assignment group canvas

Use Weighted Assignment Groups in Your Canvas Course

by Thomas Keith | Aug 26, 2022 | Canvas , Canvas Features/Functions , How-tos , Pedagogy

Introduction

• Create an Assignment Group

Weight Assignment Groups

Use weighted assignment groups to calculate the total grade, drop a low score from an assignment group, further resources and getting help.

It is good pedagogical practice to maintain a Canvas Gradebook that gives an accurate reflection of your students’ performance. Students frequently consult their grades in Canvas to get a sense of how they are doing in your course and of areas in which they need to improve. You can use weighted Assignment Groups in your Canvas course to help ensure that the grade calculated by Canvas is indicative of students’ actual performance.

Create An Assignment Group

An Assignment Group in Canvas is a means of sorting assignments according to the categories to which they belong in your syllabus. By default, new assignments created in your Canvas course will be added to a catch-all group called Assignments . (Note that “assignments” in this context refers to anything that is graded; this can be an Assignment proper, a Quiz, or a graded Discussion.)

You can create a new Assignment Group by going to the Assignments tab in your course and clicking the gray +Group button at the upper right.

It is a good idea to give your group a name that reflects the assessment categories on your syllabus. For example, if the group contains quizzes that are given each week of the quarter, you might call it Weekly Quizzes .

Once a group has been created, there are two ways to add assignments to it:

Assignment Groups are most useful when used to weight grades. With weighted Assignment Groups, you can make the organization of your assignments in Canvas match the organization used on your syllabus. You also have greater flexibility than is offered by weighting each individual assignment: if an assignment needs to be dropped or added, you can simply remove it from/add it to the appropriate assignment group, and Canvas will automatically recalculate the final grade accordingly.

For the remainder of this post, we will use as an example a course in which the grading is as follows:

• Five short quizzes: 20% of the final grade
• One midterm exam: 30% of the final grade
• One final exam: 40% of the final grade
• Attendance and participation: 10% of the final grade

To begin, the instructor creates four assignment groups, named Short Quizzes , Midterm , Final Exam , and Attendance and Participation .

She then clicks the column of three dots at the upper right and chooses Assignment Groups Weight .

She then checks the box next to Weight final grade based on assignment groups . This allows her to set the percentage weight for each assignment group.

Note that Canvas shows the instructor that the assignment groups add up to 100%. It is important to check this, as Canvas will not stop you if your groups add up to less than or greater than 100%.

Once the instructor has weighted her groups to her satisfaction, she clicks the maroon Save button. Canvas then indicates across from each assignment group’s name the percentage value of the total grade that it carries.

The instructor can now create her assignments and add them to the appropriate assignment groups by one of the two methods enumerated above.

An important caveat: If an assignment group contains more than one assignment, it is important that all assignments have the same point value for Canvas’ math to work out correctly. This avoids the risk of “double weighting,” which will occur if assignments within a group have different point values. For example: if a quiz worth 5 points and a quiz worth 50 points are placed in the same assignment group, the latter quiz will be worth ten times as much in Canvas’ calculations, which will greatly skew the result. In our example course, the instructor has avoided this risk by creating five quizzes within the Short Quizzes group, each of which is worth three points.

The Midterm and Final Exam groups each contain only one assignment. This can be an assignment of type Online Assignment if the instructor wishes her students to submit it through Canvas, or it can be an assignment of type On Paper if students will hand in a physical exam paper.

For the Attendance and Participation group, the instructor creates an assignment of type No Submission .

Remember that in Canvas, there is a one-to-one correspondence between assignments and columns in the Gradebook. Thus, if you wish to create a column for (e.g.) students’ attendance/participation grade, it is necessary to create a corresponding assignment. By making it of type No Submission , the instructor has ensured that students do not need to hand in any work, while still creating a Gradebook column where the grade is recorded.

Note also that if students need to submit work that will not be graded, such as an outline for an upcoming paper, you can create an assignment of submission type Online Assignment and check the box Do not count this assignment toward the final grade in the assignment options area.

Using weighted assignment groups allows Canvas to do your math for you. A column will appear in the Gradebook for each assignment group. The Total column will be calculated by multiplying the value of each column by its percentage weight and adding the results. In the case of the student below, the grade is calculated as follows:

Short Quizzes: 12 out of 15 possible points = 80 * 0.2 = 16

Midterm Exam: 90 out of 100 possible points = 90*0.3 = 27

Final Exam: 80 out of 100 possible points = 80*0.4 = 32

Attendance and Participation: 100 out of 100 possible points = 100*0.1 = 10

Total: 16+27+32+10 = 85

If you wish, you can set an assignment group to drop one or more low scores (or high scores) automatically. To do this, go to the group within the Assignments tab and click on the column of three dots across from its name to open a dialog box. Then enter the number of low or high scores you wish to drop and click Save .

