Check Student Averages

Use this procedure to verify that student averages are being calculated as expected. Before posting marks from Gradebook to Report Cards or IPR, student averages should be checked to verify that category and assignment information has been set up correctly. You may want to check averages for all students, but you should check at least one student's Gradebook information before loading Gradebook information.  

Use the Student Detail report to print the assignment information for a mark. This report is a useful tool to identify setup issues and to verify that averages are being calculated as expected.

Print the Student Detail report to verify Gradebook information

1. From Gradebook, click Entry to display the Gradebook Entry page.
2. If you are in SBGB Summary Mode, click

   

    for GB Entry mode or

   

    for SBGB Detail mode on the mode selector

   

   .
3. If you need to update the class or marking period, click Change, and make your selections.
4. Use the Filter to select the mark you want to verify. The assignments for the categories that are averaged for the mark are displayed.
5. Click a student's row number to select the student.
6. From the Actions/Reports drop-down, select Run Student Detail Report to display the Student Detail Report Options pop-up.
7. Select the information to include, and click Run. The Student Detail report displays.
8. Use the checklists below to verify information.

Check how categories are averaged for the mark

Look at the Category section that displays below the list of assignments for the student to review how categories are averaged.

• Did you override the average for the mark?
  If bottom of the report includes a line displaying the adjusted overall average, then you have changed the average for the mark. This average overrides system calculations. If you do not want to override the system calculation for a category, return to the Gradebook Entry page, select the mark from the filter, and then click on the average for the student (which displays in bold if overridden). Select the value and select the Delete key. If Auto Save is enabled, click any other cell to display the gradebook-calculated average. If Auto Save is not enabled, click

  

  to display the gradebook-calculated average.

• Are the correct categories listed in the block of Category information?
  If a category is listed that should not be included in the average for the mark, use the Report Card Averages or IPR Averages tab of the Gradebook Setup page (Gradebook > Setup) to remove the category from the categories included in the mark.
  If a category is not listed that should be included in the average for the mark, use the Report Card Averages or IPR Averages tab of the Gradebook Setup page to select to include the category. If the category is already selected, verify that the weight is not equal to 0 (zero).

• Are the correct weights listed for all categories?
  If a category has the incorrect weight entered, use the Report Card Averages or IPR Averages tab of the Gradebook Setup page to edit the category and correct the weight.

• Are the correct number of assignments dropped?
  The value in the # of Dropped Assignments column indicates the number of lowest scores that you selected to drop for the category when calculating the average for the mark. Use the Report Card Averages or IPR Averages tab of the Gradebook Setup page to edit the category and change the number of low scores to drop.

• Did you override the average for a category?
  If you changed the average for a student for a category selected in the Filter, the average you entered is used instead of the system calculated average. If you do not want to override the system calculation for a category, select the category using the Filter category tab and then click on the average for the student. Select the value and click the Delete key. If Auto Save is enabled, click any other cell to display the gradebook-calculated average. If Auto Save is not enabled, click

  

   to display the gradebook-calculated average

Verify the average calculated for a student

If you hand-calculate the student's average and you do not get the same result as Gradebook, use the Student Detail report to check the calculation. The Category section of the report lists the total points that the student earned and the maximum possible points. If the total for a category does not match your calculations, check the following:

• Have you included a score and points for an assignment for which the due date has not passed?  When reviewing the assignments listed, keep in mind that the average to be posted will only include assignments that have a due date on or before the date on which you post grades.
• Did you include a score that was dropped because it was one of the lowest scores and you selected to drop a specified number of low scores? If a score is excluded (or dropped) from the average, it will print on the Student Detail report with a line through it. The score and points for the assignment will not be included in the average.
• Did you drop a score for an assignment that has Cannot Be Dropped checked? If Cannot be Dropped is checked for the assignment (either on the Assignment tab of the Gradebook Setup page or the Assignment Details Drawer of the Gradebook Entry page), the score will not be dropped in the average calculation. The Cannot be Dropped column on the Student Detail report shows you how you defined the assignment. If you checked the Cannot be Dropped box for the assignment, the assignment will never be dropped even if it is one of the lowest scores for a category.
• Are you weighting an assignment correctly?
• Are you calculating alpha scores correctly? Alpha scores may indicate:
  • The assignment is excluded from the average. If the mark indicates the assignment is excluded from the average, the mark is printed with a line through it.
  • The student earned a specified percentage of the possible points. If the mark indicates that a percentage score is earned, the Weighted Score column will indicate the numeric score that is used when averaging the scores for the category.
• Are you adding extra credit points correctly? Extra credit may be added in one of two ways:
  • The points may be added to the total possible points before the average for a category is calculated. The row for an extra credit assignment will indicate Extra credit: student points if the points are added to the student's points for the category.
  • The points may be added to the calculated average. The row for an extra credit assignment will indicate Extra credit: overall average if the points are added to the average.
• Are you processing missing assignments correctly? For a mark, you can specify how missing assignments are handled for each category. You can select to treat missing assignments as if the student earned a zero so you would include the possible points in the category average or to exclude missing assignments so you would not include the possible points in the category average.