Grade letters

What are grade letters?

Default grade letters

Grade letters, also called letter grades, are symbols used to represent a range of grades. For example "A" could be used to represent grades of 80% and above, "B" to represent grades between 70 and 80%, "C" to represent grades between 50 and 70%, and so on. Alternatively, you could have "Pass" for grades above 50% and "Fail" for grades below 50%.

Displaying grade letters

To change particular grade items, category and course summaries (called aggregations) in the grader report and user reports to display letter grades:

1. Go to Course administration > Gradebook setup.
2. Click the Edit then 'Edit settings' link opposite a category or grade item. (For the course total, click the Edit then 'Edit settings' link at the top of the actions column, opposite the name of the course.)
3. Click 'Show more...' to reveal the Grade display type menu
4. In the Grade display type menu, select 'Letter' (or 'Real (letter)' or 'Percentage (letter)').
5. Click the "Save changes" button at the bottom of the page.

Repeat this for any other totals that you want displayed as letters.

Alternatively, to display ALL grades as letter grades:

1. Follow the grades link in the course administration block.
2. Select "Course settings" from the gradebook dropdown menu.
3. From the Grade display type menu, select 'Letter' (or 'Real (letter)' or 'Percentage (letter)').
4. Click the "Save changes" button.

(Note that when editing is turned on in the grader report, the course total is displayed as total points, regardless of the grade display type setting. When editing is turned off. the course total is displayed correctly. This issue is reported as MDL-51708.)

Editing course-level grade letters

Editing grade letters

Grade letters overridden

Grade letters are set initially at site level. To use different grade letters in a particular course:

1. Go to Course administration > Grades.
2. Go to Grade administration > Letters.
3. Click the edit tab in the middle of the page.
4. Check the override site defaults box. A message will appear 'The default grade letters are currently overridden.' to remind course teachers of this change.
5. Change grade letters and/or boundaries as required. (You may wish to use words, for example Below Pass, Pass, Merit, Distinction, rather than letters.)
6. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the "Save changes" button.

Pass/fail grade letters

If you need to add more than three new letters boundaries, add first three, click save and then you will see fields to add three more

Setting grade letter site-level defaults

To set grade letter site defaults:

1. Login as an administrator.
2. Access Site administration > Grades > Letters.
3. Change grade letters and/or boundaries as required.
4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the "Save changes" button.

Forcing grade letter site-level defaults

To force grade letter site-level defaults in all courses i.e. remove the ability for teachers to override site defaults and edit grade letters in their courses:

1. Login as an administrator.
2. Access Administration > Users > Permissions > Define roles
3. Edit the role of teacher and change the capability moodle/grade:manageletters from Allow to Not set.
4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the "Save changes" button.

Accuracy of grade calculations

Grade calculations are made with an accuracy of 5 decimal places and grade letters assigned accordingly. The overall decimal points setting (in the system grade item settings and for individual grade items) is for display purposes only and is not used when assigning grade letters.

See also

• Video demonstrating how to use gradebook site settings and defaults
• Tutorial on Grade Item Setting and Grade Letters