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How can I configure learning goals and manage student evaluations?

Prerna Singh

Last edited 15 days ago by Anukruti Singh.

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As an admin, you can configure school-wide learning goals (skills) on Toddle and map them to relevant grade scales. Once configured, teachers can assess students on these goals, and their ratings automatically populate in the Learning goals gradebook. Based on the gradebook visibility settings, students and families can view these ratings from their end as well.

This article will cover:

Configure learning goals (skills) for the school

Map grade scales to skills

Evaluate students on skills

View evaluation in the gradebook

See what students and families can access

Configure learning goals (skills) for the school

To get started, navigate to Admin portal → [School] → Learning goals

Here, you’ll see ‘Skills’ added as a learning goal, along with details such as the number of items within it, current status, and last updated by. Click on the arrow icon to begin populating it.

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Add new skills

Click + Add to begin building your skills dataset. You can:

Create a row manually, or

Bulk upload rows using a template

Download template file – Choose either the existing file or the new template to upload skills.

Add rows in the template – Add or update skills in the designated columns as per the instructions in the sheet.

Upload filled template – Attach the completed .xlsx file and click Upload to import your data.

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If you’re adding skills manually, you can define the details for each skill directly in the table.

For each skill, you can:

Add details such as the code and title (mandatory)

Choose whether the skill should be graded (this is enabled by default)

Tag grade levels to make skills visible for selected grades. If you don’t tag any grade levels, the skill will not be visible for teachers while creating tasks or portfolio posts.

Add a description if needed

Add more rows using the ‘+’ icon

Adjust the hierarchy using the arrow icons to nest sub-skills under broader categories. Each dataset can support up to five hierarchical levels, allowing you to group related skills effectively.

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Make a skill inactive by unchecking the box under the ‘Archived’ column. When a skill is marked inactive, it will no longer be available for tagging in class tasks, portfolios, or other areas. However, it will continue to appear wherever it has already been tagged; there is no impact on existing use.

To permanently remove a skill, click on the trash icon in the last column.

Note: The delete option is only available for skills that have not been tagged to any course/subject or item within it. Once deleted, the skill is permanently removed from the platform.

Additionally, you’ll also find additional columns such as ‘Last updated by’, ‘Tagged in assignments, portfolio, or units’, ‘System ID’, and ‘Parent ID’. These help track each skill’s usage, updates and hierarchy placement. You can choose which columns to show or hide and reorder them using the column settings icon in the top-right corner.

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Bulk actions

Select multiple skills at once using the checkboxes on the left. From the toolbar that appears at the bottom of the screen, you can:

Delete multiple skills in bulk

Configure grade levels for selected skills

In addition, the data grid layout supports keyboard-first navigation and smart editing, making it easier to manage multiple skills efficiently:

Use the arrow keys to move between cells.

Press Enter/Return to activate a cell (e.g., Code, Title, Grade levels, or Description), type directly, and press Enter/Return again to save.

Use Ctrl + Z (Windows) or Cmd + Z (Mac) to undo an edit.

If a cell includes a dropdown (like Grade levels), press Enter/Return to open it, use the arrow keys to navigate, and press Enter/Return again to select or deselect.

You can copy and paste values across cells using Ctrl/Cmd + C and Ctrl/Cmd + V. This helps you quickly apply the same data—like grade levels or descriptions—across several skills.

You can also drag the fill handle (small square at the corner of a selected cell) to copy values across adjacent cells.

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Publish skills

Once you’ve finished adding or editing your skills, choose one of the following options in the top-right corner of the screen:

Save changes as draft, or

Publish changes to make the skills available across courses/subjects.

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After publishing, the skills become active for use. You can return anytime to make updates using the ‘Edit’ option.

Use the Filter to narrow your view by grade levels and status, helping you quickly locate and manage specific skills within a larger dataset.

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Map grade scales to skills

Once the skills are set up, the next step is to link them with grade scales.

To begin, navigate to Admin portal → School → Grading setup → Learning goals grading. Here, you’ll see Skills listed under learning goals along with all available regular grade scales.