You can also specify that an assignment should never be dropped by clicking the blue +Add an assignment link next to Never drop: and choosing its name from the drop-down that appears.

For more information, please see:

• How do I weight the final course grade based on assignment groups?
• How do I create rules for an assignment group?

If you have additional questions, Academic Technology Solutions is here to help. You can attend our workshops to learn more about Canvas and other tools for teaching with technology. You can also drop into our Office Hours (virtual and in-person) to ask any questions you may have; no appointment is required.

(Cover Photo by Piret Ilver on Unsplash )

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• Assignment Groups

How Do I Use Assignment Groups in Canvas?

In Canvas, assignment groups allow you to organize your assignments into discrete groups. For example, you may want to group all the essay assignments in your course within one assignment group titled ‘Essays’.

Assignment groups allow you to leverage a weighted grade scheme in your Canvas course. A weighted grade scheme allows you to distribute percentages of a student’s final grade across these assignment groups. Following our previous example, you may want the Essays group to account for 30% of the final grade. 

By default, Grade weighting is turned off for all Canvas courses. To turn on Grade weighting, please follow Canvas’ tutorial for weighting final grades based on Assignment Groups.

How do grade weights get distributed across an Assignment Group?

In Canvas, the weight of an assignment group is distributed proportionally across the assignments inside it. Because of this, assignments worth different points will be weighted differently if they are in the same assignment group.

Here’s an example of an assignment group in Canvas. This group is worth 30% of the total grade and contains three assignments with different point values. The table further below outlines how the assignment group weight of 30% is distributed across the three Assignments.

Here, since Essay Two is out of 200 points, it will count two times more than Essays One and Three.

***assignment group weight distribution for assignments with differing point totals.

If you want all assignments within a given assignment group to be worth the same weight, you have two options:

1. Make all assignments inside an assignment group worth the same number of points, as shown below.

***In this scenario, we have changed Essay Two’s point value from 200 to 100 points. Since all point values in this assignment Group are the same, each Assignment will be worth the same, 10% in this case.

2. Create new assignment groups for any outlier assignments if you cannot or do not want to change their point value.

***In this scenario, we have not changed Essay Two’s point values, so we will need to put it in its own assignment group worth 10% and change the first assignment group to be worth 20% so that all Essays are now worth 10% of the total grade.

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Canvas assignment groups.

The Assignments page is arguably the most central to successful Canvas course utilization.

• It controls the columns in the gradebook and gradebook calculations.
• It displays all things gradable, including assignments, gradable discussions, and quizzes. Each can be created in Assignments.
• Dates used in the syllabus and calendar are rapidly edited in Assignments.

Use assignment groups to achieve:

• Assignment categorization
• Drop lowest  n  scores
• Drop highest  n  scores
• Never drop  x  assignment
• Weighting of grades

Canvas creates a group called "Assignments" by default, but you can change the group title or create additional groups. Because the default group is Assignments, Canvas places all assignment types into that group. When you are creating a new assignment, graded discussion, or quiz you will have the option to designate it as belonging to a previously created assignment group.

On This Page

Create an Assignment Group

Move an assignment between groups, weighting assignment groups, video tutorial, assignment page icons, filter the gradebook by assignment group.

On the Assignment page, click + Group

In the Add Assignment Group box, type the name of the group and click Save

Click on the double column of dots next to an assignment and drag to a new group.

Or, click on the three dots to the right of the assignment and click on Move To... then choose the desired assignment group and location.

Click on the assignment settings, then choose Assignment Groups Weight from the menu

Check the box to "Weight final grade based on assignment groups" and then enter the percentage assigned for each group

(weights should typically equal 100, but can exceed 100 for extra credit)

This short video will walk you through the process of creating weighted assignment groups in your Canvas course.

On the Grades page, click on the View dropdown menu and choose the Filters option

Then, select Assignment Groups from the menu

A new dropdown menu will appear at the top of the page

Click on All Assignment Groups to select a certain group of assignments you would like to see

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Getting Started with Canvas Assignments

• Last modification date Updated On July 26, 2024
• Categories: Assignments , Canvas , Uncategorized
• Categories: assessment , Getting Started , Grading

Canvas  Assignments  are a way for instructors to provide students opportunities to practice using the knowledge and skills they have gained or to assess student performance related to such knowledge and skills. (Creating an Assignment is the  only  way to create a new column in the Gradebook.)

