Assigning Formatives
This article provides insight and instructions on assigning formatives that students can take at their own pace. If you are looking to assign via a Teacher-Paced mode, where you will control the pace of the assignment, please check out this article for instructions.
Note: The assign settings mode is switching to a new design during the Spring of 2024. There are new additional assign settings (for example: enabling retakes on formatives, adding a calculator) that are supported ONLY on the new Assign Settings Redesign mode. We highly recommend taking advantage of the early access option and switching over to this new mode now, to enjoy the full array of settings that is now available on our most up-to-date and elevated assigning experience!
Formatives can be assigned directly on the Formative platform, in which case students will need to log in to their Formative accounts to locate and them; or, they can be assigned & posted directly into Google Classroom or Microsoft Teams which will allow students to locate and access the formatives from these learning platforms.
Ready to make your formative accessible to your students?
Assign with Student-Paced mode:
1. While in the Formative you'd like to assign, click on "Assign" and choose "Student-Paced" from the drop-down menu
2. Select a class(es) to assign the formative to, or create a new one.
3. Click on "Additional settings" to edit after submission settings, return scores or return correct answers to students. Silver/Gold users get more options when assigning, including assign to individuals/groups, and schedule open/close times. Gold users can randomize questions order, and those whose school or district have purchased the add-on will also have access to a secure exam browser mode.
If you're a Gold user, and you have students with accommodations, you will also be able to adjust their accommodation for this formative by clicking the dropdown.
4. Click on "Assign" (see below for assigning and posting directly to Google Classroom or Microsoft Teams)
Join Instructions
When you assign a formative, a "Join Instructions" modal will pop up where you can find and copy the student assignment link:
Forgot to copy this link? You can find it again by clicking on the triple dots at the top right corner of your formative and selecting "Join Instructions:"
You can post this link in an assignment in Seesaw, in Class Dojo, on your class website - or any other place!
Note: if you are at a Gold school/district, you may be able to use Formative directly in your Learning Management System (e.g. Canvas, Blackbaud, Schoology). See this article about LTI integration for more information!
Assign & Post to Google Classroom
** If you selected a class that you've imported from Google Classroom in step 2, you'll have slightly different options: "Assign & Post to Google" or "Assign Only." If you choose the first option, your assignment will be automatically posted to your Google Classroom stream!
A new window will launch asking you to sign in with your Google account. Choose the correct account, and the formative will be posted to your Google Classroom Classwork page as an assignment!
If you have defined topics within your Google Classroom, Formative will also give you the option to choose which topic to post the assignment to. You can choose the topic from the dropdown list and then click "Post to Topic(s)", or if you'd rather not post the assignment to any specific topic you can click "Skip & Finish Posting"
Tip: make sure that you have pop-ups enabled in your browser, so that the new tab can open and you can confirm your Google account.
If you'd prefer not to post the assignment to Google Classroom, you can choose the "Assign only" option. This can be useful if you are re-assigning a formative to a small group of students. When the students log in to Formative with their Google accounts, they will see the assignment on their dashboard.
Running into issues with assigning & posting to Google Classroom? Review this article for common FAQ and troubleshooting tips
Note: Formative is now an official Google Classroom Add-on! See this article to learn how to install Formative into your Google Classroom and take your Formative-Google integration to the next level!
Assign & Post to Microsoft Teams
** If you selected a Microsoft Teams class in step 2, after clicking the "Assign" button, the "join instructions" window will include the option to share the assignment to Microsoft Teams:
Clicking the "Share to Microsoft Teams" button will launch a new window asking you to sign in with your Microsoft account. Choose the correct account, and a new window will open up where you will be prompted to choose between the following two options:
Option 1: Share to person, group, or channel
Choosing this option will prompt you to choose the person, group, or channel you would like to share the link of the formative with. A link to the formative will appear as a stand-alone item where you've chosen to post it.