Tip: If you haven’t created grade scales yet, go to the Grade scales tab under Grading setup to create them. Refer to

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article to learn how to set up grade scales.

On this screen, you can map one or more regular grade scales (e.g., A–F scale, Mastery scale, Numeric scale) to the Skills.

Note: Only regular grade scales can be mapped to skills. Dependent grade scales are not supported for learning goals.

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You can also decide how ratings on skills(learning goals) are managed between grading periods by clicking the pencil icon at the top of the table. Choose from the following options:

Carried forward to the next grading period – Ratings from previous grading periods are carried forward and displayed in the next period’s gradebook, allowing continuous tracking of student progress.

Independent for each grading period – Each grading period begins fresh, and teachers assign new ratings every time.

Once done, click Save changes to apply your settings.

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Evaluate students on skills

Once skills are mapped to grade scales, teachers can evaluate students on them in three ways:

Tag them as learning goals in assignments

Link them in portfolio posts

Rate directly in the learning goals gradebook

Tag them as learning goals in assignments

When creating or editing a learning experience or assessment task in a class, teachers can tag one or more skills as learning goals.

In the task editor, scroll to the Learning goals section.

Click the ‘+’ icon next to Learning goals.

From the list, select Skills. They’ll see all the skills that have been configured for the grade.

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Use the checkboxes to select the relevant skills and click Select to tag them to the task.

Once tagged, these skills will appear under the Learning goals section of the task.

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To evaluate students on these tagged skills, teachers can enable the ‘Rate on the learning goals tagged above’ toggle while grading. This activates rating options for each skill using the mapped grade scales.

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Rate students on learning goals(skills)

In the evaluation screen, all tagged skills will display in a table view, with columns for each of the mapped grade scales (for example, A–F scale, Mastery scale, or Numeric scale). Teachers can assign ratings across one or more scales for each skill and update evaluations as needed.

These ratings will be visible in Learning goals gradebook once the task is marked as evaluated.

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Linking them in portfolio posts

Teachers can also tag skills in a portfolio post as learning elements.

While creating a portfolio post, click the target icon and choose ‘Learning goals’.

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Select Skills and choose one or more from the list using the checkboxes.

Click ‘Select and add’ to tag them to the portfolio post.

Tag one or more students to the post

This allows teachers to connect portfolio evidence directly to the specific learning goals or skills students are working on.

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Rate students on learning goals(skills)

If skills are tagged as learning goals in a post and one or more students are tagged to it, teachers can evaluate those students under the Rate on learning goals section.

In the evaluation view, all tagged skills appear in a table view, with columns for each of the mapped grade scales (for example, A–F scale, Mastery scale, or Numeric scale). Teachers can assign or update ratings across one or more scales for each skill as needed.

Teachers can choose to rate students individually or in groups using the toggle at the top of the screen. When group rating is enabled, the same rating will be applied to all selected students. Once the post is published, ratings are visible in the learning goals gradebook.

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Rate directly in the Learning goals gradebook

In addition to evaluating students through class tasks and portfolio posts, teachers can assess students directly against learning goals from the Learning goals gradebook.

These evaluations are recorded as observations, allowing teachers to assign grades, add qualitative feedback, and attach supporting evidence.

There are three ways to add observations directly in the gradebook:

Quick add observations

Add observations in bulk

Add an observation individually

Quick add observations

Quick add observations lets you enter grades directly in the gradebook grid without opening a separate modal, making it faster to rate students across multiple learning goals in one pass.

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To use this method:

Open the Learning goals gradebook for your class.

Click Quick add observations in the top-right corner. The gradebook enters quick add mode and a banner appears at the top confirming this.

Use the filter icon in the toolbar to narrow down the view by grades, units, students, or status (including archived students).

Use the date and time picker to set when the observations are being recorded. By default, this is set to the current date and time, but you can adjust it to save observations for any specific date and time in the past or future within the selected grading period.

