[Discussions] Display Discussion Rubrics by Default

[isaac_piercy]

As a K-12, we love that Canvas has built-in rubrics for assignments. We are also thankful that whatever rubric we create is displayed prominently, just beneath the content of the assignment while in student view. This is a great reminder for middle and high school students because it is so easily seen.

For some reason, this is not true of Canvas discussions however. Rather, students must click on the "settings gear" and select "show rubric" to generate a pop up display. This is not ideal, and most of our students forget that rubrics even exist for our online discussions. As an adaptive measure we have begun taking screenshots of our discussion rubrics once they are built and then inserting them at the bottom of the discussion prompt. This is quite time consuming, but we need to do this to keep our student's replies focused and on topic.

I would propose that rubrics for discussions are displayed automatically at the bottom of every discussion prompt, just as they are for general assignments. Or, at the very least, make it a course setting: "display discussion rubrics automatically."

Thanks for considering!

[cmonson5]

In order for a student to see a rubric for a Discussions they have to click the 3 dots on the top right and then click rubric. Many students do not know that this exists. Causing them to not see it. Can you show a button that says this is the rubric next to the graded discussion link. 

[Steven_S]

I can understand that a rubric at the bottom of a discussion prompt, separates the prompt from the discussion, and yet students miss the rubric where it is currently located.  A better solution might be a prominent button at the bottom of the prompt labeled "Show rubric" that activates the current popup, or even uses a right side menu that students can choose to continue to view as they prepare their response.

[lettgo583]

Oh, yes, please do what Steven_S suggests! Not having a link to the rubric visible to students is so confusing to faculty -- and students!  If you can place the link in a prominent place in the top discussion description area (instead of assuming folks will know to click on the three little dots), that would make this so much more useful!  🙂 

[kroeninm]

Yes please, a simple button to show rubric would be more visible.  No matter how many times we link the "how to" guide in each discussion, students still miss the rubrics.

When we do screenshots it's inaccessible so not ideal.  

Melanie

[TanyaUponAvon]

Problem statement:

Discussion rubrics should be presented on the discussion page the same way assignment rubrics are presented on the assignment page. Currently, in order to find the rubric for a discussion, students have to find the three-dot kabob and select the rubric from a dropdown menu. Why should the rubric for this type of assessment be so hidden? This minimizes the importance of building effective discussions, which are an essential tool for enabling student collaboration in fully online courses.

Proposed solution:

Place the discussion rubric on the discussion page below the instructors' prompt, as with the assignment rubric on the assignment page. If there is a concern about student access to the Reply button for the discussion, the rubric could be collapsed in a dropdown, or at least provided with its own button with a popout. It could even be placed below the discussion reply strings. Place it anywhere on the page, rather than hiding it as a random item under the kabob--which most students don't even register as a thing. Thanks!

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