Moodle: Download assignment to grade offline

Did you know that you can download Assignment submissions in bulk for offline grading/feedback, then re-upload the grades, feedback, and (optionally) marked assignments back into Moodle? This feature works with both anonymous grading (blind marking) and non-anonymous grading workflows. This article explains the steps; EAST is happy to help you with the process of offline bulk grading — email help@brynmawr.edu or set up a consultation appointment.

You can also mark PDF submissions without downloading them. See Moodle: Grade assignments with Annotate PDF

Step 1. Enable offline grading

In order to use offline grading, you must enable it in the Assignment settings before you start grading. (We recommend doing this before students submit any work.)

1. Click on the assignment to open it. 
2. Click the Settings tab.
3. Scroll down to Feedback types and check all of the following:
   • Feedback comments
   • Feedback files
   • Offline grading worksheet
4. Under Grade, make sure:
   • Type is set to Point or Scale (that is, the item is graded) 
   • Grading Method is set to Simple Direct Grading (the default).
5. Click Save and Display to return to the Assignment.

Step 2. Download your files

When you are ready to begin grading: 

1. Click on the assignment to open it. 
2. Click View All Submissions. 
3. On the Submissions page, 
   • Click the Grading action drop-down menu, and choose Download grading worksheet. This will download a .csv file you will use to enter student grades. 
   • Click Download all submissions to download a zipped file of student submissions.
4. Find these files where Downloads are saved and move them to another folder if desired.
5. Unzip the file of student submissions. 
   • File submissions will be in the formats student uploaded (.doc, .rtf, .pdf, etc.). 
   • Online text submissions will be downloaded as html files.
     
   • Students are identified by a unique numeric identifier in filenames, folder names, and on the grading worksheet. 
   • If anonymous grading (“blind marking”) is not enabled their first and last names are also listed.

3. Read, grade, and/or annotate work

Click on the students’ submission files to open and read them. 

To upload grades into the Moodle Gradebook, fill out the grading worksheet:

1. Open the .csv file you downloaded in step 2 in Excel or other spreadsheet editor.
2. Next to each student's unique number/name:
   • Enter a grade in the Grade column, using the scale you set for the assignment.
   • In the Feedback comments column, type any comments you want to appear next to the grade in the Moodle Gradebook.
3. Leave all other data untouched.
4. Save the .csv file.

To provide more detailed feedback through Moodle, do one of the following:

• Add annotations to the submission files (for example, using Word's track changes or Adobe Reader's commenting). Save the submission files, without changing the filenames or folder structure.
• Type your feedback in a separate document and add it to the subfolder for each student.

When you are finished, zip up the submissions folder for upload by selecting it, right-clicking and choosing Send to > Compressed (zipped) folder (Windows) or Compress (Mac) from the contextual menu. 

4. Upload grading worksheet and files if needed

1. Click on the assignment to open it.
2. Click View All Submissions. 
3. To upload your grades and summary feedback:
   1. From the Grading action drop-down menu, select Upload grading worksheet.
   2. Click Choose a file… to browse for and upload the grading worksheet to Moodle, or drag the .csv file to the arrow and wait for the file name to appear in the box.
   3. DON'T check the Allow updating records that have been modified more recently in Moodle than in the spreadsheet, unless you want to deliberately override grades you’ve already entered.
   4. Click Upload grading worksheet.
   5. Review the grades and feedback to be imported into the Confirmation window carefully.
   6. When you are satisfied that everything is correct, click Confirm, then Continue.
4. To upload annotated submissions or feedback files: 
   1. From the Grading action drop-down menu, choose Upload multiple feedback files in a zip.
   2. Click Choose a file… and upload the zipped assignments file to Moodle, or drag the compressed/zipped file to the arrow and wait for the file name to appear in the box.
   3. Click Import feedback file(s).
   4. Review the info in the Confirmation window for correctness, then click Confirm and Continue.
5. Check the grades to see that everything looks correct; you may need to enable Quick grading at the bottom and/or scroll horizontally to see your feedback files.

Questions?

If you have any additional questions or problems, don't hesitate to reach out to the Help Desk!

Phone: 610-526-7440 | Library and Help Desk hours
Email: help@brynmawr.edu | Service catalog
Location: Canaday Library 1st floor