Tip #53: Grading Discussion Board forums or threads

You can grade Discussion Board forums or threads.

Here’s how to enable grading:
1. Go to the Blackboard Control Panel, and click on Discussion Board
2. Choose the specific Discussion Board containing the Forum you would like to grade
3. Click the Modify button for the Forum you would like to grade
4. Under Forum Settings, select Grade Forum or Grade Threads
· Grade Forum will allow you to assign grades for students’ posts to that forum
· Grade Threads will allow you to assign grades for students’ replies to each thread in a forum

Here’s how to grade:
1. Click the Grade icon next to the forum or thread you would like to grade
2. Click the Grade button next to a student’s name
· The student’s posts to the forum or thread will display
· You can filter, sort, and print the student’s posts
3. Type a grade in the Grade box and click the Submit button

Discussion grading and the gradebook:
It is important to note that when you enable grading for a forum or thread, columns for those forums or threads are automatically generated in the gradebook.
· When you enable grading by forum, a column for that forum is created in the gradebook
· When you enable grading by thread, a column for each thread in a forum is created in the gradebook
Keep this in mind when choosing whether to grade by forum or thread. Gradebook management can become cumbersome if you choose to grade a large number of threads.