Teacher: Assignments Setup

The Assignment activity allows teachers to collect work from students, review it, and provide grades and feedback. It is the most used assessment tool in Moodle.

1. Creating an Assignment

1. Turn Edit mode ON.
2. Click Add an activity or resource.
3. Select Assignment.
4. Give it a clear Assignment name (e.g., "Week 4 Essay: Case Study").

2. Availability (Dates & Deadlines)

This is the most critical section to prevent student confusion.

Setting	Function	💡 Best Practice
Allow submissions from	Students cannot submit before this date.	Set this to the day you release the topic.
Due date	The official deadline. Submissions after this date are marked as Late but are still accepted.	Always set a time (e.g., 23:59).
Cut-off date	The "Hard" deadline. The "Add submission" button disappears after this date.	Use this if you do not accept ANY late work. Otherwise, leave it blank to allow late submissions.
Remind me to grade by	Just a notification for the teacher. Students don't see this.	Set it to 1-2 weeks after the due date.

3. Submission Types

Control what the student actually sends you.

• File submissions: Students upload a Word, PDF, or PPT file.
  • Maximum number of files: Usually 1 or 2 is enough.
  • Maximum submission size: Stick to the site limit (e.g., 50MB).
  • Accepted file types: Recommended. Type `.pdf` or `.docx` to force students to use standard formats. This ensures you can open their files.
• Online text: Students type directly into a text box in Moodle.
  • Good for short reflections (200-500 words) or journals. Not recommended for long essays (risk of browser crash losing data).

4. Grading Settings

• Grade Type:
  • Point: Standard numerical score (e.g., out of 100).
  • Scale: Pass/Fail, or Letter grades (A/B/C), if configured by the admin.
• Grading method:
  • Simple direct grading: Just enter a number.
  • Rubric: A clickable grid of criteria (requires advanced setup).

5. Feedback Types

Ensure Feedback comments is checked. This allows you to write notes to the student alongside their grade.

• Optional: Annotate PDF. If enabled, you can draw/write directly on the student's PDF submission within the browser.

6. Granting Extensions (User Overrides)

If a student is sick and needs extra time, DO NOT change the main Due Date. Use an override.

1. Click on the Assignment title to open it.
2. Click the More tab (secondary menu) → Overrides.
3. Select User overrides.
4. Click Add user override.
5. Select the student's name.
6. Set a custom Due date and Cut-off date just for them.
7. Click Save.