• What happened to the Digital Drop Box?
• How do I use the Assignment Manager?
• How can I view completed assignents students have submitted?
• My student has reportedly submitted an assignment, but the Gradebook displays a padlock icon and there is no file to download. What should I do?
• Can I download multiple assignments at once?

What happened to the Digital Drop Box?

The Digital Drop Box was an early Blackboard feature designed to allow students to submit files to the instructor. Student submissions to the Drop Box were not organized or integrated with the Gradebook. With the introduction of the Assignment Manager in Blackboard 6, the Digital Drop Box became unnecessary. It is no longer implemented in the new Blackboard 7.3.

How do I use the Assignment Manager?

The Assignment Manager allows instructors to create assignments with file attachments in any content area of the course so that students can view, complete, and submit the assignments. Instructors then view and download completed assignments, post grades, and provide feedback, if necessary - all via the Gradebook.

To create an assignment:

• In the Control Panel, choose the content area where you wish to place your assignment. This can be, but does not have to be, the Assignments area.
• In the drop-down menu to the right of the instructor toolbar, choose "Assignment" and click the "Go" button.
• Enter a name (without special characters, e.g., #), point value, and instructions for the assignment (including an attachment, if necessary).
• Click "Submit."

Note: When adding an assignment, provide clear and concise directions for the student. Blackboard will automatically create a button that reads "View/Complete," but this may be confusing for students without supplemental information and directions.

How can I view completed assignments students have submitted?

As soon as an assignment is created, a column is automatically added in the Gradebook. To view each student's submitted assignment:

• In the Control Panel, under "Assessment," click on "Gradebook."
• Click on the exclamation point (!) next to the student's name in the corresponding assignment column.
• Click on the View button to access the student's submission.
• Click on the file name to open and/or save the document on your computer.
• Enter a grade, add comments, and re-submit the file with edits, if necessary.
• Click "Submit" and then "OK."

Note: Notes entered in the Instructor Notes field are not visible to the student.

My student has reportedly submitted an assignment, but the Gradebook displays a padlock icon and there is no file to download. What should I do?

When submitting the assignment, the student has clicked the Save button rather than the Submit button. You have two options for retrieving the student's submission:

• You can ask the student to return to the Assignment and click the Submit button rather than the Save button.
• The file is available from the Item File Clean Up list. From the Gradebook, click the item's column heading, click Item Options, and then Item Clean Up. You will see the student's file.

Can I download multiple assignments at once?

You have the ability to download one, some, or all student submissions at once. To download multiple assignments:

• In the Control Panel, under "Assessment," click on "Gradebook."
• Click on the name of the assignment at the top of the Gradebook item.
• Click on "Item Download."
• You can either choose all students or choose only the ones whose work you would like to download.
• Click "Submit."
• Click on the "You may download assignments" link and choose where you want the file to be saved on your computer.

Note: The downloaded file will be in a compressed (or zipped) format. You will have to uncompress (unzip) it to view the individual files.