Using the ICON Gradebook

What is Possible with ICON’s Grades Tool?

• Choose from three different systems for calculating grades:
  • Points: The final grade is the total points of all grade items over the points possible. There is no weighting of grades.
  • Weighted: You apply weights to individual grade items and to categories of grade items. Example: The Gettysburg quiz counts 20% toward the Quizzes category grade, and the Quizzes category grade counts 20% toward the final grade. The Gettysburg quiz, then, makes up 4%, of the final grade.
  • Formula: The final grade calculation is based on a formula you create. Any weighting of grades must be done with a formula.
  • With all three grading systems, the final grade is displayed as a percentage, letter, or other symbol, depending on your applied grading scheme.
• Create customized grading schemes (e.g., letter grade, pass/fail).
  • You can create new grading schemes, use grading schemes set up by your department, use template grading schemes that have been built into ICON, and copy grading schemes from your other ICON courses.
• Choose from six different grade item types:
  • Numeric - Use this to assign a number value.
  • Pass/Fail - When entering grades, you select Pass (to award full points) or Fail (to award 0 points) from a dropdown menu.
  • Selectbox - When entering grades, you select a symbol (A, B, Excellent, etc.) from a droplist; when calculating the final grade, ICON uses the numerical value you assigned to that symbol in the applied grading scheme.
  • Textbox - Use this type to provide text feedback. Textbox items are not included in grade calculations.
  • Calculated - Use this type to average selected grades at midterm or some other mid-session checkpoint (not exportable; not included in Final Grade calculation).
  • Formula - Use this type to enter a formula for performing calculations on selected items within the Grades List (not included in final grade calculation for Points or Weighted System grade books).
• Sort the gradebook in ascending or descending order by first name, last name, or item score.
• Create Bonus grade items (with Numeric, Pass/Fail, or Selectbox items only).
• Set ICON to record online quiz and assignment grades.
• Make adjustments to the final grade calculation.
  • Drop the highest and/or lowest grades in a category.
  • Drop grade items from the calculation (e.g., don't count the Gettysburg quiz for anyone).
• Exclude non-graded items from the final grade calculations (or else count them as 0's).
• Have ICON automatically update the final grade calculation each time a grade is added or changed (this can slow performance with larger classes).
• Customize your Grade list display.
  • Organize grade items into categories.
  • Hide grade items.
  • Display grade ranges in different colors.
  • Repeat the student identifier every x columns.
  • Repeat grade details every x rows.
  • View by groups or sections (if multiple sections are mapped into one course).
  • Search for individual students, by students who achieved less than (more than, etc.) a certain score on a grade item, or for students you have flagged. Send email to all those displayed.
• Customize your students' display.
• Decide which grade items are displayed to students and when (students cannot view grades of other individuals).
• For individual grade items, allow students to view the overall class average and/or statistics (distribution of scores).
• View grades from a student's viewpoint without having to log in as a student.
• Export grades to .CSV files and import grades from .CSV files.
• Create Grade Items from a spreadsheet/CSV file:
  • Instructors can now enter grades into a spreadsheet and import them into ICON without configuring the gradebook ahead of time.
  • The gradebook now creates new grade items based on the columns in the import file.
• Import scores from Examination and Evaluation Service.
• Export final grades to OSIRIS.
• Email students directly from the Gradebook. You can select multiple students from the student list, or email to individuals after clicking on their names in the list.
• Setup wizard guides users through the setup process and presents the most important options in a logical order.
• Multi-edit - Instructors can now edit multiple grade items or categories simultaneously.
• Email students directly from the Gradebook.

27 May 2009

Using the Setup Wizard

The Setup Wizard prompts you to enter information that is critical when you begin setting up your ICON gradebook, mostly about how you want ICON to calculate your final grade and how you want to display grades to students. Most of the settings available in the Setup Wizard are also available under the Grades Settings link (left). The Wizard does not include settings for your personal view of the gradebook, however; these are available only under Grades Settings.

The Wizard assumes you are already familiar with ICON's gradebook. If you have used previous versions, you will probably be able to fill in the requested information. If not, you can click the following links for step-by-step instructions. Alternatively, you can skip the Wizard altogether and enter the information by clicking Grades Settings (left). (Exception: You will need to enter the default grade scheme under Grades Schemes (left).

To use the Setup Wizard:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Setup Wizard (left).
3. You will see your current gradebook settings (initially, the defaults). Click Start (bottom).
4. Click through the following steps, referring to the linked instructions when necessary:
   1. Choose Grading System. See Entering Final Grade Calculation Settings, Which Grade Calculation System—Points, Weighted, or Formula?
   2. Final Grade Released. See Entering Final Grade Calculation Settings, Release Calculated Grade or Adjusted Grade?
   3. Grade Calculations. See Entering Final Grade Calculation Settings, Treat Ungraded Items as 0's?
   4. Choose Default Grade Scheme. See Creating Grade Schemes (Letter, Pass/Fail, Etc.), Changing the Default Grade Scheme
   5. Instructor View Display Options. See Displaying Grades – Instructor View, Personal (Instructor/Designer) Display Options
   6. Student View Display Options. See Displaying Grades – Instructor View, Org Unit (Course) Display Options
   7. Review the summary of your selections and click Finish.

14 October 2009

Entering Final Grade Calculation Settings

Which Grade Calculation System — Points, Weighted or Formula?

A first step in setting up your ICON gradebook is deciding which grade calculation system you wish to use.

• With the Points System, ICON calculates the total points of all the items in all the grade categories and converts them to a percentage. The final grade is displayed in accordance with the applied grading scheme. You cannot weight grades using the Points System.
• With the Weighted System, individual grade items are weighted as a percentage of the grade category they are in (e.g., Quizzes), and the category is weighted as a percentage of the final grade. For example, Assignment 1 might count 10% toward the Assignments category, and the Assignments category might count 40% toward the final grade. Therefore, Assignment 1 would count 10% of 40%, or 4% toward the final grade.
• With the Formula System, ICON calculates the final grade based on a formula created by the instructor. This system offers more flexibility than the Points or Weighted systems. For example, using the min function, instructors could require students to score at least 80% on all graded items to pass.

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click  Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Calculation Options (top).
4. Under Grading System, select the system you wish to use.
5. Click Save and then click Save two more times.

Note: This setting is also available in Step 1 of the Setup Wizard.

Release Calculated Grade or Adjusted Grade?

You can release either the Calculated Final Grade or the Adjusted Final Grade (but not both) to students.

• The Calculated Final Grade is the grade ICON arrives at when it tallies all the grade items and applies your instructions about including non-graded items, dropping highest or lowest grades in a category (if applicable), and weighting grades (if applicable).
  
• The Adjusted Final Grade is the calculated final grade after you have removed unwanted items (like a quiz everyone did poorly on) or made adjustments to individual student grades.

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click  Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Calculation Options (top).
4. Under Final Grade Released, select Calculated Final Grade or Adjusted Final Grade.
5. Click Save and then click Save again.

Note: This setting is also available in Step 2 of the Setup Wizard.

Treat Ungraded Items as 0's?

You decide whether or not ICON will include non-graded items in the final grade calculation. If you do include them, you may wish to refrain from displaying grade items to students until the grades have been entered.

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click  Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Calculation Options (top).
4. Under Grade Calculations, select Drop ungraded items or Treat ungraded items as 0.
5. Click Save and then click Save again.

Note: This setting is also available in Step 3 of the Setup Wizard.

Keep Final Grade Calculation Updated?

ICON can automatically update the final grade each time you enter or modify a grade, although this can slow performance if you have a large class. If you do choose this option, you may wish to exclude non-graded items from the calculation rather than treat them as 0's.

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click  Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Calculation Options (top).
4. Under Grade Calculations, select Automatically keep final grade updated.
5. Click Save and then click Save again.

Note: This setting is also available in Step 3 of the Setup Wizard.

16 October 2009

Creating Grade Schemes (Letter, Pass/Fail, Etc.)

Every grade item in your course must be associated with a Grade Scheme. The initial default grade scheme is Percentage (e.g., 8 out of 10 points displays as 80%), but you can create new grade schemes or copy grade schemes from another course. When creating any grade scheme, even in a Points System gradebook, you must enter percentages, not points. For example, in a Points System course where the maximum points possible is 500, you might enter 80 percent—never 400 points—as the start value for the B- range.

Viewing Your Grade Schemes

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click  Grades Schemes (left).

You will see your existing Grade Schemes. The Organization Schemes are set up by system administrators. There are three Organization Schemes: Percentage, ICON Template Grade Scheme - Letter Grade, and ICON Template Grade Scheme - Letter Grade +/-. The two template schemes are not sanctioned or required for use by the University, they are merely common schemes instructors use. You have the ability to copy those schemes into your course and modify the ranges to fit your needs. The Course Schemes are those you have created yourself.

The default scheme is marked with a green checkmark and will be applied to any new grade item you create (unless you select a different grade scheme when you are creating the item).

Changing the Default Grade Scheme

ICON's default Grade Scheme initially displays grades as percentages. But you can select a different default scheme if you wish:

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click  Grades Schemes (left).
3. Under Default Scheme, click the checkmark outline next to the grade scheme you wish to use as the default for new grade items.
4. Click Yes.

