Groups

Welcome! Whether you're planning group projects, organizing study circles, or managing team assignments, this guide will walk you through everything you need to know about using groups in Brightspace.

After reading this page, you should be able to...

Access the Groups tool
Create and manage group categories
Customize group enrollments
Assign groups-specific resources

Accessing the Groups tool

Groups are like project teams within your class. Students can see everyone in the class but work closely with their group members on specific activities. To get to the groups tool, select “More” on your course’s navbar. The select “Other” to see a larger selection menu. Finally, click “Groups.”

To get to groups, choose “More” on the course’s navbar. Then select “Other” followed by “Groups.”

Create and Manage Group Categories

Think of categories as folders that keep your groups organized. For example, you might have one category for "Research Project Teams" and another for "Study Groups."

Here's how to set one up:

Customize Group Enrollments

There are two main considerations when choosing group enrollment options.

First is the type of groups:

Which group enrollment type should I use? Groups of # are good if you want to assign a set number of students to each group. # of Groups is good if you need a set number of groups. Single User, Member-Specific Groups are good if you want to create a private group space for individuals to use on their own.

Second is the type of enrollment:

Which group enrollment process should I use? No Auto Enrollments is good if you want to be the one to assign groups. Auto Enrollments should be used when you want Brightspace to assign the groups for you. Self-Enrollment options should be used when you want students to choose their own groups.

If you chose “No Auto Enrollment” you will need to manually assign groups. You can do so by following these directions.

When you understand both types of groups and types of enrollments, you will be able to select the “Enrollment Type” from the dropdown in Brightspace.

💡Pro tip: If you want students to self-enroll in groups, share these instructions with them.

Assign Groups-Specific Resources

Once your groups are created, you can combine them with other Brightspace features to use them to their fullest potential.

Email

You can email the members of a group by following these directions:

Information on how to view sent emails can be found on our Classlist page.

Discussion Boards

Great for group discussions, project planning, or creating a reflection journal space. This can be set up in the category-creation process.

Assignment Submission Folders

Perfect if you only want one group member to submit a group project. This can be set up in the category-creation process.

Content, Intelligent Agents, Awards, etc.

Anywhere you can use release conditions, you can make certain materials accessible only to specific groups.

💡Pro tip: If you have students in your class with an accommodation for professor notes, create a group called Professor Notes, enroll any student with the accommodation, and attach the release condition to a module with all your notes in it.