Moodle 2.8.6+ (Build: 20150625)
Hello All,
I have been trying to get a solid grasp on the logic behind the various submission settings for the assignment module, particularly where draft submissions (Submission settings > "Require Students click submit button" = Yes) with multiple submissions. I have tried multiple permutations in the settings and have come to the conclusion that the whole process is a bit convoluted and should perhaps be redesigned. However, I am ready and hoping to be proven wrong here. Perhaps I have missed it? The devs have done a fantastic job generally and I am extremely grateful for their work.
With that disclaimer behind me, allow me to elaborate on where I think the module could be improved within the context of four possible scenarios:
- Assignments with multiple submissions but NO drafts (Attempts reopened manually or automatically).
- Assignments without drafts or multiple submissions (attempts reopened = never)
- Assignments which accept drafts. (require submit button)
- Assignments with multiple submissions AND drafts (Submit button AND attempts reopened manually or automatically)
Scenario 1
Assignments with multiple submissions but NO drafts (Attempts reopened manually or automatically).
Use case: You want the student to be able to resubmit until a passmark is achieved or until a certain number of attempts have been used up.
The workflow goes something like this:
- Student submits
- Teacher marks and gives formative feedback. The grade is BELOW the passmark.
- The attempt reopens (if attempts reopened = automatically) or teacher manually allows another attempt.
- The student resubmits
- Teacher marks and student passes.
All of the above works as it should provided a passmark has been set on the assignment. However, the passmark cannot be set anywhere in setup stage of the assignment. It has to be done by going to the gradebook > setup > select assignment > edit settings > show more > Change 0 in "Grade to Pass" to something logical.
If one does not set the passmark for the assignment which is buried deep inside the gradebook, the above workflow breaks.
Improvement? Put the passmark next to the "Attempts reopened" in the setup or at least in the grade section. Most users will overlook this setting otherwise, and without it the workflow makes no sense. Furthermore, the default setting for passmark is 0 and there is no way to set a default passmark even though this seldom changes. Could this not at least use the passmark from the course completion data if it is set? Surely if one can set grade letters, one should also be able to choose a default passmark for assignments as well.
Scenario 2
Assignments without drafts or multiple submissions (attempts reopened = never). Of all the settings, this is perhaps the most common usage, but is appears fundamentally broken.
Use case: Student uploads a single file. Upon upload, the file is submitted for grading without the need to click the submit button. The grader can mark the assignment and provide feedback.
This seems like a simple workflow, and it would be except that even after the file has been submitted the student still has the ability to edit the assignment, EVEN AFTER GRADING, potentially overwriting the feedback from the teacher. This makes absolutely no sense! The only way to avoid this is to have the teacher manually lock the assignment, but why should this even be necessary? Surely a better default behaviour would be to lock the assignment as soon as it is submitted given the way the assignment has been configured. After all, if we wanted the student to be able to edit the submission still, we would have configured drafts. This issue has been raised recently here https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=314453. What makes this even more nonsensical is that students may edit the assignment even AFTER the due date has passed. Perhaps I am missing something here, but this seems fundamentally broken.
Suggestion for improvement: Change the default behaviour to Assignment locked when configured as stated above.
Scenario 3
Assignments which accept drafts. (require submit button).
Use case: Students can upload an assignment, but have the chance to edit it provided they have not clicked the submit button. The assignment shows as "Draft not Submitted" in the status. It is suitably distinct in appearance from submitted assignments.
This setup seems to work, however the submission process is confusing to students and there is no option to notify markers of the submission for drafts.
The first problem here is that the student has to go through perhaps four different screens before submitting the assignment: 1. The summary page, 2. the upload screen, 3. the submit button screen, and 4. the declaration screen (if one has been set in the configuration). Surely this could be easily condensed into just the summary screen and the upload screen. Would it not be better to have a checkbox or radio button to select the draft status? Perhaps something like the following:
Secondly, draft submissions do not make a great deal of sense unless a teacher is notified about the submission. What is the purpose of a draft submission otherwise? Perhaps there is a use case I have not seen here, but it would seem the need for formative feedback (hence the draft) presupposes the involvement of the teacher. Why then is there no option to notify the teacher of drafts? The is the possible work around of event notifications in Moodle 2.8 and later, but this has some drawbacks inasmuch the notifications lack references to the exact assignment and students submitting.
Suggestion for improvement: Revise the submission workflow so that fewer steps are involved and the language of "Rough Draft"/"Final Draft" is employed to clarify what is actually happening. Many students just leave the assignment in draft, which incidentally should automatically go to final when the due date passes. At least this should be an option.
Secondly, provide an option for notifications of draft submissions.
Scenario 4
Assignments with multiple submissions AND drafts (Submit button AND attempts reopened manually or automatically).
Now to me, this is in some sense redundant. In effect, submissions that reopen when the passmark has not been reached are drafts. There is very likely a use case that I have not considered here. Nevertheless, the problems here are compounded by the issues noted above.
In conclusion (finally), there are some obvious changes that could be made to vastly improve the function of the assignments module, which by some accounts (Mary), is the most widely used method to receive essay type assessments. I should again reiterate that I am very grateful to the devs who have done a fantastic job overall. My apologies if the tone above appears to be ungrateful or nit-picky. That is not my intention. I use Moodle every day and generally love both the experience and the wonderful community behind it! Thanks in advance for your comments and suggestions on how I can use the assignments module better.