UW-Madison Google Workspace - Class Groups
This document provides an overview of Class Groups.
Class Groups are Google Groups generated from course enrollment data from the Office of the Registrar’s Student Information System (SIS). This information is updated every few hours, so student changes such as adding or dropping a course or updating an email address will be automatically reflected. Instructors and teaching assistants are automatically assigned to their Class Group once enrollment is set.
Getting Started
- To begin, visit the Class Groups administration page.
- If you are not already logged in, you will be prompted for your NetID and password.
- If you have a Class Group assigned to you, they will show either under ‘Classes With Email Groups’ or ‘Classes Without Email Groups.’
Default settings when a Class Group is created
- Instructors are added as managers and students are added as members. Instructors are able to view members in Google Groups, but can only add or remove Class Group guests (such as a TA) using the ‘Add or Remove Guests’ feature on the Class Groups administration page.
- Group sending settings default so that only instructors (managers) are able to send messages. This setting can be updated so that students (members) can also send messages to the Class Group.
Can an instructor add or remove students from a Class Group?
- No, instructors cannot add or remove students. Students are automatically added to the list based on SIS information.
How is a course TA assigned to the Class Group?
- SIS does not have a specific TA role, only Instructors and Students. For a TA to automatically be added to the Class Group, the instructor needs to update their status in SIS.
- Depending on the department’s standard practice for including TAs as an Instructor in SIS, TAs might not be included as an instructor. In this case, the instructor may add the TA as a manager using the ‘Add or Remove Guests’ feature on the Class Groups administration page.
What if my Class Group is missing students (members) or the instructor information is incorrect?
- Visit Class Groups - Incorrect or Missing Information for further information.
When are Class Groups made?
- Class Groups are made once students enroll in the class.
How are meets with and cross-listed courses formatted?
- Both meets with and cross-listed courses are combined and the Class Group will be named after the primary course.