Click any cell in the grid to open a grade dropdown and select the appropriate rating.

Use the Show current grade in the cell toggle to display each student’s most recent grade alongside the entry field as you work.

Once done, click Save observations to exit quick add mode and save all entries.

Note: While in quick add mode, all the standard keyboard shortcuts are available to help you work faster, including copy (Cmd/Ctrl + C), paste (Cmd/Ctrl + V), undo (Cmd/Ctrl + Z), and drag handles to copy ratings across adjacent cells.

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Bulk add observations

1 - Bulk grade all students on a skill

To apply the same grade to all students for a learning goal, hover over the learning goal row to reveal the bulk grade icon and click it.

In the modal that opens:

Review the learning goal and criteria shown at the top.

Select the grade you want to apply to all students.

Click Grade all students to save.

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2 - Bulk grade all skills for a student

To apply the same grade across all standards for a specific student, hover over the student’s column header to reveal the bulk grade icon and click it.

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In the modal that opens:

Review the criteria shown at the top.

Select the grade you want to apply across all standards for that student.

Click Grade all skills to save.

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3 - Add observations via skill selection

To add observations across multiple skills at once, use the checkboxes on the left to select one or more skills.

Note: You may not be able to select some learning goals for evaluation if grading is disabled for them.

3. In the floating bulk action bar at the bottom:

Review the Students selection. By default, all students that are currently showing in the gradebook are selected.

Click ‘Add observations’ to continue.

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4. In the modal that opens, for each student and learning goal combination:

Review the Current grade column to view the most recent evaluation and the history.

Under Grade, select the appropriate level from the available grade scale.

Use the Description field to add qualitative feedback or observational notes.

Click the ‘+’ icon under Attachments to upload one or more files as supporting evidence from your local device.

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5. At the top of the window, see the date and time for the observation. By default, ratings are recorded for the current date. However, teachers can record evaluations at any point within the selected grading period.

6. Once the required details are added, click Add to save the observations for all selected students and learning goals.

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7. You can also make use of the following features to add ratings efficiently:

Keyboard-first navigation – Navigate and enter ratings using only your keyboard for a faster grading experience.

You can press ‘Enter’ (on Windows) or ‘Return’ (on Mac) on any cell within the ‘Grade’ column to open a dropdown and view the rating options for it.

Within the dropdown, use the up and down arrow keys to move through the options and select your desired rating by pressing ‘Enter’ or ‘Return’. To undo recent changes instantly, use Ctrl + Z (or Cmd + Z on Mac).

Quick copy-paste across cells – Use keyboard shortcuts or drag handles to easily replicate ratings across multiple cells.

Using keyboard shortcuts

Select a cell with the rating you want to copy, then press Command + C (on Mac) or Ctrl + C (on Windows).

Select the target cells and press Command + V (on Mac) or Ctrl + V (on Windows) to paste the value.

Using the drag handles

If you hover over the bottom-right corner of any selected cell, you’ll see a small drag handle appear. You can use this to drag horizontally or vertically and quickly copy the selected rating into all adjacent cells within the range you’ve highlighted.

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Add an observation individually

To add an observation for a specific student and learning goal, click the arrow icon in the student’s cell to open the side panel. In the side panel, click the ‘+’ icon to record a new evaluation.

In the Add observation window:

Select the appropriate Grade.

Add a Description, if required.

Upload supporting evidence using Add attachments.

Review or adjust the date and time, if needed.

Click Add to save the evaluation.

Any changes made here are instantly saved and reflected in the Learning goals gradebook, ensuring that the most recent rating for each skill is always visible.

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Overriding a learning goal grade

In some cases, teachers may want to manually set a grade for a learning goal. They can do so by overriding the grade directly in the gradebook.

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Alternatively, you can override a student's grade directly from the evaluation panel. Click the arrow icon on a student's cell to open the panel, then click the desired grade on the grade scale at the top. This overrides the existing grade instantly. A notification appears in the panel confirming the change, with an option to reset back to the calculated grade if needed.

