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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) for Grade Submission in CSS

 

General 

 

Grade Roster Availability, Submission Deadlines and Grade Recording

 

Blackboard Specific

 

Faculty Center Specific

 

 

  Q:  Why is the way grades are entered changing - what about bubble sheets?
 A:  When BGSU goes live with the PeopleSoft Campus Solutions (CSS) grading component in June 2009, Grade Rosters will be generated with the Office of Registration and Records and faculty members will access them via Faculty Self Service in MyBGSU.  Bubble sheets are a manual process that will no longer be used.  All grades for Summer 2009 and following semesters will be entered electronically into PeopleSoft CSS.

  Q:  How will I be able to enter grades in the new system? 
 A:  Entry may be completed either via Faculty Center in MyBGSU via Blackboard and interfaced to Faculty Center.

  Q:  What is Faculty Self-Service?

 A: Faculty Self Service is the location in which BGSU faculty members will find Class Roster, Grade Roster, and Advisee information along with other useful functions.  A Faculty Center Overview is available for reference. 


  Q:  How can I learn about how to enter grades?

 A:  There are online tutorials and quick reference guides available to provide guidance on how to complete grade submission. Links to these items are available at:


  Q:  I use Blackboard, can I input grades using Blackboard?

 A:  If you are a faculty member who uses Blackboard you may submit final grades via Blackboard. This online tutorial and/or Quick Reference Guide provide instructions on how to complete the submission process.


  Q:  Do I need to be on campus to enter grades?
 A:  No, you do not be on campus in order to enter grades. Grade entry may be completed from any location where you have access to a web browser.
 
  Q:  What hours is the system available to enter grades?
 A:  Grade entry is available 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
 
  Q:  Can I import grades from another application such as Excel or another gradebook application?
 A:  The options for submitting grades are via Faculty Center or Blackboard. The option to import grades from other gradebook applications or from Excel is not available.
 
  Q: Are there any other changes regarding grades that I should know about?

 A:  The BG@100 June Change Management web page outlines key elements regarding changes for grades. This information includes: 

    • On line Grade Submission
    • Grading Deadline
    • ABC / No Record
    • Grade Basis Not Known by Instructor
    • Legacy Grade Symbols
    • Tracking Last Date of Attendance on Grade Rosters
    • Access to Posting Grades
    • Conversion Method
    • Repeat Rules
    • Undergraduate Degrees on Graduate Transcripts 

These items are outlined on the web at the BG@100 June Change Management web page.  

 
  Q:  I am teaching in the Fall 2009 semester, when will the Grade Roster icon be available for me to enter grades?

 A:  Fall Semester Final Grade Rosters will be created on December 7.  Faculty may begin to post grades as soon as the Grade Roster is available

 
  Q:  What is the final date for submitting Fall 2009 grades?
 A:  You may continue to post to the Grade Roster through 5 p.m. on December 23
 
  Q:  How will I know when the Grade Roster is available to me?
 A:  Once a Grade Roster is available for a course, the Grade Roster icon will appear in the column to the left of the course name. The legend above the Teaching Schedule header will show you which icon represents the Grade Roster.
 
  Q:  I have tried selecting the Grade Roster icon available above the Teaching Schedule in Faculty Center but nothing happens, what do I do?
 A:  This icon is provided as a reference to indicate the purpose of each icon. Once a Grade Roster is available, you will find a Grade Roster icon to the left of each course name.
 
  Q:  When can I start entering final grades for a semester?
 A:  You may enter grades for a semester once the Grade Roster for the course is available in Faculty Center.  Typically the Grade Roster will be available the Monday prior to finals.
 
  Q:  What is the deadline for entering final grades for a semester?
 A:  In general, the deadline for entering grades for a semester will be the Wednesday following finals week.

In the past this deadline has been the Monday following finals week. Because the grades will be entered electronically and immediately available to the students, this deadline has been modified to allow faculty more time for grading and grade submission. The time previously needed by Registration and Records to process the bubble sheets has been eliminated.

 
  Q:  What happens if grades are not entered by this deadline?

 A:  After 5 p.m. on the Wednesday following finals week Registration and Records will

  • post any grades saved on Grade Rosters
  • populate a grade of NGR (no grade) for any grade not recorded or saved on the grade roster
  • will do a final post of all final grades
  • once this occurs, an instructor will need to complete a Grade Change to report the final grade in the course
 
  Q:  When will the grades be available for students to see?
 A:  Once you have completed grade entry and selected "Post", the grades are immediately available for the student to view. At that time, the grade will also impact the student's GPA calculation.
 
  Q:  When will grades appear on Official Transcripts?
 A:  Grades will appear on the official transcript the day after the term grade deadline.
 
  Q:  Is this same method to be used for grades throughout the term or just for final grades?
A: This grade submission process will currently be used for final grade submission only.
 
  Q:  Will this in any way impact mid-term grade reporting?
 A:  The mid-term grade reporting process will currently remain unchanged.
 
  Q:  How are grade changes handled - will this also be electronic?
 A:  Grade changes will continue to be handled through the same department initiated process.
 