Basing a New Grade Scheme on one of the Template Schemes

You can copy the template grade scheme(s) into your course, and then modify the ranges in that scheme to fit your needs. To do this:

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click  Grade Schemes (left).
3. Click Copy (top).
4. Select the scheme you wish to copy from the list.
5. Click the Copy button (bottom).
6. Enter the new scheme name.
7. Make desired changes to the Grade Scheme.
8. Click Save.

Keep in mind that ICON will treat percentages as exact numbers when it applies the scheme to a grade item. For instance, if a student has 79.99%, and you have applied the ICON Template Grade Scheme - Letter Grade +/- scheme, ICON will display that student's score as a C+. It will not be rounded up to 80%.

Creating a New Grade Scheme

For all grade items except Selectbox items, you either keep the default percentage scheme or set up a new scheme that that converts percentage scores to symbols (e.g., 90-100 = A and 70-100 = Pass).

Grade Schemes for Selectbox are a little different from Grade Schemes for other grade item types. (A Selectbox is a droplist from which you select a non-numerical symbol rather than typing in a grade). For Selectbox items, you set up a Grade Scheme that displays a symbol (e.g., Satisfactory) and assign numerical values that ICON can use when calculating grades.

Attention Points System users: When creating a grade scheme in ICON, you must enter percentages, not points. For example, in a course where the maximum points possbile is 500, you might enter 80 percent–not 400 points–as the start value for the B- range.

Here's how to create a new Grade Scheme:

Note: When following these instructions, you may wish to refer to the Sample Grade Schemes below.

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click  Grades Schemes (left).
3. To create a new scheme for your course, click  New (top).
4. Type a name for the scheme.
5. Fill in the Symbol column:  Enter the lowest symbol (e.g., F or Unsatisfactory) first.  Then move down to the second row in this column and enter the next-lowest symbol (e.g., D or Pass). Continue in this way until you have entered all symbols for this Grade Scheme. If you need additional grade ranges, enter a number in the Add Ranges box and click Add Ranges.
6. Fill in the Start % column.  The Start value is the lowest percentage in a range (e.g., 0 for the F range; 60 for D- , 63 for D, etc.). If you are using the Points System, be sure to enter percentages, not points (e.g., if the start range for a C is 300 out of 400 points, enter 75 as the Start % value).
7. For most grade item types, if you leave the Assigned Value column blank, ICON will fill it in with your Start Value but will use the student's actual score when calculating grades. If the Grade Scheme will be used with a Selectbox item, you must fill in an Assigned Value ICON can use calculating grades (otherwise it will use the Start value, which will probably be lower that most students deserve).
8. If you want to display each grade range in a different color, select the colors from the Color droplists at right. This will give you a quick impression of how many grades are in each range when you view the graded item in your Gradelist. If you plan to use the default Percentage scheme for some items, you may wish to make your colors consistent with how they appear in that scheme.
9. Click the Remove icon to delete any boxes you don’t need (ICON won't save your scheme until you do this). 
10. Click Save.
    

Grade Scheme Examples

Sample Scheme to Award Letter Grades:  

Fill in one column at a time, beginning left. Notice that the Start % column contains the lowest percentage score in the grade range, even if you are using the Points system. If you leave the Assigned Value column blank, ICON will fill it in with your Start values, but it will use the students' actual score when calculating grades:

Sample Scheme to Award P/F or R/W Grades:

In the following example, students must earn 80% or higher to pass the course. Notice that the Start % column contains the lowest percentage—not points—score in the grade range, even if you are using the Points system.  If you leave the Assigned Value column blank, ICON will fill it in with your Start values, but it will use the students' actual scores when calculating grades. (Do not confuse this P/F scheme with a Pass/Fail grade item; you can use a P/F or R/W scheme with any grade item type. The P/F or R/W scheme is useful in converting final grade percentages to symbols departments will accept.

Sample Scheme for Use with the Selectbox Grade Item Type:

When you use a Selectbox grade item, you enter grades by selecting a symbol (e.g., Excellent) from a dropdown list. You enter the symbols yourself when you create a grade scheme for the Selectbox item. So ICON will know what numeric value to assign the selected symbol when it calculates grades, you must assign a percentage value in the Assigned Value column. For example, in the following scheme, the instructor decided to give 69% to all students who achieve a grade of "Fair."

Sample Scheme to Hide the Percentage Grade:

If you are using the Points System and you want students to see only their points and not their percentage grade, you could include only one grade range and display all percentage grades as two hyphens. (ICON will use the students' actual percentage grades when calculating grades).

Editing an Existing Grade Scheme

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click the  Grade Schemes icon (left).
3. Click the name of the scheme you wish to edit.
4. Enter your changes and click Save.

Notes: You cannot edit some of the properties of a grade scheme if a Selectbox item is using it.

You cannot edit the Organization Schemes which have been set up by system administrators; if you want to make changes to an Organization Scheme, you need to copy it first and then make changes. See Basing a New Grade Scheme on one of the Template Schemes, above.

Deleting Grade Schemes

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click the  Grade Schemes icon.
3. Click the Delete icon.
4. Select the grades scheme(s) you wish to delete and click Delete Selected.

Note: Before you can delete a Grade Scheme, you must first replace that scheme with another one in all grade items that currently use it. Click the little icon by the scheme name to see which grade items are using that scheme.

Applying Grade Schemes

You select a grade scheme while you are entering the Properties for a new grade item (if you don't select a grade scheme, ICON will apply the scheme you have set as the default). Once a grade item has been created, you can go to the Properties page for that item and select a different grade scheme if you wish. Here's how:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click on the name of the grade item.
4. Make your selection from the Grade Scheme dropdown menu.
5. Click Save.

23 October 2009

Creating Grade Categories

In this part:

• Defining Grade Categories – Points System
• Defining Grade Categories – Weighted System
• Defining Grade Categories – Formula System

Why Create Categories?

Categories help organize the gradebook by grouping similar grade items, such as quizzes or assignments together.

• You can simplify your gradebook by collapsing categories you don't need to view. Click Switch to Standard View (if necessary) and click the plus or minus button next to the category name.
• You can access the spreadsheet view of a single category for easy entry of grades. Click Switch to Standard View (if necessary) and click the plus or minus button next to the category name.
• You can restrict the student view of an entire category of grades based on dates, group membership, or completion of an online task.
• You can drop the highest or lowest grade(s) in a category for each student when calculating final grades.
• If you use a Weighted System gradebook, you can assign each category a certain percentage of the final grade and assign each item in the category a certain percentage of the category grade (e.g., Quiz 1 might count 20% toward the category grade, and the category might count 25% of the final grade; the quiz would therefore count 20% of 25%, or 5% of the total grade). You could can assign items in a category equal or unequal weights.

Defining Grade Categories – Points System

Note: With a Points System gradebook, categories allow you to drop the highest or lowest grade(s).

To define a Grades category when using the Points System:

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click the New Category icon (top).
4. Type a category name (e.g., Assignments) and optionally a short name to display in the grades display (e.g., Assign.).
5. If you wish to enter a description for the category, click Show Description. On Windows machines, click Advanced for more editing options. If you wish to allow students to view the description, check Allow users to view description.
6. If you plan to allow bonus points on grade items within the category, select Can Exceed.

   Example: The Assignments category has two items: Assignment 1 and Assignment 2, each worth 20 points.  Both items allow students to earn more than the maximum (e.g., a student might earn 22 out of 20). The Assignment category has a maximum value of 40 points, but if you select Can Exceed, then a student who receives a 21 and a 22 would get a total category score of 43.  If you do not select this option, the same student would receive a category score of 40.

7. If you want ICON to automatically assign the same number of points to every grade item in this category, click Distribute points across all items and enter the number of points each item will receive. If you prefer to assign points to each grade item separately, leave this option unselected.
8. If you want to drop the highest or lowest non-bonus grade(s) for each user in the category, make sure the Distribute points across all items box is checked and enter the number of highest or lowest grades you want ICON to ignore when calculating the category grade for each user.

Note: With a Points System gradebook, dropping the lowest grade in a category reduces the total number of points that contribute to the final grade. You must take this into account when creating the Grade scheme you apply to your final grade (letter, pass/fail, etc.). For example, let's say the Quiz category has three items, and each is worth 10 points. When you drop the lowest score, the quizzes contribute only 20 points, not 30, to the final grade. If your maximum total points for the course was originally 200, you would need to reduce it to 190 when figuring the percentages to enter in your grade scheme.

9. If you don't want class members to see the class average and/or grade distribution chart for this category, click Show Display Options and check the appropriate box(es). By default, the class average and grade distribution will be displayed.
10. Click Save (or Save and New to create a new category).

Defining Grade Categories – Weighted System

In the Weighted System, you assign each category of grade items a certain percentage of the final grade. If you like, you can have ICON distribute the category weight evenly across all items. Then if you add or delete items, ICON will modify the weight of existing items accordingly while the category weight remains constant. Categories also allow you to drop the highest or lowest grade(s) for each student when calculating final grades, provided all items have the same weight.

To define a Grade category when using the Weighted System:

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click the New Category icon (top).
4. Type a category name (e.g., Assignments) and optionally a short name to display in the grades display (e.g., Assign.).
5. If you wish to enter a description for the category, click Show Description. On Windows machines, click Advanced for more editing options. If you want students to see the description, check Allow users to view description.
6. Enter the weight (%) the category will contribute to the final grade.
7. If you plan to allow bonus points on grade items in the category, select Can Exceed.

