Brightspace: Roles

There are several course roles within Brightspace designed to enable different people to do different things within the LMS, but each has their own limitations.  Below is a chart listing each role and what can and cannot be done with each.

Role Name What CAN This Role Do? What CAN'T This Role Do?
Instructor
  • Full access to course admin tools
  • Can see all sections and groups
  • Visible in the Classlist
  • Manage groups
  • Enroll users
  • Change user roles
  • Impersonate users
  • Content modification
  • Create Assignments and Quizzes
  • Create Announcements
  • Access Attendance tool and create schemes
  • Change NavBar and add widgets
  • Grading permissions
  • Select grade evaluators and publishers
  • Set Accommodations
  • Course Copy, Export Course Content
  • Can extend course dates
  • Can access closed courses; enroll students in a closed course
  • Order SOOTS
  • Manage "Discover Self Enroll" options
  • Change course name (Banner controls that)
  • Create new sections
Instructor - NO SOOTS
  • Same as above but cannot order SOOTS
  • Cannot order SOOTS or have them automatically ordered
TA
  • Can access most course management tools
  • Visible in the Classlist
  • Content modification
  • Create Assignments and Quizzes
  • Create Announcements
  • Access Attendance tool
  • Grade students in their enrolled section only
  • Order SOOTS
  • In cross-listed or combined courses, cannot see students' work in sections they are not enrolled in
  • Enroll/remove users
  • Change enrollments
  • Set Accommodations or Special Access in the Classlist, Assignments or Quizzes
  • Export Course Content Packages
TA - No SOOTS
  • Same as TA except order SOOTS
  • Same as TA
  • No SOOTS
TA - Access All Sections
  • Same as TA
  • Can see all sections & group enrollments no matter which they are enrolled in
  • Same as TA
TA - Access Closed Course
  • Same as TA
  • Can access past courses now closed AND future courses that haven't begun yet
  • Same as TA
Grader
  • Can see all sections & groups
  • Grading permissions
  • Access closed courses
  • Enroll/remove users
  • Modify content
  • Access the Attendance tool
Course Builder
  • Can see all sections & groups
  • Content modification permissions
  • Access closed courses
  • Enroll/remove users
  • Modify content
  • Access the Attendance tool
  • Grade
Learner
  • Can view and interact with course materials
  • Reserved for those officially enrolled in the class (students)
  • Visible in the Classlist to those in their section
  • Can see and communicate with students in different sections in Discussion Boards only. Conditional release to specific sections cannot be done
  • Learners only have access to course components made available to them
  • Cannot see or communicate with students in other sections, even if the sections are merged (except in Discussion Boards)
Learner - Access Closed Course
  • Same as Learner
  • Can access past courses now closed AND future courses that haven't begun yet
  • Same as Learner
Peer Assistant 
(used for tutors)
  • Same as Learner 
  • Can view course materials, Discussion Boards and Groups
  • Does not show in the Gradebook
  • Should NOT be actively participating in any course materials
**Guest
  • Same as Learner
  • Does not show in the Gradebook
     

**If someone is auditing a course, they should NOT be manually enrolled in a course as a Guest. They must be enrolled in the course via Banner and will appear as a Learner in the Classlist.

 

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