  Q:  How are INC (incompletes) handled?
A:  You may submit the final grade to the Office of Registration and Records up until the deadline for incomplete grades. After that deadline, a change of grade needs to processed.

Similar Question
Q:  What about students who deserved a WP when they withdrew?
A:  The grade of WP is no longer awarded at the institution. If a student is still on your grade roster, the appropriate grade is a WF and you would need to follow the appropriate procedures for filing the last date of attendance. If you are assisting the student in withdrawing from the class, you may inform the student that they will need to contact their college office who, in all likelihood, will contact the instructor for the last date of attendance.
  Q:  What about students who deserved a WP when they withdrew?
A:  The grade of WP is no longer awarded at the institution. If a student is still on your grade roster, the appropriate grade is a WF and you would need to follow the appropriate procedures for filing the last date of attendance. If you are assisting the student in withdrawing from the class, you may inform the student that they will need to contact their college office who, in all likelihood, will contact the instructor for the last date of attendance.
 Q:  What do the various grade inputs represent?

 A:  The actual grade values are determined by the grading established for the course in the course catalog.

  • For courses graded A through F, grades of A, B, C, D, F, INC (Incomplete), NGR (No Grade) and WF (Withdraw Fail) will be available
  • For courses graded S/U only the appropriate grades are S, U, INC, NGR, and WF
 
 Q:  My summer course shell does not have the CSS External Grade Column created, what do I do?
A:  If your course shell does not have a CSS External Grade column created, you will have to create one following the instructions provided in the online tutorial or in this documentation .   Beginning Fall 2009 all course shells will be created with this column. 
 
   Q:  Do I need to enter the grades into Blackboard in a specific format?
 A:  The grades need to be entered in uppercase format. If they are not entered in uppercase, an error message of "Invalid Value"  will be returned in the Grade Roster column when importing the grades into Faculty Center.
 
   Q:  Is there any way to remove the OK box that appears after each grade entry when using Blackboard?
 A:  This OK button will be a part of the grade entry process in Blackboard.  To avoid the OK button appearing after each grade entry, press Return after entering the grade.
 
  Q:  I have entered all my final grades in the CSS External Grade column in Blackboard, am I now finished?
A:  You will now need to select the OK button at the bottom right corner of the page. This will navigate you to the Control Panel section where you may select the Faculty Center link to be taken directly to Faculty Center to complete the interface process.
 
   Q:  I have completed the process to interface my grades from Blackboard to Faculty Center but I have errors and warnings - how do I proceed? 
 A:  Review the messages received from the interface - these are visible in the box at the bottom right of the screen. Several potential error messages are documented here .  You may correct these errors directly on the Grade Roster or you may return to your Blackboard course shell to make the corrections and then run the interface again.

Please note that you may not add student enrollments to your course shell and post final grades for those students using the interface. The student will need to contact their college office to have the course added to their schedule and a grade will need to be reported separately from the grade roster.

 

  Q:  What if I log in to the system and my class is not there?
 A:  Contact Registration and Records.

  Q:  I have a large class, can I enter some of my grades at different times? 
 A:  Yes, you may enter grades for a portion of your class and then select Save to save this work. You may then log out return at a later time to complete grade entry.

  Q:  Will the grade entry application "time out" after a period of inactivity?

 A:  The frame that is displaying the Grades application will timeout according to the PeopleSoft timeout period (currently 1 hr.) A "Return to Portal" link will be displayed. If the user selects this link they will be taken back into the application from which they were timed out. For this reason it is critical that each user logout of the application when finished. It is also important to save input grades frequently as this data will be lost should the application time out and the data is not saved.


  Q:  I am ready to enter grades in to Faculty Center and the Grade column for one student is already complete - why is this happening?

 A:  If a student has taken an action, such as withdrawing by the appropriate deadline, that action will be reflected on the Grade Roster when the Grade Roster is created. Another example of this would be if a student appropriately completes a name change during the semester, this would by dynamically reflected on the Grade Roster. The name change will be reflected but the only thing that will close the roster column is a grade that is already posted. Any action taken by the student after the creation of the Grade Roster (Grade Rosters will usually be created the Monday before finals) will not be reflected.


  Q:  Who can enter grades?

 A:  Various people as designated on the Schedule of Classes may enter grades.  There are three levels of approval - Grade - Approve - Post - and the names associated with each level may be viewed in CSS.  Only the primary instructor, in most cases, will have the ability to approve and post the final grade.

To view the roles for each course, log in to CSS and select Curriculum Management > Schedule of Classes > Maintain Schedule of Classes.  Enter the appropriate class information on the search page and once you are looking at the class information, click on the "Meetings" tab.  Under the bar Instructors for Meeting Pattern, the instructor name and EMPLID are listed, as well as their Role and Access.


  Q:  Can I delegate entry of grades to someone else, such as a department secretary?

 A:  The Faculty Senate Committee on Academic Affairs has confirmed that the instructor of record must complete entry of grades for their course - responsibility for this duty may not be delegated.