   Example: the Assignments category has two items, Assignment 1 and Assignment 2. Each contributes 50% to the category total. Carlos earns 110% on Assignment 1 and 100% on Assignment 2.  If you select Can Exceed, Carlos's category score would be 105%.  If you do not select this option, Carlos’s category score would be 100%.

8. If you want ICON to automatically assign the same weight to every grade item in this category, click Distribute points evenly across all items. The item weights will adjust automatically as you add or delete items, but the total category weight (as a percent of the final grade) will remain constant.
9. If you want to drop the lowest or highest grade(s) for each user, be sure the Distribute points evenly across all items box is checked and enter the number of highest or lowest grades you want ICON to ignore when calculating the category grade.
10. If you don't want class members to see the class average and/or grade distribution chart for this category, click Show Display Options and click to place a checkmark in the appropriate box(es). By default, the class average and grade distribution will be displayed.
11. Click Save (or Save and New to create a new category).

Defining Grade Categories – Formula System

To define a Grades category when using the Formula System:

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click the New Category icon (top).
4. Type a category name (e.g., Assignments) and optionally a short name to display in the grades display (e.g., Assign.).
5. If you wish to enter a description for the category, click Show Description. On Windows machines, click Advanced for more editing options. If you want students to see the description, check Allow users to view description.
6. If you plan to allow bonus points on grade items within the category, select Can Exceed.
7. If you want ICON to automatically assign the same number of points to every grade item in this category, click Distribute points across all items. If you select this, you will also enter the number of points given to each item in the category. If you prefer to assign points to each grade item separately, leave this option unselected.
8. If you want to drop the lowest or highest grade(s) for each user, be sure the Distribute points evenly across all items box is checked and enter the number of highest or lowest grades you want ICON to ignore when calculating the category grade.
9. If you don't want class members to see the class average and/or grade distribution chart for this category, click Show Display Options and check the appropriate box(es). By default, the class average and grade distribution will be displayed.
10. Click Save (or Save and New to create a new category).

Hiding Categories or Setting Conditional Release

You can restrict the student view of entire grade categories (as you can for individual grade items) based on dates or other criteria, such as group membership, role, or completion of a specified online task.

Note:  If you plan to restrict access based on group membership and you haven’t yet created the group, create it now, before you proceed (see the Online Help section Creating Groups).

To hide or set release conditions for a grade category:

1. Click Grades in the navbar
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click the category name. 
4. Click the Restrictions tab.
5. Set visibility options to display item to students either immediately or during a specified range of dates.
6. To add other restrictions:
   1. Click Show Release Conditions (bottom), if necessary.
   2. Click Create and Attach.
   3. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2) and click Create.
7. Click Save.

23 October 2009

Creating Grade Items

In this part:

• Creating New Grade Items
• Numeric
• Pass/Fail
• Selectbox
• Text
• Calculated
• Formula
• Editing Grade Items
• Setting Conditional Release
• Hiding Grade Items

Creating new Grade Items

With ICON, you can create six different types of grade items:

About Bonus Items

Numeric, Pass/Fail, and Selectbox item types can be used to create bonus items. (Instructions for creating a bonus item are included in the sections describing individual item types.) When you create a bonus item, the Out of or Points grade for that item will display as "0." However, the bonus points will be included in the final grade calculation. If the bonus item is in a category, you decide whether to allow the category grade to exceed the points allotted for that category.

Creating a Numeric, Pass/Fail, or Selectbox Grade Item

• Numeric: Use the numeric grade item when you want to enter a number value.
• Pass/Fail: Use this item to award students either full points or no points for an item.
• Selectbox: When entering grades, you select a symbol (Excellent, Poor, etc.) from a selectbox (dropdown menu).  When calculating grades, ICON uses the value you assigned to that symbol in your associated grading scheme.

To create a Numeric, Selectbox, or Pass/Fail grade item:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click New Item top.
4. Select Numeric, Selectbox, or Pass/Fail. (Note: You won't be able to change the grade item type after you have saved the item.)
5. Enter an item name (e.g., Assignment 1) and a short name for the Gradelist column label (e.g., Assign 1). If you don't enter a short name, ICON will use the full item name.
6. Select the parent category (e.g., Assignments) if applicable. (If you are organizing your gradelist by categories and you haven't yet created the category for this item, you can do so now by clicking New Category. For instructions, see Defining Grade Categories - Weighted System, Points System, or Formula System.)
7. To enter a description for the item (optional), click Show Description (if necessary) and type the description in the textbox. If you want students to see the description, check Allow users to view description.
8. Enter the total number of points this grade item is worth. If you are using the Weighted System, enter the weight (percentage) this item will contribute toward its parent category, or toward the final grade if it's not in a category.
9. Indicate whether this item is a bonus grade item and, if so, whether students can exceed the maximum points. 

Note: The points for a bonus item are not included in the maximum points/percentages for the course. The Out of grade (Weighted System) or Points grade (Points System) will display as "0"; however, any points/percentages earned on this item will be added to the category and/or final grade. If the bonus item is in a category, you may wish to allow the category grade to exceed the total points for that category.

10. To allow a student’s grade to be higher than the maximum for all the items in the calculation (e.g., to allow for bonus points), check Can Exceed. Select a grade scheme from the drop down menu (or keep the default).
11. If you don't want to show statistics (class average and/or grade distribution) to students or override your default grade display items, click Show Display Options (if necessary) and make your selections.
12. To limit when this grade item will be visible to students, click the Restrictions tab. Select when the grade item will be visible. For example, you may wish to make the item visible for a range of time or to hide the item altogether.
13. To restrict display of this grade item based on group membership or completion of a task, click the Restrictions tab, then select Show Release Conditions. Click Create and Attach. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2) and click Create.
14. To associate this grade item with an objective you have created with the Competencies tool, click the Activities tab.
15. Click Save or Save and New (to create another new grade item).

Creating a Text Grade Item

Use the Text item to give students feedback without awarding points. 

Note: Text items cannot belong to a category or be included in Final Grade calculations.

To create a Text grade item:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click New Item (top).
4. Select Text. (Note: You won't be able to change the grade item type after you have saved the item.)
5. Enter an item name (e.g., Project Proposal) and a short name (optional) that will appear as the column label. If you don't enter a short name, ICON will use the full item name.
6. To enter a description for the item (optional), click Show Description (if necessary) and type the description in the textbox. If you want students to see the description, check Allow users to view description.
7. If you don't want to show statistics (class average and/or grade distribution) to students or override your default grade display items, click Show Display Options (if necessary) and make your selections.
8. To limit when this grade item will be visible to students, click the Restrictions tab. Select when the grade item will be visible. For example, you may wish to make the item visible for a range of time or to hide the item altogether.
9. To restrict display of this grade item based on group membership or completion of a task, click the Restrictions tab, then select Show Release Conditions. Click Create and Attach. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2) and click Create.
10. To associate this grade item with an objective you have created with the Competencies tool, click the Activities tab.
11. Click Save or Save and New (to create a new grade item immediately after this one).

Creating a Calculated Grade Item (for Mid-Session Grades)

You can use the Calculated item to calculate by specifying which grade items to include in the calculation. ICON calculates the grade to date using the same rules it applies when calculating the final grade for that item (exception: it will not drop the highest/lowest grades in a category).

Calculated grade items cannot be included in formula items or in final grade calculations.

To create a Calculated grade item:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click New Item top.
4. Select Calculated. (Note: You won't be able to change the grade item type after you have saved the item.)
5. Enter an item name (e.g., Project Proposal) and a short name (optional) that will appear as the column label (e.g., Proposal). If you don't enter a short name, ICON will use the full item name.
6. To enter a description for the item (optional), click Show Description (if necessary) and type the description in the textbox. If you want students to see the description, check Allow users to view description.
7. To allow a student’s grade to be higher than the maximum for all the items in the calculation (e.g., to allow for bonus points), check Can Exceed. Select the Grade Scheme from the dropdown menu.
8. Select the grade items you want to include in the calculation.
9. If you don't want to show statistics (class average and/or grade distribution) to students or override your default grade display items, click Show Display Options (if necessary) and make your selections.
10. To limit when this grade item will be visible to students, click the Restrictions tab. Select when the grade item will be visible. For example, you may wish to make the item visible for a range of time or to hide the item altogether.
11. To restrict display of this grade item based on group membership or completion of a task, click the Restrictions tab, then select Show Release Conditions. Click Create and Attach. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2) and click Create.
12. To associate this grade item with an objective you have created with the Competencies tool, click the Activities tab.
13. Click Save or Save and New (to create a new grade item immediately after this one).

Creating a Formula Grade Item (for Special Calculations of Selected Grade Items)

Use the Formula grade item type to enter a formula for special grade calculations. For example, suppose you have a test with two parts: an objective section graded by Exam Services and an essay portion you grade. You could create a Numeric grade item for each and then create a Formula grade item to add the two scores together.

Formula items can be included in the final calculation formula in a Formula System gradebook only. They cannot be included in the final grade calculation for a Points System or a Weighted System gradebook.

