Manfred Kuechler

How to upgrade Grades and Scores to a Bb5.5 online Gradebook

Last update:  12 Dec 2003


Blackboard 5.5 does not include an option to upload entries from a local file (e.g., an Excel spreadsheet on an instructor's computer).  Rather, grades/scores must be entered one by one; a very tedious job -- especially for large classes. An upload option is available in Bb6, but  Bb6 will not be available on most CUNY campuses before summer/fall 2004.  This document describes a work around using a freeware utility.

The basic idea is very simple: Entering grades one-by-one amounts to a sequence of keystrokes like value - tab -value -tab - value ...  A column in a spreadsheet can easily be transformed into such a file and the freeware utility then allows to execute the sequence of keystrokes according this file. Unfortunately, the freeware utility works on Windows systems only. Mac users with large classes may consider using a Windows station for this task, it saves a lot of time.

Many thanks to  AnnMarie Johnson (U of Wisconsin at Oshkosh) who alerted me to this solution. The step-by-step guide below borrows from one of her  tip sheets (but I have streamlined the process considerably; it does not really take 23 steps to upload scores as in her tip sheet.). See also my initial posting on coursepage-l; unfortunately, the list web archive often messes up links in messages. So, I thought it would be useful to have all instructions in one place.

The December 2003 update simplifies the previous instructions.


Get  RemoteKeys -- the freeware utility needed

Download the freeware program RemoteKeys.  The download link is further down the page -- after the screen shots. The latest version is 8.7, released in November 2003.  The (.zip) file is some 1.6 MB and downloads almost instantaneously  over the fast office connections, at home it may take a few minutes.  No real installation is necessary; just unzip the file (using a utility like WinZip -- free evaluation download) into a folder of your choice and then run the RemoteKeys.exe file when needed. (Direct link to installation zip file.)


Do your local grade/score entries or calculation and save the entries in RemoteKeys to be uploaded
  1. Make sure that the number and sequence of students in your local Excel file matches your online gradebook exactly. To be really sure, download the Bb online gradebook, and open the downloaded (.csv) file in Excel, then do your offline entries and calculations.
  2. Uploading must be done one column at a time (e.g., when you have a final grade and a course grade to upload). For the following, assume that that the entries to be uploaded are in column "G" of your Excel file and that the entries are straight (numerical or alphanumerical) values. If  the entries in this column are based on a formula (e.g., a sum of points in other columns), copy this column, and then "paste"/"value" it into another column first.
  3. Open another Excel file (workbook or just another empty worksheet in the same workbook), then copy column "G" from the original worksheet and "paste"/"transpose" into the first row of the new Excel file.  (In Excel XP, "Paste/transpose" means that you click the small arrow on the right of the paste button and select "transpose". In Excel 2000, select "Paste special" from the "Edit" menu, then select 'transpose".)
  4. Start RemoteKeys, e.g., by clicking on RemoteKeys.exe (in Windows Explorer)
  5. Select Profiles, then Work. 
  6. Click on any blank rectangle, which will bring up the Edit Keys menu. 
  7. Type a name into the Name box in the upper left, such as "CRSgrades". 
  8. Copy the first row in the extra Excel workbook/worksheet to the clipboard, then paste it  into the "Button Assign box" on the right-hand side of the Edit Keys. 
  9. Select OK. The Work window will remain open and on top of your other windows.
Do the actual upload
  1. Back in Blackboard, go to Online Gradebook: Spreadsheet View. (Add a new item if necessary.) Click on the title of the gradebook item where you want to grades to go. You should get the "item page" -- a page with statistics followed by a list of students with empty score boxes to the right.
  2. Click in the first text field, where you would type a score.
  3. Click on the "hot button" in the Work window of RemoteKeys  that has the name (such as "CRSgrades") you have previously assigned, and it will magically insert all the scores. Click the "submit" button in Bb (if necessary), click OK, and return to the spreadsheet view to verify that your grades are indeed where you wanted them to be.

Remember, if you have two sets of grades (scores) to upload, to need to go through the whole process again using another column in your local Excel file.

These instructions may sound rather tedious, but  once you have done it a few times you can do it in your sleep.