Creating a New Custom Group Set
Click Groups in the top navigation.
Click New Group Set.
Choose from the different options in the New Group Set drop down menu to add students to a group:
Manually Assign - The instructor adds students to a group within the group set.
Automatically assign - Students are randomly added to one of the groups within the group set.
Self-enrollment - Students will have the ability to add themselves to one of the groups within the group set.
Import from CSV file.
Enter in a descriptive name for your group set.
For example
To create your groups Manually:
Click the (+) sign and choose Manually Assign
To create new group sets, click on the plus sign.
Blackboard will automaticallly name you group "Group 1." [NOTE: You can leave the name as is or enter in a new name for the group.] You can add in a description and you can add members from this box as well (see image below).
You can also add members via the Add Members option in the screenshot below.
You can add more than one member at a time by clicking on check boxes in the Unassigned Students column on the left. Clicking on Assign Here will add all students you choose to that group.
If I wanted to add in another group, I just click the (+) plus sign. (I.e. If I want a total of 3 groups within this group set then I would click the (+) sign twice so that that New Group 2 and New Group 3 are added.
Once all of the students have been added to one of the groups, click Save.
The group set containing your custom groups has been created.
By default, the group set will be hidden from students, which means they will not be able to access their group. Select Visible to Students when you want your students to be able to access these groups.
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Manage Groups
Instructors can manage their groups once they have saved them in the course. [NOTE: You cannot change group members if they have submitted course work to the group]. To manage your groups, click on the 3 dots for the particular group set and click on Group Settings.
From there a box will open and you can take individuals out of your group set. To take just one individual out of the course, click on the check box next to their name and then click on the small figure with an arrow in the image below. This will take them out of the group. To take out several at a time just click on the check boxes and click on the little figure again, it doesn't matter which one you click, this will remove all your selected members. Select Done to close the window.
Removing members will bring them back into the Unassigned Students column on the left. Be sure to click Save.
To remove all members in a group, just click on the small figure icon in the group itself and it will remove all members at once. (see image below).