To create a Formula grade item:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click New Item top.
4. Select Formula. (Note: You won't be able to change the grade item type after you have saved the item.)
5. Enter an item name (e.g., Quiz 1) and a short name (optional) that will appear as the column label (e.g., Q1). If you don't enter a short name, ICON will use the full item name.
6. To enter a description for the item (optional), click Show Description (if necessary) and type the description in the textbox. If you want students to see the description, check Allow users to view description.
7. Enter the maximum points for the item.
8. Click Edit Using the Formula Editor and enter your formula (See Using the Formula Editor.)
9. To allow a student’s grade to be higher than the maximum for all the items in the calculation (e.g., to allow for bonus points), check Can Exceed. Select the Grade Scheme from the dropdown menu.
10. If you don't want to show statistics (class average and/or grade distribution) to students or override your default grade display items, click Show Display Options (if necessary) and make your selections.
11. To limit when this grade item will be visible to students, click the Restrictions tab. Select when the item will be visible. For example, you may wish to make it visible for a range of time or to hide it altogether.
12. To restrict display of this grade item based on group membership or completion of a task, click the Restrictions tab, then select Show Release Conditions. Click Create and Attach. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2) and click Create.
13. To associate this grade item with an objective you have created with the Competencies tool, click the Activities tab.
14. Click Save or Save and New (to create a new grade item).

Editing Single/Multiple Grade Items

To edit grade item properties (name, category, statistics, points/weight, availability) for a single item or for multiple items:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click the box for the grade item(s) you wish to edit (to select all, click the box at upper left).
4. Click the Edit Grade Items and Categories icon.
5. Make your changes and then click Save.

Making Grade Items Available/Unavailable to Students

To make an existing grade item available to students:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Select the item and click the Restrictions tab.
4. Under General, select when the grade item will be visible to students. For example, you may wish to make it visible for a range of time or to hide it from students altogether.
5. Click Save.

Setting Conditional Release

You can restrict the student view of grade items based on group membership or completion of a specified online task.  You can restrict access for individual grade items, grade categories, or the adjusted final grade.

Note:  If you plan to restrict access based on group membership and you haven’t yet created the group, create it now, before you proceed with step 1 below (see Creating Groups).

To set release conditions for a grade item:

1. If the grade item is not yet open, click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Select the item and then click the Restrictions tab.
4. Click Show Release Conditions (bottom), if necessary.
5. Click Create and Attach.
6. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2).
7. Click Save.

23 October 2009

Entering Grades

In this part:

• Entering Grades
• Modifying Grades

See also: Importing Examination and Evaluation Services Scores and Grading on a Curve

Entering Grades

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left).
3. Select your desired view: You can enter grades from the Spreadsheet view of the Grades List (click Switch to Spreadsheet View, top, if necessary). OR, if you prefer to limit your data entry to one grade item (column) at a time, click the Enter Grades for that item from either Standard or Spreadsheet View.
4. To enter or change grades:
   • For Numeric items, enter a number in the textbox.
   • For Selectbox items, make your selection from the drop down menu. (You entered these options when you created the Grade Scheme that is associated with this item.)
• For Pass/Fail items, make your selection from the drop down menu.

If you want to give every student the same grade for a grade item, click Grade All (top). Keep in mind that the Grade All function will affect the grade of all students in all sections of the course. The same is true of the Clear All function. (This problem is a known issue, which the vendors are working on.)

5. Click Save (you may need to scroll right to see this).

Modifying Grades

To modify a grade item (except the final grade) for a single student:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Find the student in the list, or enter the student's name or HawkID in the Search For textbox.
4. Click the Enter Grades icon next to the item (column) name.
5. Enter your modification.
6. Click Save (you may need to scroll right to see this).

ICON will use the new grade value when calculating grades.

Entering Comments

To enter grade item comments that are visible to the entire class:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the Enter Grades icon for the grade item (not the category).
4. If necessary, click Show details and overall comments.
5. Type a comment that will be seen by all members of the class in the Overall Comments box.
6. Click Save.

To enter grade item comments for an individual student:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Find the student's name in the grades list or enter the name or Hawk ID in the Search For textbox.
4. Click the Enter Grades icon for the grade item (not the category).
5. To enter individual feedback, click the Enter Comments icon in the Comments column for that student.
6. Enter your feedback in the top box labeled "Comments from the instructor to an individual student."

Note: The bottom box, labeled "Instructor only comments" will not be visible to the student. However, anyone who can enter grades for the course will be able to see these comments, as well as the comments to the student. This field may be useful for recording and/or sharing information about the grading process.

7. Click Save.

Sending Email from the Gradebook

To send email to an individual student:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the checkbox by the student's name and then click the Email User icon above the list of names. OR click on the student name and then click Email user (top).
4. In the popup window, enter your message and click Send.

To send email to multiple students:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Select the recipients by clicking in the checkboxes next to their names, or click the checkbox at the top to select all names on that page only (this does not select the entire class).
4. Click the Email selected users icon next to the "select all" checkbox.
5. In the popup window, the selected names will appear in the To: field. Enter your message and click Send.

16 October 2009

Calculating Mid-session Grades

See also: Exporting to, or Importing from, Excel

To calculate mid-session grades, you can use a Calculated grade item type and choose which grades you wish to include, or you can use a Formula grade item type and enter your own formula. Both types will export as csv files.

To create a Calculated grade item:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click New Item (top).
4. Select Calculated.
5. Enter an item name (e.g., Midterm Grade) and a short name (optional) that will appear as the column label.
6. To enter a description for the item (optional), click Show Description (if necessary), type the description in the textbox, and check whether you want students to see it.
7. Select the Grade Scheme from the dropdown menu.
8. Select the grade items you want to include in the midterm calculation.
9. If you want to show statistics to students or override your default grade display items, click Show Display Options (if necessary) and make your selections.
10. To limit when this grade item will be visible to students, click the Restrictions tab. Select when the grade item will be visible. For example, you may wish to make the item visible for a range of time or to hide the item altogether.
11. To restrict display of this grade item based on group membership or completion of a task, click the Restrictions tab, then select Show Release Conditions. Then click Create and Attach. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2) and click Create.
12. Click Save.

To create a Formula grade item:

1. Click Grades in the Navbar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click New Item (top).
4. Select Formula.
5. Enter an item name (e.g., Midterm Grade) and a short name (optional) that will appear as the column label.
6. To enter a description for the item (optional), click Show Description (if necessary), type the description in the textbox, and check whether you want students to see it.
7. Enter the maximum points or percent for the item.
8. Click Edit Using the Formula Editor and enter your formula (See Using the Formula Editor.)
9. To allow a student’s grade to be higher than the maximum for all the items in the calculation (e.g., to allow for bonus points), check Allow grade to exceed max points/weight.
10. Select the Grade Scheme from the dropdown menu.
11. If you want to show statistics to students or override your default grade display items, click Show Display Options (if necessary) and make your selections.
12. To limit when this grade item will be visible to students, click the Restrictions tab. Select when the item will be visible. For example, you may wish to make it visible for a range of time or to hide it altogether.
13. To restrict display of this grade item based on group membership or completion of a task, click the Restrictions tab and then select Show Release Conditions. Then click Create and Attach. In the popup window, select the condition type (e.g., Completed Quiz Attempt) and detail (e.g., Quiz 2) and click Create.
14. Click Save.

16 October 2009

Grading on a Curve

ICON does not have a built-in function for grading on a curve. However, there are a three different work-arounds.

One approach to curving grades is to create a grade scheme based on the highest score earned. For example, let's say the highest score is 79, and you want to give that student an A+. You could create a grading scheme with 76.63 (.97 x 79) as the starting grade for the A+ range. The starting grade for the A range might be 73.47 (.93 x 79), the starting grade for the A- range might be 71 (.90 x 79), etc.

A second approach to grading on a curve is to base the grading scheme on specified percentage of allowable A's, B's, etc. For example, say there are 100 students in your class and only the top 20 percent (20 students) can get A's. Sort the final grades to find the 20th ranking score and use that as the Start (lowest) score for the A range. The 40th ranking score will be the starting score for the B range, etc.

To sort the final grades:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left).
3. Click the Final Grade column heading.
4. A black arrow appears, indicating that the gradebook is sorted by this column. You can click on this arrow to change the sorting order (low to high or high to low).

For instructions on setting up a grading scheme, see the Online Help section Applying Grading Schemes.

A third approach to curving grades is to add a specified number of points/percentages to everyone's grade. Say, the highest grade is 79, and you want that grade to be an A+. If you have already defined a grade scheme that awards an A+ to students with a score of 97 or higher, you might add 18 points, the difference between 79 and 97, to everyone's grade. If you're using the Formula System, you can do this with the final grade calculation formula. If you're using the Weighted or Points systems, you can create a bonus numeric grade item that is worth 18, the number of points you wish to add. Then you can click on the Enter Grades icon at the top of the grade item column, click Grade All, and award everyone 18 points.

Important caveat: Any time you use the Grade All function, your action affects all students in all sections of this course.

16 October 2009

Calculating & Adjusting Final Grades

When calculating the final grade, ICON tallies the total points for each item and divides the result by the number of points possible for the final grade. If you are using the Weighted system, ICON takes the weights into account when making this calculation. If you are using the Formula system, ICON performs the calculation using the Formula you entered.

The result of these calculations is the Calculated Final Grade.  You can initiate this calculation manually or have ICON automatically update the Calculated Final Grade each time a grade item is added or modified (although automatic updating may slow ICON's performance if you have a large class). ICON converts this total to a percentage or a symbol such as B+ or Pass, according to a grading scheme you specify. You have the option of dropping the highest and/or lowest grade(s) in a category, ignoring non-graded items in the calculation, and dropping one or more grade items from the calculation.

