edit Assignment.
  7. You will be taken to the Assignment page where you can adjust your assignment settings. See the Assignment Settings section above for more information about Availability Dates and Conditions, Adding Submission and Completion, and Evaluation and Feedback.
  8. When you are finished editing your settings, click Save and Close.

Delete an Assignment

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Locate the assignment you want to edit in the Assignments table and click the downwards arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.
  6. In the drop-down menu, select Delete Assignment.
  7. You will be prompted to confirm that you want to delete the selected assignment and all associated files. Click Delete.

Copy an Assignment

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools in the course Navbar.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Locate the assignment you want to edit in the Assignments table and click the downwards arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.
  6. In the drop-down menu, select Copy Assignment.
  7. A copy of your assignment will appear on the Assignment page as Copy of (assignment name) (see example below)                                                                                                                     

Hide an Assignment

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Locate the assignment you want to edit in the Assignments table and click the arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.
  6. In the drop-down menu, select Hide from Users.
  7. A crossed out eye icon will appear next to your assignment name indicating the you assignment is hidden from students (see example below)                                                                                         
    NOTE: You can make your assignment visible by clicking the arrow next to your assignment name and selecting Make visible to Users.

Viewing Assignment Submissions

View Student Submissions

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Locate the assignment  in the Assignments table and click the arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.
  6. In the drop-down menu, select View Submissions
  7. Under the Users Tab or Submissions Tab, you can search for a student’s name or view a table listing all students in the course.                               
    TIP: You can filter your search options (i.e. view only those students or groups who have submitted an assignment, view only late submissions, etc)) by clicking Show Search Options to the right of the search field.

View Submission Log

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Locate the assignment  in the Assignments table and click the arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.
  6. In the drop-down menu, select Submission Log.
  7. You will see a Table displaying submission details for all submitted assignments.

Restore a Deleted Submission

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Locate the assignment  in the Assignments table and click the arrow to expand the assignment actions menu.
  6. In the drop-down menu, select Submission Log.
  7. Click the Deleted link.                                                                 
  8. Click Restore for the deleted submission you wish to restore. The submission will automatically appear in the assignment submission overview.

Grant an Assignment Extension (Special Access)

  1. Log in to Brightspace using your MyCarletonOne credentials. 
  2. On the Brightspace homepage, locate your course in one of the following ways:
      • Click on the course tile under the My Courses widget.
      • Click the Course Selector Grid  and select the course from the drop-down menu. If you are enrolled in more than 20 courses, you can search for the course name using the search bar.
  3. In the navbar, click Tools.       
  4. In the drop-down menu, select Assignments.
  5. Click the arrow next to the assignment name and select Edit Assignment.
  6. Click Availability Dates and Conditions.
  7. Click Manage Special Access.
  8. Select the Allow users with special access to submit outside the normal availability dates for this folder option.                                 
  9. Click Add Users to Special Access.
  10. In the Special Access pop-up window, enter the following:
    • Adjust the due date for the assignment extension.
    • Select the name of the student you want to grant an extension for.
    • Click Save.
  11. You will see name of the student and the due date listed on the Manage Special Access page. Click Save and Close to return to the Edit Assignment page.

The number of users who can submit outside normal availability dates will be indicated next to the Key icon under Special Access (see example below).             

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