With the release of Canvas course shells on November 26, 2024 it’s time to remind ourselves what we need to prioritize when updating our courses for the Spring semester.
Here is a quick list for you to reference when reviewing your course before you publish. And as always, don’t hesitate to reach out to me, Gabrielle Thomas, via email or Teams if you have any questions.
Importing a course?
Start by combining any sections for your course. You can do this using this guide, watching the video below, or by reaching out to your friendly neighborhood Academic Technology Specialist, Gabrielle Thomas, to assist with combining them.
Turn off “Automatically apply grade for missing submissions” in the grade book settings before importing your course. You can turn this back on after you are finished importing.
Next review this help doc before you copy over your previous course. Keep in mind whenever you import an old course into your new course shell the import data will overwrite and erase any new data you put into your course shell. To avoid this, wait to make any changes to your course until after you have finished importing.
Once you are in the import tool page feel free to import content based on your preference whether you need the entire course imported/copied or if you just want to import specific content.
For due dates, we recommend you remove them before importing and then add them. However you do have the option to adjust due dates before importing just be cautious and double check your dates have the correct day, month, and year before importing.
After importing, update any assignment availability and due dates to reflect the new semester, make sure all content that is ready for students to see is published, and publish the course when you’re ready for students to access it. Once the course is published you can then communicate with your class through the Canvas Inbox feature. We recommend making the course available at least one week before the class starts.
Creating a new Course?
If you are creating a new course from scratch try out one of these UNCG Canvas Course templates in Canvas Commons! You will be asked to grant permission to your account when you use Commons for the first time. Once you access Commons, search “UNCG” for numerous template options.
All courses
Test links in your course by utilizing the Link Validation Tool
Identify and fix accessibility issues using the UDOIT Cloud feature. This feature is not visible to students.
Review and confirm your grading policy and calculations on the Assignments page. Here’s a helpful video from our ITS staff to give you more information about Canvas Gradebook Math.
Try integrating OneDrive in Canvas to streamline file organization.
Give Generative AI a try first before incorporating it in your course! Consider enrolling in this Canvas training course: A Framework for AI Literacy. The course is designed for those new to generative AI who would like to learn on their own time with no pressure, due dates, or assignments to submit.
A big thank you to Anita Warfford and Morgan Robinson for their guidance in creating this news post.