You can modify the calculated grade, either for individual students or for the entire class by leaving out one or more grade items or by manually modifying individual student grades. The result is called the Adjusted Final Grade.

Setting Up the Final Grade Properties

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. In the chart, you will see two Final Grade listings. To set up properties for the Calculated Final Grade, click on the first final grade link, Final Calculated Grade, at the bottom. To set up properties for the Adjusted Final Grade, click on the second final grade link, Final Adjusted Grade, at the bottom. You will see the Edit Calculated (or Edit Adjusted) Final Grade screen.
4. If you are using the Formula Grading System, click Edit Using the Formula Editor and enter the formula to use for calculating the final grade. (See Creating Formula Grade Items.)
5. Select the Grade Scheme (Percentage, Letter, etc.). For information on creating grade schemes, see Creating Grade Schemes.
6. Click Show Display Options (if necessary) and indicate whether or not you want students to see the class average and/or the class grade distribution for the final grade.
7. Indicate whether or not you want to override your default display settings. If you do, select the options you want to display. These options only affect how you see the final grade, not what students will see.
8. Click Save, then click Save again.

Dropping Highest/Lowest Grades

ICON can ignore the highest and/or lowest grades in a category when calculating the final grade. The items must be in a category for this to work. 

Dropping Highest/Lowest Grades in a Category:

You normally enter this setting when defining the category (see Defining Grade Categories– Points System, Defining Grade Categories – Weighted System, or Defining Grade Categories — Formula System); however, you can edit an existing category to enter this setting. 

To edit a category and drop the highest/lowest grade:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click the category name (in the gray bar), e.g., "Quizzes."
4. Under Grading, be sure Distribute Points Across All Items is checked. Then enter the number of highest or lowest grades you want ICON to ignore when calculating grades for that category.
5. Click Save.

Note: If you are using the Formula grading system and you drop the highest or lowest grade(s) in a category, ICON will figure out the total points for the grade items included after the drop(s), regardless of any maximum points you may enter.

Excluding Non-Graded Items from the Final Grade Calculation

You can choose how ICON should handle items for which grades have not yet been entered. ICON can ignore them or give them a value of “0” when calculating the final grade. A single setting applies to all grade items in the course.

To tell ICON how to handle non-graded items:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Calculation Options (top).
4. Under Grade Calculations, select Drop Ungraded Items (which means that they'll be ignored) or Treat Ungraded Items as 0.
5. Click Save, then click Save again .

Releasing Either the Calculated or Adjusted Final Grade

This option determines whether students will be able to see the value in the Final Calculated Grade column or in the Final Adjusted Grade column. If you plan to export your final grades to OSIRIS at the end of the semester, you must release the Adjusted Final Grade.

To indicate which grade you wish to release :

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Calculation Options (top).
4. Under Final Grade Released, select Calculated Final Grade or Adjusted Final Grade.
5. Click Save, then click Save again.

Updating the Final Grade - Automatic Update

You can set ICON to automatically update students' final grades any time a grade is added or modified. However, automatic updating may slow ICON’s response time if you have a large class.  If you don’t choose this option, you will need to initiate the updating process yourself (see Updating the Final Grade - Manual Update, below). If you choose this option, we recommend that you Drop ungraded items rather than Treat ungraded items as 0 (see Excluding Non-Graded Items from the Final Grade Calculation, above).

To have ICON calculate the final grade and then update it any time you add or modify a grade:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Calculation Options (top).
4. Under Grade Calculations, select Automatically Keep Final Grades Updated.
5. Click Save.

Updating the Final Grade - Manual Update

If you did not set ICON to automatically calculate the final grade each time a grade item is added or changed, you must initiate this calculation manually each time you want the final grade updated (ICON performs no calculations until instructed to).

For All Students:

To calculate/update the final grade for all students:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the Enter Grades icon in the Final Grades category column heading.
4. Click  Recalculate All (top).
5. In the popup window, indicate whether you wish to recalculate the Final Calculated Grade (first option) or the Final Adjusted Grade (second option). Click Calculate, and then click Save.
6. If you want to allow all students to view the final grade, click Release All (top). (Whether the calculated or the adjusted final grade is released depends on which column you selected to release to students in Grades Settings (see Choosing Which Final Grade Option to Release to Students, above ).
7. To remove one or more items from the calculation, see instructions below.
8. Click Save, then click Save again.

For Individual Students:

If an individual student's grade is out of date, you will see a calculator icon next to the student's name in the Final Grade column. To calculate/update the Final Grade for a single student:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the Enter Grades icon in the Final Grades category column heading.
4. Click the Recalculate icon next to Out of Date! (red) and then click Calculate.
5. To make the grade visible to the student, select the checkbox for Release Final Grade.
6. Click Save, then click Save again.

Removing Items from the Final Grade Calculation or Adjusting Individual Final Grades

Points & Weighted Systems

You can have ICON adjust the final grade to remove selected grade items or categories. You might do this if everyone got a bad grade on a quiz, for example, or for an individual student who was hospitalized during a quiz.

Note:  This is not the same as dropping the highest or lowest grade in a category.

You can also make manual adjustments to individual grades.

For All Students

To remove an item or category from the final grade calculation for all students:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the Enter Grades icon in the Final Grades column heading.
4. Transfer the grades to the Adjusted Grade column by clicking Transfer All (top) and then clicking Save in the popup window.
5. Click the  Recalculate All icon.
6. In the popup window, select Final Adjusted Grade (the second option) and click Calculate.
7. In the second popup window, select the grades or categories you want ICON to include and click Calculate and then Save.
8. To allow students to view their final grade, click the Release All icon (top).
9. Click Save, then click Save again.

Note: You can also make adjustments to individual final grades from this page.

For Individual Students

To remove an item or category from the final grade calculation or make a manual adjustment to the final grade for an individual student :

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the student’s name or click the student’s grade in the Final Adjusted Grade column (second final Grade column).
4. To remove an item or category, click the Recalculate icon in the Final Grade section. Select all the grades by clicking the box in the upper left and then de-select the item you wish to omit. Click Calculate.
5. To manually adjust an individual student's final grade, enter the new grade in the Adjusted Grades field.
6. To add a comment for the student (e.g., "I dropped your first quiz grade"), click Show Comments and then type your comment in the Comments from the instructor to an individual student box.  (To enter a comment for yourself, type it in the Instructor only comments box.)
7. Click Save, then click Save again.

Formula System

In a Formula System grade book, you can remove an item by editing the final grade formula or by creating an alternate Adjusted Final Grade formula that does not include the item. To use an alternative Adjusted Grade formula, you would need to select Calculate the adjusted final grade using a formula on the Final Grade Properties page and then create your new formula using the Formula Editor. (See Using the Formula Editor.)

Overriding Adjusted Grades (Reverting to ICON’s Calculated Grades)

If you made an undesirable change in the Adjusted Grade column, you can revert to ICON’s calculated final grades, which are based on the total value of all the categories (and items not in categories), converted to a symbol in accordance with the applied grading scheme.  To override adjusted final grades, use the Recalculate All function.

Warning: When you recalculate the Calculated grades for the entire class, any adjusted final grades, including individually adjusted final grades, will be overwritten.  For example, let’s say a student was hospitalized during a quiz and you use the Calculate Adjusted Grade function to ignore the missed quiz when calculating that student’s final grade.  If you later recalculate the Calculated grades for the entire class, that student's adjusted grade will be overwritten, and the quiz grade you removed will once again be included in the student’s final grade calculation. However, this applies to Adjusted Grades in the Final Grade column only, not to the values of specific grade items. For example, if you click the Enter Grade icon in the Presentation 1 column and change a student's grade from 80 to 85 and then later recalculate the calculated grades for the entire class, ICON will use the changed Presentation grade in its calculations.

To recalculate the Calculated Final Grade (and override adjusted grades) for the entire class:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the Enter Grades icon in the Final Grade category heading.
4. Click Recalculate All (top).
5. In the popup window, select the Final Calculated Grade (top), click Calculate, click Calculate again, and then click Save.
6. Click the Transfer All button and then click Save. Now the figures in the Final Adjusted Grade column should match those in the Final Calculated Grade column and you can make any adjustments your choose.
7. To allow students to view the new grade, select all students by clicking in the box in the upper-left corner of the grades listing. Then click the Release All icon.
8. Click Save, then click Save again.

19 October 2009

Using the Formula Editor

The Formula Editor is used to create custom formulas for the Final Grade in a Formula System gradebook and for Formula type grade items in Points, Weighted, or Formula System gradebooks.

To access the Formula Editor for the final grade in a Formula System Gradebook:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. At the bottom of the grade items list, click the first final grade link (Calculated Final Grade).
4. Click Edit Using the Formula Editor.

To access the Formula Editor in a Formula type grade item:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click on the Formula type grade item name.
4. Click Edit Using the Formula Editor.

You are now ready to create your formula.

Navigating through the Formula

You can navigate through the formula by using your mouse to change the cursor position, by using the arrow keys on your keyboard, or by using ICON's move cursor buttons:

You can use these cursor buttons to move to the beginning of the formula, to one place left or right of your current cursor position, or to the end of the formula.

