Grade Center Tips

1. Hide unnecessary columns
   Blackboard by default adds several new columns to the the Grade Center, including: Username, Student ID, Last Access, and Availability. There are two options to hide columns in the Grade Center, Hide from Students (on/off) (students will not see the column category in their My Grades), and Hide from Instructor View.
   
   How to: click the down arrow next to the title of the column, then click either Hide from Students (on/off) or Hide from Instructor View.
   
2. Organize columns
   New columns added to the Grade Center are by default added at the end of the Grade Center, with Total and Weighted Total columns near the beginning. Reorder columns to a logical order, such as sequential order by due date. Note - The order in which students see their individual assignment scores in My Grades is the order of the columns in the Full Grade Center View.
   
   How to: Select Manage from the Action Bar, then click Column Organization. Click and drag columns to reorder.
   
3.  Add custom categories and apply to grade columns
   
   Categories assigned to columns are included in students display to clearly identify the category that an assignment is applied to and can be used to easily sort columns in Smart Views. Add custom categories to match the types of assignments used to assess student learning. Then, when adding columns, assign a category to each column.
   
   How to: Select Manage from the Action Bar, then click Categories. Click the Create Category button and enter a name and description if desired. Click the Submit button to save.
   
4.   Display score and percent or letter grade for the same item
   Once entering a student score as, a secondary display can automatically be also displayed, also showing the percentage or letter grade equivalent of the score earned. Add a secondary display to any column where this additional grade view would be helpful. The secondary display is only available in the Grade Center and not My Grades.
   
   How to: Click the down arrows next to the title of the column, then click Edit Column Information. Select the desired format of the additional grade display from the Secondary Display drop down menu.
   
5. Exempt a grade for an individual student
   For a student who has a legitimate reason for missing an assignment, that score can now be exempted from the student's cumulative grade. Notation that a score has been exempted is visible in the Grade Center and My Grades and can be reverted if needed. The original score assigned can also still be found. Exempt scores for students who aren't required to makeup missing assignments.
   
   How to: Click the down arrows within a cell and then click Exempt Grade.
   
6. View Grade Center history
   The Grade History feature provides a record of all changes which occur to grades within a course. Accidentally entering or changing the wrong student's grade or inadvertently clearing a student's grade can be identified and resulting grades reset.
   
   How to: Next to the grade, click on the grey arrow to make the menu appear. Then click on  click the view Grade Details option, and the last tab is titled View Grade History.