Missing Assignment Tag in Gradebook

[shannon_larrea]

This idea has been developed and deployed to Canvas

In other  Gradebooks, we have been able to enter an "M" is a student hadn't submitted an assignment.  It would read the grade as a zero.  This is similar the EX feature you already have in Canvas.  I know in the individual view I can changed all Ungraded homework to read as a zero but this isn't practical if I don't grade the homework the same day it is submitted.  My teachers only enter a zero if student was present and that's grade they earned.  If they are absent, etc an M is a great way to distinguish they are still allowed to turn in the assignment but still affects their overall grade if it isn't turned in.

Comments from Instructure

For more information, please read through the Canvas Production Release Notes (2018-01-06) .

:smileyinfo: We recognize that the specifically requested "M" was not implemented.  M, like EX, is not a standard symbol globally, so the feature was intentionally designed without it. EX was already in place and the decision was made not to remove it.  We do not plan to add any additional non-standard symbols.  EX actually causes a lot of confusion and problems for our international users 😞

[KristinL]

The "M" in the gradebook would be great! We introduced the new UI and reviewed updated features. They liked having the new EX or excused feature, but one of the questions they had was, "When will there be the ability to write an M in the gradebook?" I was happy to see this feature request pop up in the Canvas Community. I'll be sure to forward this request to teachers in our building when voting opens.

[biray]

This idea is now open for vote.

[scothran]

In our case our classes are asynchronous, but the issue is the same.  It is helpful for teachers, students and parents to be able to distinguish between a true zero, and a zero due to an assignment not turned in as of the due date, something very different from the former.  An additional problem currently is that once a teacher has but in a zero for a late assignment (necessary to maintain an accurate current grade), that assignment no longer shows up on the students To Do List.  But those are the very assignments I want students to do first!

[e01166]

This would be a very useful feature in our program. Too often, when students see a 0 in the gradebook they make the assumption that they can no longer submit the assignment for grade. The "M" (calculated as a zero in grade calculations) more clearly communicates that the student can still submit the assignment.

[swright]

I currently use M for meets the standard. If this is a change please let everyone know, so that I can pick another code. I'd hate for it to change unexpectedly, although I like the idea.

[csawtell]

Yes please! I (and my students and parents) are used to see the code "mi" for a missing assignment. This was counted as a zero, so it would be nice to have that options. This way students know what their grade would look like if it wasn't turned in. As many others have said, a missing assignment is very different than a zero, which can no longer be turned in. It would also be great if parents, students and instructors were able to compile a list of missing assignments for each student, rather than hunting through the gradebook to see what each kiddo is missing. I didn't realize that a zero means it no longer shows up on a student's to do list. This is problematic and confusing for kids, especially middle schoolers.

[boneill]

Please, oh, please, let there be an "M." It is so frustrating not being able to tell either myself or a student if the assignment was due to it never being turned in or being assessed a 0 -- at a glance. I know we can notate, but such is not quickly discernible in a scan. Thank you!!

[boneill]

What would also be nice (not up for a vote yet?) is an "A" for absent. This would clearly indicate immediately that a given assignment is not only missing but such due to absence, not potentially just missing although present. Thank you!

[csawtell]

I agree! In my old grading system, we could create our own codes, which was really helpful. I had an mi (missing), which counted a as a zero, ab (absent) which didn't count as anything and told me and the student they were absent and need to check in, and an SM (see me), which counted for 50  percent until they saw me to clear things up. I would love more flexibility and the ability to paint a more accurate picture of what is going on.

[KristinL]

 @shannon_larrea , could you go back in and edit your original feature idea so it includes more tags? I think you can add more tags like "missing" and "gradebook" (just to name a few) to get more traffic. I think this feature would be huge for K-12 folks; we just need to help them find this idea.