Grading Sakai's Gradebook --> B-

The gradebook in any course management system is the staple of that system. It almost seems pointless if there isn't one, and it's probably the only reason why I still use a CMS in my online and hybrid courses. I've been using the gradebook in Sakai this semester and there are some things I really like about it, but I have to admit, after 13 weeks I'm still a bit confused by it as well.

First, I really like that you can create an assignment and then attach it to the gradebook as part of the process. Then you can grade the assignments and return them to students for the option of a rewrite. This gradebook is cool because you can then create another assignment for students to submit the rewrite to and then attach it to the original assignment in the gradebook. This is in addition to being able to allow students to submit resubmission in the original assignment. There is a good reason to have both options, which I don't mention here.

The gradebook can be a bit confusing. I'm still not sure about releasing grades, and I'm almost certain I will export the grades out of Sakai into an Excel sheet to make sure they are correct. Currently my whole class is failing, not because they truly are, but because I can't figure out some of the things in the gradebook to make all the grades display correctly. And as the instructor, I can't see a total grade anywhere. According to my students, they can't either, which is good right now because I'm sure they'd all be freaking out if they could. :-)

So I like a lot of the functionality of the gradebook, but I think the use of frames in Sakai makes it difficult to maneuver around and see all the students. It is a pain to have to scroll both left and right and up and down. I wish there was a way to limit either the assignments or the students.

With that said, I'm rating the Sakai gradebook higher than expected because it does have features that I've longed for in Blackboard, like the ability to resubmit assignments, and the issues I've had are probably my fault since I never had any training. But in my defense, a CMS should be fairly easy to use and learn without having training if it is to be a success.