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When giving a Midterm or Final Assessment, you may want to have the assessment count for a certain percentage of the final grade. While both Schoology and PowerTeacher Pro have the capability to create a midterm or final in this way, the process for syncing between the two platforms is different than the usual process. This guide reviews what you will need to know to create a midterm and/or final in both platforms while ensuring that the grades in each continue matching. First, we will review how each platform handles creating a midterm/final:
Midterms and Finals in Schoology
To make a Midterm or Final in Schoology that counts as a percentage of the final course grade, first create a new assignment or assessment on the “Materials” page of your Schoology course. Give the assignment a name and due date and then check the “Set as midterm/final” box next to the “Period” option. Fill out any remaining information for the assignment , and then hit the “Create” button.
Once the assignment is created, navigate to “Grade setup in the left-hand menu in the Schoology course. Under “Grading Periods and Final Weights”, you will see a new term with the same name as the assignment you just created. From here, you can set the percentage for the assignment (remember to adjust the quarter weights as well). A typical setting would be 10% for a final and 22.5% for each quarter.
For a more detailed explanation of how to create a midterm/final in Schoology, use the following article: How to Create a Midterm and/or a Final in Schoology
Midterms and Finals in PowerTeacher Pro
In PowerTeacher Pro, Midterms and Finals are designated by placing them into the X1 and X2 grading terms. Not every school has an X1 or an X2 Grading Term; if you think your school should have one, please reach out to an administrator at your school.
To create an assignment as a final or midterm in PowerTeacher pro, first identify the dates for X1 (for midterms) or X2 (for finals). You can find this by navigating to the scoresheet in PowerTeacher pro, and opening the term drop-down menu in the upper right hand corner. The dates will be displayed in parentheses next to the X1 or X2.
Make the assignment in PowerTeacher Pro, and set the due date as a date that falls within the range of X1 or X2. The assignment will be counted at the weights for those terms; rmember you can set the weights for all of your grading terms by navigating to "Settings" in the left hand menu and selecting the "Traditional Grade Calculations" option.
Syncing Midterms and Finals from Schoology to PowerTeacher Pro
Because of the different ways that Schoology and PowerTeacher Pro handle Midterms and Finals, you are not able to sync them in the same way as other assignments. To have a midterm or final in both platforms while having the final grades match, use one of the following two methods. Please note, for both methods any changes to the assignment in Schoology will not be automatically synced to the assignment in PowerTeacher Pro, and any updates to grades will have to be done in both platforms. We recommend giving and updating the assignment in Schoology, and then using either method to move the grades to PowerTeacher Pro when the grades are finalized.
Method One: Create the Assignment in Both Platforms (No Syncing)
First, create the assignment in Schoology as a “Midterm/Final” and adjust the grading percentages under “Grade Setup” in the left hand navigation menu. You can enter grades for the assignment in Schoology as normal. Once grades are entered, re-create the assignment in PowerTeacher Pro, making sure the due date falls into the X1 or X2 term, depending on if it is a Midterm or Final. Make sure that the term percentage in PowerTeacher Pro matches what you set in “Grade Setup” in Schoology, so that the two platforms will match. You can adjust the term percentages in PowerTeacher Pro from the "Traditional Grading Calculations" menu.
Here is one example of matching terms
Method Two: Creating the assignment in Schoology, Syncing, and then editing
First, create an assignment for your Midterm/Final in Schoology, but do not check the box for “Set as midterm/final”. Instead, set the due date to a date within X1 or X2 in PowerTeacher Pro. For example, if the date range for X1 ia 1/24-1/26, you may want to set the due date to 1/25. Once the assignment is graded in Schoology, sync over the assignment. Confirm the assignment is synced and is in X1 or X2 in PowerTeacher Pro and that the grades for the assignment match between the two platforms. Then, go back into Schoology, edit the assignment, and check “Set as Midterm/Final.” Adjust the term weighting under “Grade Setup”, and make sure the term weighting in PowerTeacher Pro matches.