Entering the Formula

1. Begin by selecting one of the following functions in the drop-down menu next to Function:
   • SUM {a,b,c, ...} adds a series of values together. These values may be real numbers; numeric, pass/fail, selectbox, or formula grade items; or functions.
   • AVG {a, b, c, ...} calculates the average of a series of values. These values may be real numbers; numeric, checkbox, selectbox, or formula grade items; or functions.
   • MAX {a, b, c, ...} returns the largest value in a series of values. These values may be real numbers; numeric, checkbox, selectbox, or formula grade items; or functions.
   • MIN {a, b, c, ...} returns the smallest value in a series of values. These values may be real numbers; numeric, checkbox, selectbox, or formula grade items; or functions.
   • IF {condition, x, y} creates and if-then-else statement. If the condition is true, then x is returned. If the condition is false, then y returned.
     • The condition must be a Boolean statement.
     • The values for x and and y may be real numbers; numeric, checkbox, selectbox, or formula grade items; or functions.
     • Commas serve as the statements THEN and ELSE. So, the formula IF {[gradeitem.points received] >= 10, 20, 0} would check the points students received for gradeitem, and IF the points are greater than or equal to 10, THEN the students would receive 20 points, ELSE they would receive zero.
   • NOT {condition} inverts true and false. If the condition is true, then a false statement is returned. If the condition is false, then a true statement is returned.
     • The condition must be a Boolean statement.
2. Click Start. The name of the function and the opening bracket will be inserted into the formula, e.g., SUM {.
3. Select a Grade item. (Note: Calculated and Text item types cannot be used in formulas.)
4. Select Points Received, Max Points, or Percent:
5. Click Insert.
6. Click Next Term.
7. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until all grade items are entered.
8. Click End. The closing bracket will be inserted into the formula.

Note: Functions may be nested inside other functions, using parenthesis as appropriate. For example, you could nest a SUM function inside an IF function: IF{SUM{[Quiz1.UserGrade], [Quiz2.UserGrade]}>=20, then 100, else 0}.

Numbers and Mathematical Operators

Enter numbers and mathematical operators using the buttons at left or the corresponding keys on your keyboard.

Other Operators

Enter the Boolean operators And and Or as well as parentheses and comparison operators using the buttons at left. Parentheses and comparison operators can also be entered by using the corresponding keys on your keyboard. Comparison Operators: = Equal to <> Not equal to < Less than > Greater than <= Less than or equal to >= Greater than or equal to

Removing Items from the Formula

You can remove items from the formula by using your mouse to change the cursor position and then pressing the backspace or delete key on your keyboard, or by clicking the Backspace or Clear buttons on the screen. You cannot remove items by highlighting the text and pressing the backspace or delete key.

IMPORTANT: Clicking the Backspace button deletes the single item to the left of the cursor. Clicking the Clear button deletes the entire formula.

Validating the Formula

You can validate the formula at any time by clicking the Validate button (top left). Clicking Validate checks the formula syntax. If the syntax is valid, the message "Formula Validated Successfully" appears in blue above the formula box. If the formula is invalid, an error message is displayed, and the cursor moves to the position in the formula where the error was detected (the formula element nearest to the error is highlighted in red).

Examples of validation errors:

• Unexpected token type - an unexpected token has been entered into the formula.
  • [Quiz2.UserGrade]4 as opposed to [Quiz2.UserGrade]*4
• Unexpected terminal - a comma (or another marker) is missing from a formula statement
  • {[Quiz2.UserGrade][Quiz3.UserGrade]}
• Unbalanced parenthesis - an open parenthesis or bracket was entered into the formula without the accompanying close parenthesis or bracket.
  • SUM {[Quiz1.UserGrade], [Quiz2.UserGrade]
• Invalid number of operator parameters--an operator (such as + or *) does not have the required number of parameters to be completed.
  • [Quiz1.UserGrade] +
• Invalid number of function parameters--the function does not contain the required number of terms
  • SUM{}
  • IF{[Quiz1.UserGrade] > 5, 10}
  • NOT{[Quiz1.UserGrade] < 5, [Quiz2.UserGrade] < 8}
• Numeric value expected--a numeric value has not been entered (a Boolean statement is in the place of a numeric value).
  • IF{[Quiz1.UserGrade] >10, 5 OR 7, 0}
  • SUM {[Quiz1.UserGrade <> 20], [Quiz2.UserGrade]}
• Boolean value expected--a Boolean statement has not been entered for the condition.
  • NOT{4}
  • IF{MIN{4,5}, 100, 0}

Validating, Previewing and Inserting the Formula

To validate the formula, click Validate (top left).

Clicking Preview (top left) also validates the formula and, if the validation is successful, opens a pop-up window in which the formula is applied to the first 10 students in the Grades List.

Clicking the Insert button (bottom right) validates the formula and, if the validation is successful, inserts the formula into your gradebook then closes the Formula Editor window.

19 October 2009

Ignoring ICON’s Final Grade Column

Although ICON has built-in fuctions for calculating the final grade, some instructors prefer to do their own calculating and then use ICON’s Gradelist for display only. The method described here involves ignoring ICON's Final Grade column altogether and displaying the final grade in a text column.

1. Re-name the Final Grade column “Ignore this Column.”
2. Create a Text grade item for displaying the final grade and for each of your grade entries (see Creating a Text Grade Item).
3. Enter the grades in ICON. OR export your ICON Gradelist to your computer and open it in Excel. Then enter your grades or perform calculations there and import the file into ICON’s Gradelist. (See Exporting to, or Importing from, Excel .)
4. Click on any student's name in the Grades List and click Preview (top). Students should see the Final Grade item you created, but not ICON's Final Grade (which would appear at the top, above the items, if it's visible to students).

19 October 2009

Viewing Grade Statistics

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click the  Statistics icon next to the grade item or category name.

14 March 2008

Displaying Grades - Student View

You can adjust student display settings for the Final Grade and other individual grade items. This section describes the different data that may be displayed to students and the required settings for each type of data. (Match the numbered red arrows with the numbered headings beneath the figure.)

You can also preview how your grades will appear to students. See instructions under Previewing the Student Grade Display, below.

Displaying the Final Grade to Students

The final grade section appears above the other grade items in the student display. To display this section to students:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left).
3. Click the Enter Grades icon in the Final Grade column heading (at the far right).
4. Click Release All (top) or click the checkbox for an individual student.

Here is a sample Final Grade section, followed by a description of the items indicated by red arrows:

1. Class Average / Final Grade Distribution

Students click the Final Grade Statistics icon to view the class average and/or distribution of final grade across grade ranges. To adjust these two display settings:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click on Manage Grades in the menu at left.
3. Click the Adjusted Final Grade or Calculated Final Grade, depending on which one your are releasing to students.
4. Click Show Display Options.
5. Select (or de-select) the checkbox(es) for Display class average to users and/or Display grade distribution to students.
6. Click Save.

2. Calculated or Adjusted Final Grade

You can release either the Calculated Final Grade or the Adjusted Final Grade (but not both) to students.

• The Calculated Final Grade is the grade ICON arrives at when it tallies all the items, applies your instructions about including non-graded items, dropping highest or lowest grades in a category, and weighting grades (if applicable), and then applies the associated grading scheme. (Unless you have set ICON to keep the final grade updated, this Calculated Final grade may be out of date. See Updating the Final Grade - Manual Update.
• The Adjusted Final Grade is the grade displayed to students after you have removed unwanted items from the calculation, or made individual adjustments to final grades.

To choose one:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings.
3. Click Calculation Options.
4. Under Final Grade Released, select either Adjusted Final Grade or Calculated Final Grade.
5. Click Save.

3. Final Grade Calculation Formula

Students click a calculator View Final Grade Calculation icon to see the Calculated Final Grade and the Adjusted Final Grade (labeled "Final Grade"), along with each item's contribution toward its category or toward the final grade. You may wish to consider not displaying this icon, since some students may find the information more confusing than informative. To enter this setting:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings.
3. Click Org Unit Display Options
4. Select (or de-select) Display final grade calculation to students.
5. Click Save.

Note: This option is not available in a Formula System grade book.

4. Comments

You can enter Final Grade comments for the entire class, for individual students, or for yourself only.

To enter a comment for the entire class:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the icon beside the Final Grade category heading.
4. Under Final Grade, click on Show details and overall comments.
5. Click in the Overall Comments textbox, enter your comments, and click Save.

To enter a comment for an individual student:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades.
3. Click the icon beside the Final Grade category name.
4. Click the Edit Comments icon for the student.
5. In the popup window, click in the Comments from the instructor to an individual student textbox, enter your comment, and click save.

To enter a comment that only instructors can see:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades.
3. Click the icon beside the Final Grade column heading.
4. Click the Edit Comments icon for the student.
5. In the popup window, click in the Instructor only comments textbox, enter your comment, and click Save.

Displaying Other Grade Items to Students

Here is a sample Grades section, followed by a description of the items indicated by red arrows:

1. Class Average / Distribution of Scores

To view one or both of these statistics, students click the View Statistics icon. You enter these settings when creating the grade item. To adjust the display settings for an existing item:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click on the item name. The Properties tab is displayed.
4. Click Show Display Options.
5. Select (or de-select) Display class average to users and/or Display grade distribution to users.
6. Click Save.