  Q:  What do I do if a student does not appear on my Grade Roster?
 A:  If a student does not appear on your class roster, this student will need to contact their college office to have the course added to their schedule.
 
  Q:  What if a student on my Grade Roster has never attended the class or turned in any work?
 A:  Academic policy states this student should be given a final grade of ‘WF’. In addition you are required by Federal regulations regarding Student Financial Aid to report the student’s last date of attendance. Do this by completing the Last Date of Attendance form and submitting it to Registration and Records.
 
  Q:  If there is more than one instructor of record for a course, does each one have the authority to enter grades?
 A:  Multiple instructors may have access to record and review grades for a course. The primary instructor will have the ability to do this as well as approve and post.
 
  Q:  Do I need to enter a grade for every student on the Grade Roster?

 A:  Yes, prior to submission a grade must be entered for every student on the Grade Roster. If a grade is not available at the time of grade submission a grade of INC or NGR should be selected, depending on each student’s situation.

 
  Q:  Will the system let me know if I am missing a student's grade?
 A:  The system will not let you post the grade roster if a grade is missing. You can choose to record the grade directly to the Grade Roster or you may return to Blackboard to record the grade and process the interface again.
 
  Q:  If I make a mistake and enter the wrong grade, how do I correct it?
 A:  Prior to selecting Post, it is possible to make changes to the grades entered.

In Faculty Center, be sure the Status is either Not Reviewed and then correct the error and Save and change the Status to Approved.

Once Post has been selected, you may no longer make changes within the system. After this point in time, all grade changes will need to be submitted using the Change Grade process.

 
  Q:  If I complete only some of the Grade Roster, will the system automatically save my submission?
 A:  The system completes a Save of entries when the Save button is selected, there is no AutoSave feature.
 
  Q:  At what point will my grades officially be entered?
 A:  Once you have selected "Post" your grades have officially been entered and students are able to view their grades.
 
  Q:  Once grades are entered and I have selected Post can I go back and make changes?

 A:  Once Post has been selected, you may no longer make changes within the system. After this point in time, all grade changes will need to be submitted using the Change Grade process.


  Q:  When entering grades in Faculty Center, what are the different Approval Status levels available in the pull down menu?

 A:  The Status Levels are:

  • Not Reviewed - in the Not Reviewed status, you may enter and/or change grades in the Roster Grade column and the Post button is not available in this status.  Be sure to select Save to save the grades as they are being entered.
  • Approved - in the Approved status, grades have been entered and Saved and the Post button is available.  From this Status Level it is possible to change the Approval Status back to Not Reviewed in order to make changes.
  • Ready for Review - the Ready for Review status will close the roster for entry and changes, securing the input grade information while it is reviewed.  

Always be sure to save the input data prior to leaving the application in order to avoid the loss of input data.

Once grades have been Posted, they will appear in the Official Grade column and the Status column will show Posted.
 
  Q:  I have entered my grades but have not selected Post can I still make changes?
 A:  Prior to selecting Post, it is possible to make changes to the grades entered.

If you have entered your grades, selected Save and changed the Status to Approved and then notice an error, you may change the Status back to Ready for Review and make the change.

 
  Q:  How do I do a grade change?
A: The Grade Change process is originated from within each department. Please see your department office for details on this process.
 
  Q:  Can I get a printout after I enter my grades?
 A:  You can print the roster from the browser or there is a Printer Friendly Version button at the bottom of the roster.
 
  Q:  How can I verify that grades have been successfully submitted
 A:  Once grades have been successfully submitted, the grades will appear in the Official Grade column and "Posted" will appear Status column on the far right.
 
  Q:  Will I receive a confirmation that grades have been entered into the system after I have posted my grades?
A:  No official confirmation communication will be provided, you can check to see that Posted appears in the Status column to confirm your grade submission.

 

 Q:  Will the system automatically send my grades to Registration and Records if I have not submitted them by the deadline?

 A:  After 5 p.m. on the Wednesday following finals week Registration and Records will

  • post any grades saved on Grade Rosters
  • populate a grade of NGR (no grade) for any grade not recorded or saved on the grade roster
  • will do a final post of all final grades
  • once this occurs, an instructor will need to complete a Grade Change to report the final grade in the course
 
 Q:  If I need to do a Grade Change for a student, will the column on Faculty Center entitled Official Grade by updated once this grade change has been approved?
A:  The submitted grade will continue to appear in the Roster Grade Column. The Official Grade will display the final grade including the grade if there are subsequent changes from what was originally posted.
 
   Q:  I understand that grades are available to students as soon as I post grades, but when is Academic Standing updated?
 A:  Academic Standing will not be calculated until 24 hours (one business day) after the final posting of all grades. This is to ensure that all grade information is accurate prior to the calculation of academic standing.
 
  Q:  What if I don't use a computer?
A:  You may contact the Office of Registration and Records to arrange for a time to come to their office in order to obtain assistance in entering your grades.
 
   Q:  Is there assistance if I need help?
 A:  Yes, please contact the Office of Registration and Records at records@bgsu.edu, 419-372-8441.
  
 

 

 

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Last Updated 10/12/09

  
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