Message students is for teacher-written notes. Email all feedback is for sending returned grading, comments, and secure feedback links after review.
Step by step
- Use Message students when you want to write your own subject and body—for example a deadline reminder, a check-in, or context before the next class.
- Use Email all feedback when students should receive their graded results, question-level comments, or a secure feedback link from a completed submission.
- Use Publish grades when the LMS gradebook needs the official score.
- If you are unsure, open How to choose the right feedback delivery method and compare the paths side by side.
You should see
You pick Message students for personal notes and Email all feedback when students need their graded results.
Decision checklist
- Choose Message students for a personal note you compose yourself.
- Choose Email all feedback when the student needs their returned grading.
- Choose Publish grades when the LMS needs the score.
Keep in mind
- Message students does not change grading state, publish state, or emailed feedback state on the assessment table.
- Message students requires the same feature access as student feedback email.
- Archived courses cannot start a new message from the UI.
Common blockers
- Message students does not attach graded feedback, rubric comments, or secure feedback links.
- Archived courses are blocked in the UI for this action.
You can start from the assessment detail page or the course roster. Each path supports one student, a selection, or everyone with an email on file.
Step by step
- On an assessment detail page, open More and choose Message students to email everyone on that assessment who has an email address.
- On the same assessment, open a student row menu and choose Message student to email one student.
- With one or more assessment rows selected, use the selection bar Message action for a bulk send.
- On a course roster, open a student row menu and choose Message student for one student.
- With roster rows selected, use the selection bar Message action to email the selection.
You should see
You can reach one student, a selection, or everyone with email on file from either the assessment or roster.
Keep in mind
- The compose modal lists who will receive the message before you send.
- Students without an email on file are not included. Add or fix emails from the roster first. See How to update student details.
- How to share feedback and publish grades covers feedback email and LMS publishing from the assessment page.
Classwise prefills subject and body so you can see what students receive. Edit both fields before you send.
Step by step
- Open the Message students modal from one of the entry points above.
- Review the To field. It shows one student, named recipients, or a count for larger selections.
- Review the prefilled Subject. For assessments it usually starts with
Message aboutplus the assessment title; for roster sends it uses the course name. - Review the prefilled Message body. For one student it opens with
Hi {FirstName},. For multiple students it opens withHi,because everyone receives the same body. - The body also ends with
Thanks,and your teacher name on separate lines. Edit the greeting, note, or sign-off as needed. - Click Send message or Send messages when you are ready.
You should see
You review the prefilled greeting and signature, edit the note, and send with confidence about what students will see.
Keep in mind
- You can send to up to 100 students in one action.
- Subject can be up to 200 characters. The message body can be up to 10,000 characters.
- Bulk sends do not auto-insert each student’s first name. Edit the greeting yourself if you want
Hi everyone,or another opener.
Keep in mind
What you type in the modal is what students see. Classwise does not add a second greeting or signature on top of your text.
Common blockers
- Bulk sends use one shared body with a generic Hi, greeting unless you edit it.
- Students without roster emails are skipped and are not included in the send count.
Students receive email from Classwise with your name visible. Replies go to your teacher email address, not to a Classwise inbox.
Step by step
- After you send, Classwise queues one email per eligible student.
- Students see the message from Classwise with your name in the sender line.
- When a student hits reply, the response goes to the email address on your Classwise teacher profile.
- Check your own inbox for replies. Classwise does not host a teacher-student message thread inside the product.
You should see
Students receive mail from Classwise with your name visible and can reply straight to your teacher email.
Keep in mind
- A success message in Classwise means the email was queued for delivery, not that every inbox has already received it.
- If a student says they did not receive the message, confirm their roster email first, then ask them to check spam or promotions.
- This path is separate from LMS notifications and separate from graded Email all feedback messages.
Common blockers
- School spam filters may delay or hide messages that look unfamiliar at first.
- Message sent in Classwise means the email was queued, not that every inbox has already received it.
Delivery depends on roster email data and active enrollment. Missing data is skipped rather than guessed.
You should see
You know which students can be reached and what happens when roster data is incomplete.
Key points
- Each student needs an email address on the roster. The compose modal only includes students with email on file.
- Students must be actively enrolled in the course. Inactive or removed enrollments are skipped.
- If no selected student has an email, Classwise shows a notice instead of opening the compose modal.
- If some students in a bulk send lack email, only the eligible students receive the message.
Notes
- Keep roster emails current before grading season if you plan to message classes regularly. See Classes and rosters.
Common blockers
- Missing student email is the most common reason someone is skipped.
- LMS-synced records may need to be updated in the source system when email is managed by the LMS.
Limitations
- Bulk sends use one shared subject and body for every recipient.
- Classwise does not show delivery failures in the compose flow after a message is queued.