When a grade is overridden:

The selected value is applied as the final grade for that learning goal.

A triangle indicator appears in the grade cell to show that the grade has been manually overridden.

Note: Adding a grade as an observation records it as part of the student’s evaluation history. A grade is considered overridden only when it is manually entered.

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View evaluation in the gradebook

The Learning goals gradebook gives a consolidated view of each student’s progress across all configured skills. On the left, you’ll see all active skills grouped under their respective hierarchies, while the main grid displays students and their ratings for each skill.

These ratings may come from:

Class tasks tagged with skills

Portfolio posts tagged with skills

Progress reports (once they’re locked)

Observations added directly in the learning goals gradebook

The gradebook always shows the most recent rating recorded for a skill, regardless of where it was given.

If a skill set is mapped to multiple grade scales, you can toggle between the different scales using the dropdown in the top-right corner of the screen. Additionally, use the grading period selector to switch between terms or semesters and the filter to refine the view by grades, subject areas(in case of subject-based setup), units and students.

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You can override a skill grade when needed. Only manually overridden grades are marked with a red triangle in the top-right corner of the cell, indicating that the calculated grade has been fixed.

To view detailed evaluation data for a specific skill, click the arrow icon beside the student’s grade. The panel on the right displays:

The grade scale used for evaluation

Whether the grade was manually overridden

A complete Evaluation history, listing ratings given through assessments, posts or observations across grading periods (e.g., Term 1, Term 2)

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Viewing ratings across subjects or courses

Depending on your school’s setup, there are two possible configurations for how skill ratings appear in the Learning goals Gradebook:

Ratings specific to course/subject

In this configuration, ratings on skills are visible only within the individual subject or course where they were added. This means teachers can see and record ratings only for their own subjects/courses.

For example, if a student is rated on the Critical Thinking skill in an English subject or course, the ratings will remain specific to that subject or course and will not reflect across other subjects or courses.

Ratings across courses/subjects:

This configuration allows the same rating to be viewed across all subjects or courses for a student. This gives schools a holistic view of each student’s progress on common skills, such as Communication, Collaboration, or Critical Thinking, regardless of where those skills were assessed.

The most recent rating recorded for a skill for a subject/course, whether from an assignment, portfolio, or progress report, appears in the Gradebook.

For example, in the screenshot below, ratings for Critical Thinking recorded in English are also visible in the Computer Science Gradebook.

Note: By default, ratings are restricted to individual subjects or courses. Schools that wish to enable the cross-subject/course view can contact their Toddle Buddy to request this configuration.

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Display settings

You can customize your Learning goals gradebook view using display options. Click the Display settings button on the gradebook screen.

The following two settings are shared across all gradebook views: Assessment, Standards, and Learning goals. Changing either setting in one view automatically applies it across all views.

Sort students by: Choose how students are ordered in the gradebook. Select Full name, First name, or Last name from the dropdown, and use the direction toggle to switch between ascending and descending order.

Student display details: Choose additional information to show beneath each student’s name in the roster. Toggle on Student UID or Email ID as needed.

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See what students and families can access

If you have enabled visibility of skills evaluation for students and family, they can view progress on skills by clicking on the Gradebook card from their respective home screens.

Inside the Gradebook, they can switch to the ‘Skills’ tab to view a breakdown of the student’s performance. Each skill displays the corresponding ratings across one or more grade scales, such as A–F, Mastery, or Numeric.

If the skill rating is configured to be viewed specifically for a course/subject, they can switch between courses or subjects using the dropdown at the top (for example, Computer Science or English) and filter their view by specific skills, or grading periods, using the options available at the top.

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If your school has enabled cross-subject/course visibility, students and families will see the most recent rating for each skill across all linked subjects or courses, giving a unified view of progress.

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Clicking on any rating opens a detailed evaluation history panel, showing the skill’s rating history across assessments, portfolio posts, and teacher observations, for each grading period and grade scale. The data is displayed both as a graph and as a list of associated tasks.

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