A Blackboard Tip of the Week: Grade Center Smart Views

Tip: In Blackboard 9, you can create different views of your Grade Center which allow you to filter which students you view, the columns you view, or a combination of both which you can then switch to using the Current View dropdown.

Smart Views are useful for sorting groups of students. For example, if you have assigned individual graders specific students, you can create a different Smart View for each grader. If you have combined multiple sections into one Blackboard shell, you can create a Smart View for each section.

Here’s how to create a Grade Center Smart View:

1. Log into your course and ensure Edit Mode is ON.


2. Click on the Evaluation area of the Control Panel then select Grade Center in the expanded menu.


3. On the Grade Center page, click on the Manage button and then select Smart Views from the dropdown menu.


4. On the Smart Views page, click on the Add Smart View button.


5. On the Create Smart View page, enter a name (required) and description (optional) then select a Type of View from one of the following:
• Group (select individual groups)
• Benchmark (select users based on performance criteria)
• Focus (select individual users)
• Investigate (a combination of the first three)


6. Select the criteria you would like to use to limit users.
• NOTE: If you would like to create a view that only limits which columns you view but includes all students, select Benchmark for your view type and then make the criteria “Grade on Total Greater than or Equal to” 0.


7. Use Filter Results to choose which columns you would like to view.


8. Click Submit then OK. Your new Smart View will now be an option on the Current View dropdown located on the light blue filter bar.
• NOTE: If you do not see the Current View dropdown, click on the Filter button on the bottom right of the Grade Center header field.


• NOTE: You can make your commonly-used Smart Views favorites by clicking on the star in the Add as Favorite column so that it is green rather than grey. It will then appear in the Grade Center dropdown of the Control Panel.