2. Points Grade

The Points Grade is the number of points earned over the number possible. You enter this display setting for all grade items when you first set up your gradebook, although you can modify it any time.

To enter or modify the display setting for all items:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings.
3. Click Org Unit Display Options.
4. Under Grade Details, select (or de-select) the checkbox beside Points grade.
5. Click Save.

3. Weighted Grade

If you are using the Weighted System, your students can view the percentage that each item or category contributes toward the final grade and the portion of that percentage they achieved. Example: In the figure above, the Quizzes category contributes up to 40 percentage points of the 100 possible for the course. Quiz 1 contributes up to 12 percentage points, of which the student in the example earned 9.6.

To display the weighted grade:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings.
3. Click Org Unit Display Options
4. Under Grade Details, select (or de-select) Weighted grade.
5. Click Save.

4. Bonus Items

If an item is for extra credit, you will see either the word "Bonus" or a star beside it. To make an item a bonus item:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click on the grade item name.
4. Under Grading, check the box next to Bonus.
5. Click Save.

5. Grade Scheme Grade (%, Letter, Pass/Fail, etc.)

ICON provides a default Percentage grade scheme. You create any others you wish to use by supplying the grade range and the associated symbol (letter, Pass/Fail, etc.) If you haven't yet created the scheme you want, do that now. (See the Online Help section Creating Grade Schemes).

To apply a grade scheme:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Grades (left).
3. Click on the grade item name.
4. Select the desired scheme from the Grade Scheme dropdown menu.
5. Click Save.

Important: If you use the Percentage grade scheme, displaying no decimal points affects only the view, not ICON's calculations. For example, a student who earns 89.99% would see 90%, yet ICON would calculate the grade as 89.99%. If your grade scheme awarded an A- for 90-92%, that student might wonder why he or she sees 90% but didn't get an A. In such a case, you may wish to either show the decimals or change the start value for the grade range to 89.5% in the associated grade scheme.

6. Comments

You can enter comments for an individual and/or for the entire class.

1. Click Grades in the NavBar
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. Click the icon beside the grade item or category column heading.
4. Enter your comment:
• To enter a comment for the entire class, click Show Details and Overall Comments, type your comment in the Overall Comments box, and click Save.
• To enter a comment for an individual student, click the Edit Comments icon next to that student's name. In the popup window, type your comment in the Comments from the instructor to an individual student textbox and click Save.
• To enter a comment about a student, which the student cannot see, click the Edit Comments icon for the student. In the popup window, type your comment in the Instructor only comments textbox and click Save.

23 October 2009

Previewing the Student Grades Display

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. In the Grades List, click on a student's name.
3. Click Preview (under the Student List icon).

14 March 2008

Displaying Grades - Instructor View

Notes: As you enter your display settings, keep in mind that the more data your gradebook includes—and the larger your class—the longer ICON's response time will be.

Unless stated otherwise, the following options are not available in the Grades Setup Wizard, probably because most instructors will find the defaults acceptable.

Personal (Instructor/Designer) Display Options

Personal Display Options affect your view of the gradebook only.

Student names will display by default. You can display additional student details in your view of the gradebook:

• Username - The student's Hawk ID
• Org Defined ID - The student's University ID number
• Email - The student's email address

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Personal Display Options (top).
4. Under User Details, enter your selections and click Save.

Org Unit (Course) Display Options

To set grade details defaults for everyone in the class:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Org Unit Display Options (top).
4. Select the options you would like to display by default (you can override your default for any indivdiual grade item):

• Under Managing View Display Options (visible to grader)
  • Decimals Displayed - Number of decimal points displayed to the grader.
• Under Submission View Display Options (visible to class)
  • Points Grade - Points earned over point possible (e.g., 8/10).
  • Weighted Grade (Weighted System only) - Weight achieved over possible weight (e.g., if a student earns 8 out of 10 possible points, and the grade item contributes 5% toward the final grade, that student earns 4% of the 5% possible).
  • Grade Scheme Symbol - The grade converted by the applied grade scheme (e.g., 92% or A-). The default scheme is Percent, but you can create other grade schemes and change the default. (This setting is also available in the Setup Wizard.)
  • Grade Scheme Color - Colors will display only if you have included them in the applied grade scheme for an item.
  • Decimals Displayed - Number of decimal points displayed to students. This does not affect how the grades are calculated. For example, if you set no decimal points, a student who earns 89.99% would see 90%, yet ICON would calculate the grade as 89.99%. If your grade scheme awarded an A- to 90-92%, that student would wonder why he or she didn't get an A. In such a case, you may wish to change the start value for the grade range to 89.5% in the associated grade scheme.
  • Characters Displayed - Number of characters to display in text items.
  • Final Grade Calculation - Shows students how the calculation of their final grade occurred. (Students may find this confusing).

5. Click Save.

Repeating Student and Grade Item Details (to Save Scrolling)

By default, student identifiers are repeated every 5 columns, grade item identifiers are repeated every 10 rows, and the final grade displays at the far right only. You can change the frequency of repetition or repeat the final grade at the beginning of the display:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Personal Display Options (top).
4. Fill in the boxes for Repeat User Details, Repeat Grade Item Details, and/or Repeat Final Grades.
5. Click Save.

Changing Your Default Gradebook View

The default gradebook view is Enter Grades. You can change this default if you wish:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Personal Display Options (top).
4. Select your preferred from the Default Grades Area dropdown menu.
5. Click Save.

Displaying Decimal Points

The default view is two decimal points, but you can change this if you wish:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Grades Settings (left).
3. Click Org Unit Display Options (top).
4. Under Managing View Display Options (top), enter your preference in the Decimals Displayed box. (Note: this only changes your view of the decimals, to change the student view of decimals, change the Decimals Displayed under Submission View Display Options.)
5. Click Save.

Displaying Single Users

To view a single student in the Gradelist, type the student name (first or last) in the Search for: textbox (top left) and click Search.

To return to the original Gradelist view, delete the students name from the Search for: textbox (you may have to press Enter or Return on your keyboard twice).

Displaying Individual Groups or Sections (for Mapped Courses)

To sort your Gradelist view by groups (assuming your groups have been created; see Groups in the Course Admin tool):

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Make sure the Search for: textbox doesn’t contain any text.
3. Select Groups from the View by: droplist (top left).
4. Select the group or section category or name from the Groups: droplist.

Note: All other groups will still be available from the View by: droplist.

To sort your Gradelist by sections, select Sections from the View by: droplist.

To return to the original Gradelist view, first make sure the Search for textbox does not contain any text, and then select User from the View by droplist.

Sorting the Gradebook

You can now sort the ICON (e.g., by student last name or quiz grade). Depending on the column type, you can sort low-to-high or high-to-low, alphabetically or numerically:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left side - if you are not already there).
3. Click on the Grade Column Heading or on First Name, Last Name, or Username.

Notice the arrow that appears next to the item sorted on which indicates the direction of the sorting.

Hiding Grade Items

If you have numerous grade items, you can minimize categories so that individual items do not display. Items must be in a category in order to be hidden:

1. Click Grades in the navbar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left), if necessary.
3. If necessary, click Switch to Standard View.
4. Click the Collapse icon in the next to the category heading.

To make category items visible once more, click the Expand icon.

Large Class? Ways to Reduce ICON's Response Time:

If you have a large class, you can reduce ICON's response time by reducing the amount of data in your gradebook:

• Hide items that are not currently relevant.
• Don't include student email addresses.
• Limit (horizontal) repetition of user details.
• Limit (vertical) repetition of grade items details.
• Don't repeat final grade at the beginning of the student list.
• Display only those groups or sections that are currently relevant.
• Don't display grade items in colors.
• Don't display decimal points.

19 October 2009

Importing Evaluation and Examination Service Scores

Upon request, Evaluation and Examination Service (EES) will email you your scores in the form of an ICON-compatible CSV (comma-separated-value) file that you can upload into your ICON Gradelist. (You should request this file at the same time you request your scoring--be sure to give them your @uiowa.edu email address.) The csv file is named EESjob#.ICON_DATA.csv. (e.g., XXXX5146.ICON_Data.csv). It includes three columns, one with HawkID’s, one with scores, and one with #'s. There is also a file to help you troubleshoot grades that did not upload properly. This one is named EESjob#.ID_Edit.csv (e.g., xxxx5146.ID_Edit.csv. There are a couple of other files that you can ignore.

Important: When taking a test that will be graded by EES, students must grid in their 8-character University ID's—not their Hawk ID's—on the test form. If a student fails to grid in the University ID, you will get an error message when attempting to upload that student's results.

Here’s how to upload the EES ICON-compatible file into your ICON Gradebook:

Attention Mac Users: This works only if you open the file in Excel and save it in CSV (Windows) format, as indicated in the instructions below.

1. First, since the file you receive from Examination and Evaluation Service uses the HawkID, you may wish to display the HawkID in your Gradelist. This is entirely optional and is not required to import the EES file. If so:
   1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
   2. Click Grade Settings (left).
   3. Under User Details, be sure the Username box is checked (this displays the HawkID).
   4. Click Save.
   5. Then click Enter Grades (left) to return to the grades list.
      
2. If you haven't yet created a grade item (column) in your ICON grades list to hold the scores, ICON can create one for you as part of the score upload process. If you have already created the grade item, be sure the Max Points: grade is the same as that used by the Examination and Evaluation Services.
   
