The Assignment tool allows students to submit assignments in Brightspace/D2L without having to visit a classroom or send through email. Students can record presentations with Panopto.

Assignments

Course assignments and projects can be submitted through Brightspace/D2L using the Assignments tool, which will provide a space for instructions and a link for students to submit the assignment. Avoid having students submit assignments by email, which can be challenging to manage and may not keep a record of submissions. Instructors can set specific parameters for the assignment, including due dates, times, and grades or scores. For all learning, but especially online learning, that is more self-directed and independent, it is important to provide students with detailed instructions for an assignment. Students also need clear grading criteria to help guide student work, including the purpose of the assignment, format, due dates and grading rubric.

Expectations

State expectations, but be ready to allow extensions. In the case of a campus closure or other crisis, some students will have difficulties meeting deadlines. Make expectations clear, but be ready to provide more flexibility than you usually would in your class.

Filenames

Require specific filenames. It may sound trivial, but anyone who collects papers electronically knows the pain of getting 20 files named Essay1.docx. Give your students a simple file naming convention. For example, FirstnameLastname-Essay1.docx

Helping Students Succeed

If you have exemplar examples of past student work, post them for students to model and get a sense of what the instructor wants. If possible, break your assignments into smaller parts where learning can be scaffolded. This provides students with opportunities to practice and receive feedback, i.e., submitting an outline of a paper with five peer-reviewed sources. In addition, instuctors can use online discussion forums for peer review or critiques of student work.

How to Create an Assignment with Brightspace

Student Presentations with Panopto

Students at MSU can use Panopto to record presentations. They can log in to Panopto with their NetID and password. They can share their recordings directly with the instructor through an Assignment submission link in Brightspace/D2L. Students can also share with other students by providing a link to their recording through an online discussion forum set up for sharing.

Students may want to use another recording tool as an alternative to Panopto. Please ensure that the output from the presentation tool can be shared in the Brightspace/D2L course.