In Canvas there are four basic  Submission Types  for assignments. The submission types include:

• No Submission : For assignments for which you are not collecting any content from the students.
• Text Entry : For students to enter text directly into a text box on Canvas.
• Website URL : For students to enter a URL (usually to a blog, video, podcast, etc.).
• Media Recordings : For students to upload or record media for submission.
• File Uploads : For students to upload files for submission ( Restrict Upload File Types  will allow you to limit which types of files may be submitted).
• On Paper : For assignments students will submit in person.
• External Tool : For assignments which students will submit through a third-party tool (such as Turnitin, Panopto Video Quiz, and PlayPosit).

Managing an Assignment

Managing assignment groups.

When getting started with Assignments, learn to

• Create an assignment shell with the Canvas guide  How do I create an assignment? 

If you select  Peer Reviews Appear Anonymously , annotation tools in  SpeedGrader  will become unavailable.

If you change the  Assign To  area from  Everyone  to select students after submissions have already begun, and do not have a second set of Assign To dates, submissions from unassigned students will disappear.

• Published assignments are visible as existing outside of availability dates, but students cannot see the details.
• If looking to update the due and/or availability dates on multiple assignments, see   How do I bulk update due dates and availability dates as an instructor?
• If choosing the option to make an assignment a  Group Assignment : If only assigning to specific groups, make sure to click the  X  on the  Everyone Else  choice under  Assign to .

Media Recording  Assignments are not recommended due to technical reasons. Instead, have students submit media by embedding it in a  Text Entry  assignment through Panopto .

Clearly express expectations and criteria for grading by using a  Rubric .

Be cautious limiting submission attempts, as students often make mistakes loading documents and need multiple attempts to ensure you have the correct submission.

• Delete an assignment with the Canvas guide  How do I delete an assignment?
• This duplication process will not work for Quizzes.
• Attach a rubric to an assignment for grading or to communicate expectations to students with the Canvas guide  How do I add a rubric to an assignment?

Accessibility Tips

• Use descriptive text for links, instead of long URLs or ‘click here’. 
• Make instructions brief and to-the-point. Avoid long paragraphs and sentences.
• Consider allowing multiple submission types to accommodate technical limitations students may face.

Assignment Groups  are a way to categorize different graded items in Canvas. For example, you may have journals, blogs, and essays which your students create in your course. Assignment Groups allow you to label and group different types of assignments separately in order to better organize and for ease when applying weighting (see  How do I weight the final course grade based on assignment groups? ). When getting started with Assignment Groups, learn to

• Add and delete assignment groups with the Canvas guide  How do I add an assignment group in a course?
• Move or reorder an assignment group with the Canvas guide  How do I move or reorder an assignment group?
• Make rules governing grading expectations within assignment groups with the Canvas guide  How do I create rules for an assignment group?

Additional Resources

• CTI Resource: What is the Assignments Index Page?
• How do I bulk update due dates and availability dates as an instructor?
• How do I weight the final course grade based on assignment groups?
• Canvas Student Guide

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TC Technology Knowledge Base

• Add an assignment to an Assignment Group in Canvas

Updated on Aug 08, 2024

You can use Canvas's Assignment Group feature to weigh different types of assignments in your course.

1. Log into the myTC portal.

Access the myTC portal.

2. Click on the Canvas icon in the top right corner.

3. Click Dashboard in the Global Navigation menu.

4. Click on your course card.

1. Click Assignments in the Course Navigation Menu.

2. Click on the name of the assignment that you would like to add to an Assignment Group.

3. When the assignment opens, click Edit.

4. In the Assignment Group section, click the arrow to view the drop-down menu. Click to select the group for the assignment. Alternatively, you may create a new group.

5. Add assignment details as needed, and click Save.

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Canvas @ Yale

• Creating Weighted Assignments Groups

Updated on Dec 03, 2021

Assignment groups allow you to categorize assignments in a way that makes sense for your course. The benefit to this could be for organizing assignments, weighting final grades, and much more. Using weighted groups allows you to weigh an assignment group for a specified percent of the final grade.

Table of Contents

This article will address the following information:

Add Assignment Groups

Turn on assignment group weighting.

• Click on " Assignments " from the course navigation .
• Click " +Group " at the top-right corner.

• In the box that pops up, provide a " Group Name " and click the " Save " button.

• From the " Assignments " page, click on the three dotted icon in the top-right corner.
• Select " Assignment Groups Weight ."

• In the pop-up box that appears, check off the " Weight final grade based on assignment groups " box.
• Underneath the check box, a line for each assignment group will appear. Enter the percentage weight in the text entry box for each assignment group.
• Click the "Save" button.

• The percentage weights will now appear next to each assignment group name.

For more help, please contact  [email protected] .