3. Next, you’ll prepare your CSV file for uploading into ICON. Notice that the instructions for Windows users and Mac users are different:

Begin by opening the file from within Excel:

• Windows users: Click twice on the EESjob#ICON_DATA.csv file (the one named EESjob#.ICON_DATA.csv) to open it.
• Mac users: Open the EESjob#ICON_DATA.csv file from within Excel (when opening, select All Documents from the Enable dropdown menu). Be sure to choose delimited and comma delimited. Alternatively, you can open the file by simply dragging the filename to your Excel icon.

In the Excel file, click twice on the column B heading <place column name here> (see arrow 1 below). Replace this heading with the grade item name in your Grade Item listing and delete the brackets (see arrow 2 below). To make certain you have the correct grade item name, click Grades > Manage Grades. Then click on the grade item name and look in the Name box (not the Short Name box). Be sure to delete the brackets.

In column C, EES has included an End-of-Line Indicator with #'s next to each student's name. If you add another student and score to this file, be sure to enter a # in column C.

Save the file in CSV (Windows) format. (ICON’s Gradelist will not accept Mac’s CSV format.)

4. Lastly, you’ll upload the CSV (Windows) format file to ICON:

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Import Grades (top).
3. Click Browse or Choose File and select the Windows CSV file you just saved on your computer.
4. ICON will check the CSV file for errors and display them. Take note of the errors and click Next.
5. Review the imported scores for accuracy and click Next.
6. Manually enter the grades that did not import properly.

Troubleshooting:

• If a significant number of grades did not import properly, check to make sure that the Points grade for the ICON Grade item is the same as the maximum score achievable for the exam.
• Be sure the name you entered in the EES file is the official grade item name and not the Short Name. To check, click Grades > Manage Grades. Then click on the grade item name and look in the Name box (not the Short Name box).
• Be sure the grade column heading in the Excel file includes the words Points Grade but not the brackets.
• If you're a Mac user, be sure to save the Excel file in Windows csv format.

19 October 2009

Exporting to, or Importing from, Excel

ICON 8.3 allows you to do many of the same things you can do in Excel. The speadsheet view makes it easier to enter grades, and the Formula system setting allows you to enter your own formula for the final grade. Moreover, you can use ICON's built-in functions to drop the highest or lowest grade in a category (e.g., Quizzes or Homework).

Note: If you plan to do most of your work in Excel, ICON's vendor (D2L) recommends that you set up your gradebook in ICON and export it as a CSV file; then open this file in Excel, enter your grades, save your file in CSV (Mac: CSV Windows) format, and import it back into ICON. Be sure to delete all other columns you may have created in Excel for calculating, etc.

Exporting Grades to Excel

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Export Grades (top).
3. Under Export Options select Username (this is the HawkID). The default selection Org Defined ID can cause problems when attempting to re-import your grades.
4. Select the grade values—points, weighted, or grade scheme (A+ thru F, etc.).
5. Select any user details you wish to export (optional).
6. Select the grade items you want to export.
7. Click Export to CSV.
8. Open your downloaded file from within Excel.

Importing Grades from Excel

You can add grade items in Excel, and ICON will automatically create new items in the grades list.

1. Create your grade item(s) in Excel, using only the following item names (column headings):

• Username - This is the student's Hawk ID and must appear in the left-most column (the Org Defined ID can cause problems).
• item name Points Grade - Use this for all numeric items. Replace item name with actual name (not the short name).
• item name Text Grade - Replace item name with actual name (not the short name). Items labelled as text will be imported but will not be included in ICON's grade calculations.
• Adjusted Final Grade Numerator - This is the total number of points the student achieved (e.g., 230 if you're entering points or 93 if you're entering percentages). If you're entering percentages, do not include the percent sign.
• Adjusted Final Grade Denominator - The total number of points possible (e.g., 285 if you're entering points and 100 if you're entering percentages).
• End-of-Line Indicator - This is the right-most column and must be included. Enter a pound key (#) in each row in this column so ICON will know where the data for the next user begins.

2. Save your file in CSV format (Mac users save in CSV Windows format).
3. From within your ICON course, click Grades in the NavBar.
4. Click Import Grades (top).
5. If you are uploading any items that have not yet been created, click the checkbox for Create new grade item when an unrecognized item is referenced.
6. Click Browse and find the Windows CSV file on your computer. Click Next.
7. ICON will report any errors encountered during the import process. Note that fields containing errors will not be imported. You can also identify any problems yourself by looking for failing scores in the Grades List after the upload is complete.
8. Manually enter any grades that did not import properly.

ICON will carry out the grade calculations for you in accordance with the grade system you are using (Points, Weighted, or Formula) and your settings. To see the results, you may need to tell ICON to recalculate the final grades (click Manage Grades > Final Grade Calculations (bottom) > Re-Calculate Final Grade).

19 October 2009

Exporting Final Grades to OSIRIS

Step 1. Make sure you have Instructor-Designer, Instructor, TA-Designer, or TA (High Level) rights in your ICON course and that you have the right to save grades in OSIRIS for your course.

Step 2. Make sure grade symbols in your grade scheme are acceptable to OSIRIS. Acceptable grade symbols vary with the different colleges. To find out what symbols you can use in your course, log into OSIRIS as though you were entering grades and see what grade symbols are available from the dropdown menu. The symbols in your grade scheme should all be available from this drop list. Otherwise, you will need to create and apply a grade scheme that includes only acceptable symbols.

Students who are auditing your course will receive either an R (completed) or W (not completed). This is true across the University.

To view the grading symbols used in Liberal Arts, go to the Grading System section of the Academic Handbook.

Step 3. Go to the Edit Final Grades screen and make sure your final grades appear in the Adjusted Grade column.

OSIRIS will import the Adjusted Final grade.

1. Click Grades in the NavBar.
2. Click Enter Grades (left) if necessary.
3. Click the Edit Final Grades icon in the Final Grade column.
4. If your Calculated Final Grade column has no data, click Recalculate All; in the popup window, select the calculated final grade (first one) and click Calculate.
5. Click Transfer All and then Save. The Calculated grades are copied to the Adjusted Grades column.
6. Make any desired adjustments and click Save.

Step 4. Export your final grades to OSIRIS.

Note: If your ICON course contains multiple sections (i.e., multiple sections have been "mapped" into a single course), you may need to report final grades separately for each section.

There are two ways to export final grades to OSIRIS: (1) Report grades directly from ICON to OSIRIS or (2) Download grades to a CSV file and then upload them to OSIRIS.

Method #1: Export grades directly from ICON to OSIRIS:

1. Be sure you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 (above).
2. From your course homepage, click the OSIRIS Final Grade Reporting link in the Course Tools widget. If you don't see this link (you may not if your course was created before the link became available), click the tiny E in the lower-right corner and click Save to refresh your homepage. Then return to your course home page and click the link.
3. Follow the on-screen instructions for uploading your grades to OSIRIS.

You will have a chance to review the grades before OSIRIS saves them.

Method #2: Export the selected items as a CSV file:

1. Export selected items as a CSV file:
   1. Be sure you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 above.
   2. From within your ICON gradebook, click Enter Grades (if necessary).
   3. Click Export Grades (top).
   4. Under Export Options, select all users (or sections), Username and Grade Scheme for Item. De-select any other selected options, including first and last name.
   5. Under Choose Grades to Export, toggle the Select All checkbox to de-select everything; then select Adjusted Final Grade.
   6. Click Export to CSV.
   7. In the popup window, right-click the link (control-click on Mac) and save to your computer.

2. Open the file from within Excel and prepare it for uploading to OSIRIS:

1. Open Excel.
2. From the File dropdown menu, select Open.
3. Browse your computer for the CSV file you just created and click Open.
   • NOTE: You may have to tell Excel to look for All Files instead of All Excel Files if the .CSV file does not appear in the file list.
4. In the Text Import Wizard window, select Delimited and click Next.
5. Under Delimiters, select Comma and click Next.
6. Click Finish.
7. You will see three columns, one with the HawkID (labeled User Name), one with the letter symbol representing your final or midterm grade, and one with pound signs (#). Delete the pound sign column and any other columns you may have downloaded. If you are posting midterm grades, ICON will ignore all grades above a D+.
8. You should now see only a column with the username and another with the letter symbol.
9. From the File dropdown menu, select Save As and save your Excel document as a comma-separated value (CSV) file. If you are Mac user, save your file in CSV (Windows) format.

3. Upload your grades to OSIRIS and manually enter grades that did not import properly:

1. From the OSIRIS homepage, click Attendance, Midterm, and Final Grades.
2. Click Edit for Final grades for your course. Your student roster will be displayed.
3. Click Upload Grades from Spreadsheet (upper-right corner).
4. On the Upload Grades screen, browse and select the .CSV file you just modified. Then click Upload. The uploading process may take a few minutes.
5. OSIRIS displays the HawkIDs for any grades that could not be loaded, along with an explanation of the problems. Jot down these HawkIDs or print this page.
6. Click Final (or Midterm) Grades (top of screen) to go to the OSIRIS grade input screen.
7. Correct any problems that were described in the error message. (If you haven’t already entered incompletes, you could do it now.)
8. Click Save if you wish to continue working later, or click Submit if you are done.

19 October 2009

Known Issues