Introduction
Assignments are an important part of the teaching and learning process, helping you measure whether students have achieved specific course outcomes. Before developing assignments, it's important to consider the following:
- What are the goals for the assignment?
- What are you hoping students will gain after completing it?
- Does the assignment align with your overall course goals?
For assignments to have a valuable impact on the learning experience, they must have a purpose. Therefore, every assignment should clearly and strategically align with your course objectives and learning outcomes. In other words, assignments should help you evaluate whether your students achieved the desired goals of the course.
For instance, if you want students to demonstrate critical thinking skills concerning social issues, asking them to create a simple list of social issues as an assignment does not help achieve that goal. Instead, asking students to analyze a social issue from multiple cultural perspectives is a more effective assignment.
Finally, be prepared to share with students the purpose of the assignment and the skills and knowledge you believe they will gain from participating in the assignment upfront.
Assignment Types
You can create assignments using a variety of traditional and creative ways. Consider if any of these work for your course: Consider if any of these work for your course:
| Assignment Type | Tools for Use | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Reflective Journaling | Canvas Assignments | Students submit journal entries sharing ideas around course content. They can identify key takeaways, differentiate between ideas, and present points clearly and succinctly. |
| Read, Watch, and Respond | Canvas (Discussion, Assignments); Zoom (Main Room, Breakout Groups) | Students read articles, watch videos, or analyze data to answer a set of questions - thoughtfully evaluating and critiquing given information. |
| Essays / Research Papers / Proposals | Canvas (Assignments, Peer Review Assignments) | Students research and write on a course topic or related issue. They investigate the topic, develop an arguable position, present evidence, and write persuasively. |
| Oral Presentations | Zoom (Main Room, Breakout Groups) | Students present orally, communicating in a specific language, exercising their public speaking skills, adapting speech formats, or practicing gestures to convey meaning best. |
| Case Studies / Scenarios |
Canvas (Assignments, Discussion Forums); Zoom (Main Room, Breakout Groups, Screen Share, Whiteboard, Annotation) |
Students analyze real-world problems or situations (independently or as a group) - collecting information on the subject, making recommendations, or solving a problem. |
| Peer Reviews |
Canvas (Peer Review Assignments & Discussions); Zoom (Main Room, Breakout Groups) |
Students share feedback on projects and iterate as a team. They evaluate work using course concepts, formulate constructive feedback, and learn to act on feedback received. |
| Creative Projects and Performances |
Canvas (Discussions, Assignments); Zoom (Main Room, Breakout Groups) |
Students develop creative works or deliver creative performances. Examples: creating art, design work, musical compositions, architectural renderings, and more. |
| Role Play or Simulations | Zoom (Main Room, Breakout Groups) | Students engage in role-play to better understand a topic. They immerse themselves in realistic situations, explore multiple perspectives, and learn appropriate behaviors. |
| Portfolios |
Canvas ePortfolios |
Students assemble their work into portfolios to show evidence of their accomplishments, professional growth, and evolving professional identity. |
Additional Strategies
There are additional strategies for planning out assignments to best support the needs of your students. One strategy is to consider assignment due dates within the academic calendar and in conjunction with other activities in the course.
Ask yourself the following questions:
- Are assignments reasonably spaced throughout my course?
- Can students manage the overall workload (a balance of lectures, homework, assignments, and activities)?
- How long will it take students to complete all parts of the assignment?
- Can I chunk an assignment into smaller, more manageable tasks?
- Do assignments build skills in a logical sequence - are students gradually moving toward higher levels of learning?
To explore additional strategies, click the tabs below.
Sequencing
Sequencing assignments in a course involves creating a series of assignments that build on each other over time. Each assignment adds to and often repeats the skills and knowledge gained in previous ones.
When building a sequence of assignments, you'll want to move from simple tasks to more complex ones, such as toward students applying skills. When assignments are sequenced this way, they serve as a bridge to the next one, and so on.
Scaffolding
Scaffolding is a process in which students are provided varying levels of support throughout the course until they can apply new skills, knowledge, and strategies by themselves. You can also apply this approach to assignments by breaking them down into manageable tasks that add up to a whole.
Scaffolding encourages students to rely on the knowledge and skills gained in previous steps, withdrawing old supports as they go. For scaffolding to be effective, it's important to consider what your students already know and how each task can build upon their knowledge and skills.