What are some useful settings to consider when grading in my Canvas course?
Answer
1. Assignments correspond to Gradebook Columns.
Each Assignment will create a column within the Course's Gradebook, even if they are no-submission.
2. Check your Gradebook Settings.
It is recommended to check your Gradebook Settings by clicking the button with the gear in the top-right corner of the Gradebook page. Here you can enact universal settings such as specifying a default grade for missing submissions, selecting whether grades are posted automatically as they are graded, and whether to automatically apply a deduction for late assignments.
3. Weight your Final Grade by Assignment Group.
Next to the "+Assignment" button at the top-right of the Assignments Page is a Settings menu indicated by "three dots". Within this menu, there are two useful functions: Edit Assignment Dates and Assignment Group Weights.
Edit Assignment Dates allows you to change the Due Dates of multiple Assignments at once on the same screen.
Assignment Group Weights gives you the ability to Weight your Course's final grade based on Assignment Groups. Once this option is checked, a sub-menu is enabled showing your Assignment Groups with a box next to each where you can input the percentage you would like for each Group to be weighted. It is important that the percentage in the "Total" row be 100% in order to accurately measure the final grade.
4. In order to apply letter grades to a range of grade-by-percentage, set up and enable a course grading scheme.
Within the Course Settings, navigate to the Course Details Tab. There is an option to “Enable Course Grading Scheme”. You can see and use the Default Canvas Grading Scheme or create your own by clicking the "View/Edit" button.