[jmonserrmdc-edu Jorge Monserrate]

Hello to all. I also teach a science course (Human Nutrition) online, synchronous, Wendy. In my experience, providing a well designed rubric for all graded assignments/work greatly facilitates a learner’s knowing what your expectations are. The criteria you select to grade, for example. I use them frequently, including for my weekly or bi-weekly discussions using the Canvas LMS platform. I have a template for discussions. Simple. I determined 3 criteria to grade. #1 is participation 5/10 points, for example. There needs to be an explanation of your expectation for participation and any other criteria you consider of importance in a discussion. If I have more than 30 students, I separate them into groups of five.

Even though I have this template, I let students know that they are subject to change (ex. if the discussion will be based on a watching a video).

Believe me, rubrics are great tools for transparency in grading. I’ll be glad to assist you, just let me know.

Jorge