About Classwork class files and iCloud Drive

Sharing files

You can share a file with your entire class, one student or a specific group of students in your class. If you share a file, photo, video or scanned document activity, you can specify how to share the activity:

• Each student can edit their own file: Classwork sends each student a copy of the file. You work with each student in their individual file.

  For example, you might want to share an image of a map and ask each student to mark specific locations on the map. If you want each student to work individually on their own map, you share the file using “Each student can edit their own file”. Keep in mind, sharing a file in this way makes a copy for each student and uses more iCloud Drive storage.

• Students collaborate together on the same file: Classwork sends all students the same copy of the file (iWork file only). You and the entire class work together in the shared file.

  For example, you might want to share a Keynote file and ask a group of students to work together to create a presentation about the locations marked on the map. If you want students to work together on the same presentation, you share the file using "Students collaborate together on the same file". Keep in mind, sharing a file in this way does not make copies for each student and can save iCloud storage. You can only share Pages, Numbers and Keynote files using this share option.

• Only you can make changes: Classwork sends all students the same copy of the file. Students can view the file, but only you and other teachers can edit the file.

  For example, you might want to share your syllabus so you can adjust it as the class moves forward but your students only have read access to the file. Since your file is to be read but not edited by your students, you share the file using “Only you can make changes”. Keep in mind, sharing a file in this way does not make copies for each student and can save iCloud storage.

When you share:

• A collaborative file in an assignment, your students and you can work in the same file at the same time. Depending on the file type, you can view and edit the file while your students are working in it and add comments to provide real-time feedback and guidance. Classwork supports collaboration for Pages, Numbers and Keynote files.

  When you share a collaborative file with each student in your class (“Each student can edit their own file”), Classwork saves a collaborative file for each student in your iCloud Drive. The collaborative file is not saved in any student iCloud Drives.

• A non-collaborative file, your students and you can work in the same file but not at the same time. For example, you can mark up a PDF file and your students can see your comments later.

• A file using “Each student can edit their own file” or when a student submits work to an assignment, Classwork saves the file in the student’s [assignment title] folder within the student’s Classwork class folder, and saves a copy to your [assignment title] folder. Classwork also saves a copy in the [assignment title] folder for any co-teachers. Classwork names the files:

  • [family name given name - original filename] (for a file you shared using “Each student can edit their own file”)

  • [family name given name - YYYYMMDD - activity name] (for a file a student submitted to an assignment)

When editing a shared non-iWork file, confirm all your changes are saved. iCloud Drive might overwrite changes if another teacher or student edits the file while you’re editing the same file.

Deleting files

Apple recommends using Classwork to delete files attached to assignments. When you delete an assignment or a file attached to an assignment:

• If assignment work was not returned, Classwork automatically removes all students from the files and moves files to Recently Deleted in your iCloud Drive.

• If assignment work was returned, students retain the copy of their work and Classwork moves the files to Recently Deleted in your iCloud Drive. Files in Recently Deleted are permanently deleted after 30 days.

If you do remove a Classwork file in iCloud Drive, be aware that Classwork can’t access or recover the file. If you remove an iCloud Drive file you shared with students, your students and any co-teachers contributing to the assignment, can’t access the file. To create a new shared file, do one of the following:

• Edit the existing assignment, remove the previous file activity, then add the original file as a new activity so students and teachers can access the file again.

• Create a new assignment, then add the original file so students and teachers can access the file again.