Assessments, Feedback and Grades

• Building Assessments in Canvas
• Creating an Assignment
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• Creating an Ungraded, No-Submission Assignment (Reading Assignment)
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• Due Dates versus Display Dates
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• Assignments (Vendor Guides)
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Using group assignments in Canvas

Group assignments can be a great way to foster student collaboration and develop a sense of community in online learning.

When creating group assignments in Canvas, the basic steps are:

• Create a Group Set your subject. This will allow you to determine the groups before you go ahead with creating the assignment itself. You can manually assign students to each group yourself using the  Bulk group membership tool or allow students to create their own groups.
• Create the group assignment. When creating an assignment you will have the option to tick 'This is a group assignment'. When you tick this box, you can then choose the Group set as per the previous step.
• Decide whether students will be graded as a group, or individually.  After checking the box 'This is a group assignment' you will also see a setting 'Assign Grades to Each Student Individually'. If you check this box, you will be able to allocate a different mark to each member of a group. If you leave the box unchecked, when you mark and give feedback for one of the students in the group, or annotate the paper, the mark and all feedback will automatically populate for the other students in the group.

Please note!

Ensure that you do not change the membership of groups *after* you have created the assignment. This will cause the assignment to revert to an *individual* assignment and cannot be reversed!

For more information on Groups, see our full index of guides.

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Canvas How-To: Groups

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Understanding Group Sets and Groups

Groups and Group Sets help instructors organize students into teams. At least one Group Set must exist before any Groups can be created.

A Brief Analogy

Group Set = A filing cabinet Group = A drawer in the filing cabinet Member = A hanging folder in the drawer

Important: Group activities in Canvas are assigned and associated with the filing cabinet , not the individual drawers (see below). Just as an office can have many filing cabinets, a Canvas course can have many Group Sets. Students can be members of multiple Group Sets but can be a member of only one group per set.

Create a Group Set

Open the People page  [1] . Next, click the "+ Group Set" button  [2] . Configure the group set.  It is not necessary to create the groups at this point.  The groups can be created later if necessary by returning to the People page and clicking the name of the Group Set above the course roster.

How do I add a group set in a course?

How do I manually create groups in a group set?

How do I manually assign students to groups?

Creating Groups and Assigning Students Automatically

Use the  Group Structure  area to specify how the groups will be structured, and where the students will be placed.

How do I automatically create groups in a group set?

Enabling Self-Sign Up Groups

Enabled students to join the group of their choosing by ticking the checkbox and setting the maximum number of people per group.

How do I create self sign-up groups in a group set?

Making an Assignment a Group Assignment

You can create a group assignment by using the  Group Assignment  checkbox. Canvas uses group sets to assign group assignments, and each group within the group set that is assigned to the assignment is required to complete the assignment.  All groups will complete the assignment using the same due date.

Note:  It is not possible to use individual groups as the basis for differentiated assignments, such as assigning an activity only to a single group or configuring unique due dates for specific groups.  Only Group Sets can receive special settings in assignments. 

How do I assign an assignment to a course group?

Making a Discussion a Group Discussion

You can create a single prompt and have groups to discuss it, either as a graded or ungraded activity.  Simple associate the discussion with an existing Group Set (or create a new one on-the-fly).

Be sure the Group Set has Groups before you open the discussion activity to students!

How to Create a Group Discussion

On the settings page of the discussion, check the box "This is a Group Discussion"  [1] . Then, open the Group Category menu to select the Group Set that will govern the group organization for the activity  [2] .  Alternatively, click the "New Group Category" button if you would like to create the Set to be used by the discussion.

Important:  Students must be placed into a Group in order to properly participate. Students who are not in a group can still post, but the posts are only visible to the instructor and other students not in a group.

How Students Participate in a Group Discussion

To participate, students click the link for the Discussion activity and begin posting.  They are automatically participating in their group and do not need to do anything special to "enter" or "join" the discussion.  Students cannot view other groups' posts.

How Instructors Monitor a Group Discussion

Instructors can get an overview of activity in the groups by opening the discussion activity link and viewing the information at the top of the page. New posts are indicated in the badges on the far right.  To view a group's discussion, click the link for the group on the left.

Viewing Another Group

After reading one group's discussion, click the "Home" link in the left navigation menu and then click the breadcrumb link for the course at the top of the page to return to the home page.  Find the main link for the discussion and re-enter it.  Sorry, this is really an area where Canvas could be improved.

Viewing and Monitoring Group Activity

As an instructor, you can view what is happening in groups by viewing each user group from the  People  page of the course. You can view student activity within the group and view group-created content. You can also access student groups to create group collaborations and add other group-specific content if necessary.

How do I view content and student activity within a group as an instructor?

Updated: October 11, 2022

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