How do I assign a graded discussion to an individual student?

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When creating or editing a graded discussion, you can assign a graded discussion to a specific student. Availability date functionality is still available for each graded discussion.

Only the student(s) specified in the discussion details can view the graded discussion.

When using differentiated assignments with the Gradebook, the graded discussion appears as a column for all students, but grade cells are grayed out for students who have not been included in the discussion. Grades cannot be assigned for students who have not been included in the graded discussion, and graded discussions that are not assigned to a student are not factored into overall grades.

When Multiple Grading Periods are enabled in a course, assignments are also respected against closed grading periods.

Note: If your course is using MasteryPaths, you do not have to manually assign graded discussions to individual students. Learn how to assign assignments to MasteryPaths.

Open Discussions

In Course Navigation, click the Discussions link.

Add Discussion

Click the Add Discussion button.

Enter Discussion Details

Enter a title [1] and add content [2] to your discussion.

Set Graded Discussion

Click the Graded checkbox.

Enter Grading Details

Enter the number of points possible [1]. Select the Grading Type [2] and Assignment Group [3], and assign Peer Reviews [4], if any.

Assign to Student

By default, Canvas will set your assignment for everyone in your course. To create the assignment for a specific student, click the Everyone remove icon [1], then start to type in the name of a student [2]. Search fields are dynamic, and you can search for students by first or last name. When the full name appears, click the name. Lists are not scrollable.

You can include more than one student in the To field as long as the students are to be assigned the same due and availability dates.

Edit Due and Availability Dates

In the date fields, add your preferred date(s) with the following options:

Due [1]: Set the date and time that the graded discussion is due. The due date will already be populated for you if you created an assignment shell, but you can change it if necessary.
Available From [2]: Set the date and time when the graded discussion will become available.
Until [3]: Set the date and time when the graded discussion will no longer be available.

Note: Beneath the Due Date and Availability date fields, Canvas will display the time zone date and time according to context. If you manage courses in a time zone other than your local time zone and create or edit a due date for a graded discussion, the course and local times are displayed for reference.

Add Additional Dates

To add another student with a different due date and availability dates, click the Add button.

Remove Dates

You can also delete additional dates by clicking the remove icon next to the appropriate date.

Save and Publish

If you are ready to publish your discussion, click the Save & Publish button [1]. If you want to create a draft of your discussion and publish it later, click the Save button [2].

View Due Date Warning

If you do not add course sections to the assignment, you will see a warning message asking you if you want to add those sections.

You can click the Continue button [1] if you don't want to add any sections to the assignment, or click the Go Back button [2] to go back and add additional sections.

Note: This warning message will not appear if Everyone or all course sections are assigned to the assignment.

View Date Error

If you submit an invalid string of due dates and try to save the graded discussion, Canvas generates an error notification. Such invalid entries include not unlocking the discussion before it is due, not placing the due date inside the range of availability dates, or assigning a date that is outside the course or term dates.

Correct the date and then update the discussion again.

Notes:

If the course does not include specified course start and end dates, Canvas validates the graded discussion against the term date set for the course.
If your course is using Multiple Grading Periods, the Assign field validates the due date against the closed grading period and requires the discussion due date to be past the date of the closed grading period.

View Graded Discussion Dates

To view users and due dates for the discussion, click the Show Due Dates link.

View the dates assigned to the graded discussion.

View Assignments Page

On the Assignments Page, the graded discussion shows there are multiple users and dates assigned to the discussion. Hover over the text to view date availability or due dates.