Canvas: Prepare Final Grades for LionPATH

ARTICLE INTENDED FOR:

Penn State faculty and staff.

INTRODUCTION:

Using LionPATH to pull grades from Canvas is a two-step process. You must first prepare and verify your final grades in Canvas and then go to LionPATH to enter final grades. Please note that there is a difference between what Canvas calls the Current Grade and what it calls the Final Grade. These labels can be seen in the column headings whenever you export your Gradebook from Canvas (see Step 4 below). The Final Grade is the one that will be pulled from Canvas to LionPATH, while the Current Grade is the grade displayed to students. It is important to ensure that the Final Grade is accurate and that it is identical to the Current Grade at the conclusion of the term. Follow the steps below to ensure student’s final grades are accurate before submitting to LionPATH.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS: 

Prepare and Verify Grades in Canvas

Step 1: Set a Penn State Compatible Grading Scheme

LionPATH pulls Final Grades from Canvas. For LionPATH to do this successfully, you must first create a Penn State-compatible grading scheme. Once this grading scheme has been enabled, the final grades can be pulled from Canvas to LionPATH through the LionPATH Faculty Center.

Step 2: Enter Zero for All Unsubmitted Assignments

To ensure that the Final Grade is calculated correctly, you must enter a zero for any unsubmitted assignments in your Gradebook. You can do this manually by entering a zero into each empty field (fields containing a dash) in the Gradebook, or as a shortcut, you can use the Set Default Grade option to automatically enter a zero for any missing grades.

Step 3: Unmute any muted assignments

To ensure accuracy, instructors must unmute all muted assignments prior to submitting grades to LionPATH. In Gradebook view, muted assignments appear with a "mute icon" to the left of the title.

To learn how to unmute assignments, follow the instructions in the article, Mute or Unmute Assignments in the Gradebook.

Step 4: Verify Accuracy of Final Grades in Canvas

NOTE: This step is optional and can be used as an additional method to verify final grades. This file is for your use only and will not be uploaded to LionPATH.

To verify the accuracy of final grades in Canvas, export a comma-separated values (CSV) file from the Gradebook in the Canvas course as follows:

1. From the left course navigation menu, select Grades (see Figure 1).

2. In the course Gradebook, click the Export button and select CSV File (see Figure 2).

3. On your local device, open the exported CSV file in Microsoft Excel or similar spreadsheet application (see Figure 3).

4. The grades listed in the "Final Grade" column of the CSV file are the verified final grades for the course that LionPATH pulls from Canvas (see Figure 4)

Use LionPATH to Pull Final Grades from Canvas

After you have verified grades in Canvas, you can either manually enter OR import grades to LionPATH. You must log in to LionPATH to complete either process.

Log in to LionPATH and automatically import grades from Canvas

See the following tutorial: Importing Grades from an LMS to learn more about importing grades from Canvas to LionPATH

OR

Log in to LionPATH and manually enter grades from Canvas

See the following tutorial: Manually Entering Grades to learn more about manually entering grades from Canvas into LionPATH,

LINKS:

Canvas: Creating a Penn State-Compatible Grading Scheme