Option 2: Create an assignment
Choosing this option will prompt you to enter the full details of the assignment such as title, instructions, due date/time as well as set a point value for the assignment and choose the group or channel to post the assignment in. The assignment you create will be posted to your Microsoft Teams space, and your students will need to click into the assignment to find the link to the formative.
Please note: at this time a grade pass back to Microsoft Teams is not supported. You will need to manually grade the assignment on Microsoft Teams.
Tip: make sure that you have pop-ups enabled in your browser, so that the new tab can open and you can confirm your Microsoft account.
The student experience
Students in the class you've assigned to will automatically have access to the formative in their account, or you can share the direct link from your Join Instructions window that pops up:
By default, your students will be unable to edit their responses after submitting the formative, will not receive scores and/or correct answers, and will not be able to see the formative anymore after they submit. You can update these settings at any time from the Assign page - even if the formative is already assigned. If you are a Silver/Gold user, you can also update your default assign settings on your Settings page.
Adjust student information from the Assign page:
When assigning to students, the student count icon is now clickable. This loads a popup that includes vital student info (like last login, reset password, student email address, etc), and allows teachers to add students on the fly!
Assign to guest students
Students not in your class can access a formative through a temporary guest account.
Please note: Guest accounts are temporary, single-use accounts that students may use to take a formative. Students will be unable to log back into those accounts to see their scores, etc, and their scores will not appear on the Tracker (although they will in View Responses). We highly recommend to not use Guest Codes with students who have a proper Formative account!
From the Assign page, select "Guest Students"
2. Click "Additional Settings" to adjust optional assign settings
3. Click "Assign"
A Join instructions modal will pop-up, with separate instructions for students in a class and guest students. Make sure to provide the correct instructions to each group.
Please be mindful, if a student in your class uses the guest code instead of the instructions for students in a class - their responses will be logged as a guest student. If this happens, they must log out completely and then log back in with their login credentials to avoid the risk of accessing other assignments as guests.
Update assign settings for a formative you already assigned
Adjusting assign settings for a formative that has already been assigned can be accomplished from three locations on the Formative platform:
From your Formatives Page:
Find the assigned formative on your dashboard.
Find the class on the grid and click on the icon shown in the corresponding grid cell
Click "Adjust Settings"
Make the desired changes.
Click "Update"!
Note: if the class you assigned the formative to is a Google Classroom class, you'll see different options: "Update & Post to Google" and "Update Only." If you click the "Update & Post to Google" option, this will update the assignment in your Google Classroom stream.
From within a formative's Edit tab:
Open the assigned Formative
Click on "Student Paced"
Click on the assigned icon next to the class name
Click on "Additional settings" (just above the "Assign" button)
Make the desired changes
Click "Update"!
From within the formative's Responses tab:
Click on the assigned icon next to the class name
Click on "Adjust Settings"
Make the desired changes
Click "Update"
Note: You must update/change these settings for each class and guest students separately.
Note: if the class you assigned the formative to is a Google Classroom class, you'll see different options: "Update & Post to Google" and "Update Only." If you click the "Update & Post to Google" option, this will update the assignment in your Google Classroom stream.
Un-assigning a formative
There are three ways to un-assign a formative from your class or guest students:
From within the formative's Edit tab:
Go to "Assign" and click "Student-Paced"
Click on the icon next to the class you want to un-assign
Next click on the trashcan icon at the bottom of the modal window
Confirm you want to un-assign from this class
From within the formative's Responses tab:
Click the icon next to the class you want to un-assign
Next click on the trashcan icon at the bottom of the modal window
Confirm you want to un-assign from this class
From your Formatives Page:
Locate the formative on the list
Click on the icon in the appropriate grid cell for the class you want to un-assign
Next click on the trashcan icon at the bottom of the modal window
Confirm you want to un-assign from this class
NOTE: Un-assigning a formative from students in a class or from guest students will cause their responses to disappear from your View Responses page and Tracker.
You can re-assign to the same class or to guest students and their data will re-populate.
If you want to hide formatives from your students while keeping data in your account, you can do this in your After Submission settings.