Reading Time: 2 minutes Canvas is updating how content is published in modules – and simplifying the process for publishing/unpublishing multiple items in their June 17 release. Previously, instructors would need to set the published/unpublished status on each module and each item within a module. So, if they wanted to unpublish an entire module to work on it, they would need to unpublish each item individually, then republish each item when they finished. Now with this update, the status of an entire module and its items can be changed at once! To use this new feature, click the drop-down publish/unpublish button for a module. You’ll see three items in…
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Canvas Updates: Accessing SpeedGrader for New Quizzes
Reading Time: 2 minutes In its May 20 update, Canvas has made it easy to access SpeedGrader for a New Quiz. Previously, you’d have to find the New Quiz in the gradebook or in your “to-grade” list to get to SpeedGrader. Now, you can access it through just about anywhere you can access a New Quiz in Canvas – including inside the build pages for the New Quiz itself! From Canvas modules or the Quizzes/Assignments pages, click the three dots for the quiz and select “SpeedGrader” from the drop-down. From both the New Quiz overall settings page and the “Build” page where you can edit the quiz questions,…
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Submitting Final Grades from Canvas to the Registrar
Reading Time: < 1 minutes It’s a simple process to submit your final course grades to the registrar from Canvas. Before you start this process, however, you’ll want to follow these three tips for checking your Canvas gradebook to make sure you’re all squared away. Once you’re ready, follow these three steps: 1. Click the “Submit Grades to Registrar” link in your course menu. If you don’t see the link there, click “Settings” in the course menu then the “Navigation” tab. Drag and drop “Submit Grades to Registrar” from the inactive items list to the active items list and click “Save.” 2. Scan the information on the “Submit Grades” page. …
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Three Tips for Checking your Canvas Gradebook before Submitting Final Grades
Reading Time: 2 minutes We’ve reached finals, so it’s time to think about wrapping up your courses and prepare to submit your grades. Submitting grades is a quick process, but there are a few items you’ll need to do before you click that button. 1. Check your course grading scheme You should have a grading system defined in your syllabus with the values defined for each grade letter. Canvas can display that letter grade to both you and your students, but you need to make sure you have this setting enabled with the correct values set. 2. Check your grade breakdown The grade breakdown is different from the grading scheme! Go…
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Preparing for Finals: How Turnitin and Proctoring Exams Can Help
Reading Time: 2 minutes We’re quickly approaching the end of the semester, so it’s time to make sure you have all the info you need to finish strong. Today we’re going to be talking about finals, and make sure you check out our post about reviewing your gradebook and submitting your grades as you prepare to do that. Because of the unique challenges of this year, your finals may look different from the norm. Whether you’re having your students write a final paper or take an exam, here’s a few features to consider as you make your plans. 1. Use Turnitin for written final projects Turnitin integrates seamlessly into Canvas assignments – you only need to select “Turnitin” from the…
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Turnitin Adds AI Writing Indicator to Similarity Report
Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s no secret that ChatGPT’s popularity is growing. And plagiarism detecting tools are aware of that – and the need to adjust their offerings to help identify when student work may have been supplemented or entirely created by AI. Turnitin recently announced that it will now display a score to instructors within the Similarity Report to indicate what percentage of a paper is highly likely to be generated by AI. Turnitin is quick to say that their detection isn’t foolproof and the percentage displayed “should not be used as a definitive measure of misconduct or punitive tool.” The AI percentage is presented to inform instructors and…
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Canvas Update: Grade by Question in SpeedGrader
Reading Time: 2 minutes With the update releasing April 15, Canvas is adjusting how instructors can review and grade New Quiz questions in SpeedGrader. Previously when scoring questions that needed manual grading, instructors could only view results organized by student. Now, Canvas will allow instructors to flip between students to grade by question. This is controlled by a setting in the “options” menu when you’re in SpeedGrader for a New Quiz. Turning on grade by question When in SpeedGrader for a New Quiz, click the settings gear at the top left, then click “options” in the menu. In the window that pops up, check the box for “grade by question,”…
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Canvas Update: Instructors Can Upload Files to Assignments for Students
Reading Time: 2 minutes Canvas has recently added a feature to allow instructors to upload files to assignments for students. To use this feature, you need to start in the gradebook. Click on the student’s cell for the assignment you want to upload, then click the arrow. Canvas will slide out a panel from the right side of your screen. Click the “Submit for Student” link. Drag and drop or use the file picker to add the assignment file(s), then click “submit.” If you upload multiple files, they will be added as one submission. The file is now available to be graded in SpeedGrader! Any files uploaded using this method…
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Dr. Seth Hamman: Top Ten Reasons to Consider Offering your Course Online
Reading Time: 3 minutes I have always been a little skeptical of online courses. I have never taken an online course and have never taught one either. But as I’ve seen them grow in popularity, especially among dual enrollment and homeschool students, I started to reconsider: maybe they do have an important role to play in the higher education ecosystem? I decided to suspend judgement and spend 3 days with the Center for Teaching and Learning in early January to learn more about online learning and how one of my favorite courses to teach, CY-1000 Introduction to Cybersecurity, could be taught online. By the end of those 3 days my…
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Canvas Updates: Rich Content Editor
Reading Time: 2 minutes It’s been a bit since we last wrote about Canvas updates, but some cool things have been happening. Canvas is always working on tweaking or adding things (you can keep up with them in the Canvas Release Notes!), but today we’re focusing on what’s changed in the Rich Content Editor (RCE) over the past few months. Access to detailed word/character count statistics The RCE displays word count at the bottom of the editor, but it’s expanded that functionality a bit. Now when you click on that word count, Canvas will pop a window and show you detailed word and character count. Dragging-and-dropping/pasting of content Previously, to…