Release to Select Members

Topics in this Article

Overview
Step 1: Release to Select Students
Step 2: Set Available Date Range
Step 3: Reset Student's Initial Submission (optional)
Step 4: Confirm Selective Release Setup
Step 5: Remove Selective Release
Example: Multiple Student, Multiple Due Date (optional)

Overview This tutorial shows you how to release an assessment, assignment, or discussion to just a few students so that they can make up or retake it. This process requires careful attention and multiple steps as follows: Step 1: Use the Set Release Criteria option to release the Assessment, Assignment, etc. to select students. DO NOT set the due dates in Set Release Criteria because they will be ignored in favor of any due dates defined in the the Edit Properties. Step 2: Use the Edit Properties option to modify the available date range in the Assessment, Assignment, etc. Step 3: If your student has already started the process of submitting an assignment or assessment and you wish for them to resubmit, you must ALSO reset your student's initial submission to clear it out and allow them to submit again. Reset an Assessment Submission or Reset an Assignment Submission at the same time you are selectively releasing the activity. Step 4: It is very important to clear out the Selective Release Criteria settings after they are no longer needed. While the selective release criteria is in place, the other students in the course will not be able to view their assessment results. Example: If you need a lot of control requiring multiple due dates for multiple students, Blackboard offers a way to achieve this. Please see the Advanced Example given at the end of this web page showing how to setup Multiple Students with Multiple Due Dates.

Step 1: Release to Select Students	TOP
Under the Build Tab, go to the tool that has the item that you wish to edit the release criteria for. (Assessments, Assignments, Discussions, etc.) Make sure that tool is not hidden by looking for an (H) designation to the right of it. (H) indicates that the item is hidden from students. If necessary, unhide or show the tool by editing the course menu. Click on the ActionLinks icon next to the item that you want to release Select Set Release Criteria. Clear out any old release criteria specified by pressing the Delete All button at the bottom. Alternatively, edit the existing release criteria by clicking on the ActionLinks icon next to the line you wish to edit/delete and then selecting Edit or Delete as needed. Click on Add Member Criteria or Add Group Criteria as needed. Note: If you are setting up a selective release for a Disability Quiz Accommodation, we recommend that you setup a Custom Group specifically for DSS Students and then use the DSS Student Custom Group as your Group Criteria. Click here for more information on the Group Manager Tool. . Check the boxes next to the students or groups you wish to release the item to. TIP: ALWAYS add your Demo Student to the release criteria for an item. This allows you to use the Student View tab to check out your work and make sure your students will be able to get to the item you have released specifically to them. Click Save Review the Release Criteria logic for accuracy Make sure there is just one criteria line used to define UserID Equals.... Blackboard separates individual users with a comma and allows you to identify many students within a single criteria line Press Save NOTE: DO NOT set the due dates in Set Release Criteria because they will be ignored in favor of any due dates defined in the the Edit Properties. Notice there is a Conditional tag next to the item that has selective release settings on it. This means that only the individuals that meet the appropriate criteria (User ID in this example) will be able to access any part of the activity including the graded results.

Step 2: Set Available Date Range	TOP
The date range associated with an assignment or assessment overrides selective release settings, so it's important to open the assessment/assignment for the time that your selectively released student(s) will need it. Under the Build Tab, go to the tool that has the item that you wish to edit the release criteria for. (Assessments, Assignments, Discussions, etc.) Click on the ActionLinks icon next to the item that you want to edit, select Edit Properties Adjust the Available Dates Press Save ATTENTION: The Date Range setup inside Edit Properties overrides the dates set within Set Release Criteria.

Step 3: Reset Student's Initial Submission (optional)	TOP
If your student has already started the process of submitting an assignment or assessment and you wish for them to resubmit, you must ALSO reset your student's initial submission to clear it out and allow them to submit again. Reset at the same time you are selectively releasing the activity. HOW-TO: Reset an Assessment Submission HOW-TO: Reset an Assignment Submission


Step 4: Confirm Selective Release Setup	TOP
*Confirm that the selective release for the item* has been correctly setup by: Noticing there is a Conditional** tag next to the item that has selective release settings on it. This means that only the individuals that meet the appropriate criteria (User ID in this example) will be able to access any part of the activity including the graded results. Making sure that tool is not hidden by looking for an (H) designation to the right of its listing in the left side menu. Making sure any activity by the Demo Student for this item has been reset. Clicking on the Student View tab and making sure that you can get to the selectively released item as your Demo Student (which was added to the item's Release Criteria in Step 1 above.) If you are not able to get to the selectively released item as your Demo Student, you know something is not setup correctly. Please read over the instructions again carefully to determine what part of the setup needs an adjustment. REMINDER: You MUST remove the conditional selective release settings immediately after the conditional release is no longer needed. This ensures all students will be able to gain access to their graded results. This also allows students in following semesters to complete the activity.

Step 5: Remove Selective Release	TOP
Items that have release criteria associated with them are available to only those individuals that meet that criteria. This includes areas such as assessment results, assignment submissions, etc. Clear all release criteria when it is no longer needed so that all the students in the class will gain access to their results and submissions. Under the Build Tab, go to the tool that has the item that you wish to edit the release criteria for. (Assessments, Assignments, Discussions, etc.) Click on the ActionLinks icon next to the item that you want to clear the selective release for Select Set Release Criteria To delete individual release criteria, click on the ActionLinks icon next to the criteria and select Delete To delete all of the release criteria, click the Delete All button Press Save

Example: Multiple Student, Multiple Due Date Example (optional)	TOP
What if you need to release the same exam or quiz to several different students at several different times? Here's how: First, under the Build Tab, click on Assessments. Click on the ActionLinks icon next to the quiz you want to setup. Select Edit Properties. Under Dates Available, set the Start Time to the first possible delivery time. Set the End Time to Unlimited. NOTE: The Due Date set with the Assessment or Assignment properties over rides the Selective Release Date ranges that you may set. Second, under the Build Tab, click on Assessments. Click on the ActionLinks icon next to the quiz you want to setup. Select Set Release Criteria: First, select Add Date Criteria to set up the date range for the majority of the class. Then add a Add Date Criteria for the specific student(s) that need a different time Set the Date pull down to Or. Press the Add Member Criteria button to select the correct student. Set the Member pull down to And. Repeat the steps 2-5 of adding a new Date range with Member for each unique situation. So the example below says: Everyone can take the exam on December 14th, or on December 15th only Joe Vandal can take it, or on December 13th only Brenda Smith can take it.