Linked vs unlinked files

In the Sapient Clinician platform, rubrics, scenarios, and assessments are all separate things, and this guide explains how they may be linked to each other.

When this comes up

There are two places where you’ll see the choice of whether files should be linked or unlinked:

1. Rubrics + Scenarios: When you create a new scenario, you can add rubrics to it from your saved rubrics (the “My rubrics” section). By default, this will link the two files together, so that editing the rubric in either place updates it in both places.
2. Scenarios + Assessments: When you assign a scenario, you create a new assessment. By default, this will link both together, so that editing the scenario in either place will update it in both places.

When files are linked

When files are linked, editing a file in one place will update it everywhere else it’s linked to. This is the default.

For example, if one rubric is linked to many scenarios, updating it once will update it for all of the scenarios. This is true whether you edit it from your “My rubrics” section or from within one of the scenarios — either way, you’re updating the original file.

Only people with access to the original file can update it. Someone may have permission to edit a scenario, but not have permission to edit a linked rubric. In this case, they’ll still have the option to make edits just for that scenario, but doing so will unlink the rubric from the original file, and their changes will be saved only for that scenario and not everywhere else.

When you share edit access to a scenario that includes linked rubrics, we’ll ask if you want to share edit access for the rubrics too. See an example. Similarly, when you add co-instructors to a course, we’ll ask if you want to share edit access with them. Learn more about sharing with co-instructors.

When files are unlinked

If you don’t want files to be linked together, you can choose to unlink them.

When files are unlinked, they act as completely separate copies. Updating one doesn’t affect the other.

For example, you may not want edits to a scenario to affect any assessments you’ve created with that scenario. Or you may want to make edits to a scenario just for one assessment without affecting the original scenario file.