Canvas allows instructors to message students directly from the Gradebook using the Message Students Who feature. This tool is useful for contacting students about a specific graded assignment. It is especially helpful for sending reminders to students who have not yet submitted their work as the due date approaches.
To send a message to students from the Gradebook:
In the Gradebook, locate the assignment and click the options button (three-dot icon) next to the column header.
When the menu appears, click Message Students Who.
In the compose message window, use the dropdown menu to select the group of students to message (e.g., those who have not yet submitted).
Canvas will automatically list the students who meet the selected criteria. Keep the list as is or click Show All Recipients to adjust.
Enter a subject line and message.
When the message is ready, click Send on the lower right.
When copying a course that includes one or more tests requiring Respondus LockDown Browser, it is important to check the LockDown Browser Dashboard. Visiting the dashboard updates the test settings and helps prevent student test access issues.
If the step is skipped, students may see one of the following error messages when trying to begin the LockDown Browser-required test:
“There is a problem with the settings for this exam.”
“Error: Problem with Test Options for this Exam.”
To update the settings in the Canvas course:
Go to the course menu on the left and click LockDown Browser.
The dashboard will load and update the settings for all LockDown Browser-required tests and display a message confirming that the settings have been updated.
Once the message appears, exit the dashboard.
Taking this step will help ensure a smooth LockDown Browser test-taking experience for students and prevent technical issues when attempting to start the test.
After copying a course in Canvas, a banner may appear at the top of the Discussions page that requires attention. The banner allows instructors to enable or disable threaded replies for multiple discussions at once.
In legacy Canvas discussions, when threaded replies are enabled, students can reply directly to individual posts within a discussion by clicking the Reply link under a specific comment.
When threaded replies are disabled, the Reply option is removed, and students can only respond to the original post.
If the banner appears, use the steps below to manage threaded replies:
Click Manage Discussions in the banner to review the threaded reply settings.
The next page displays a list of discussions.
Use the checkboxes on the left to select the discussions or click Select All to choose all discussions.
Click either the Set to Threaded or Set to Not Threaded button found in the upper right to apply the setting in bulk. Alternatively, use the dropdown menu next to each discussion to adjust the setting individually.
After reviewing the selections, click Confirm to save the changes.
If you receive the above error, it indicates that the course is not known to our servers. This most typically occurs when a course gets copied, but the instructor does not open the LockDown Browser Dashboard tool for the new course before students start taking exams.
This action of opening the LockDown Browser Dashboard makes the course known to the Respondus servers, and activates any LockDown Browser specific settings in quizzes.
Fix
The instructor should perform this action for the course in question, and additionally make sure that no error shows up for any of the quizzes. If any errors do show up, simply click the “fix it” button to correct the problem.
After the instructor opens the LockDown Browser Dashboard for the course, students should then try again to take the exam.
When using one of the Canvas features such as Discussions and Assignments, open the Rich Content Editor.
Note: The Rich Content Editor supports keyboard shortcuts. To view the Keyboard Shortcuts menu, click the Keyboard icon or press ALT+F8 (PC keyboard) or Option+F8 (Mac keyboard).
Insert External Link
To embed a URL in the discussion reply, click the Link icon [1] and select the External Links option [2].
Note: You can also insert a link using the Insert menu options [3].
Insert URL
Enter the video link in the Link field [1]. Then click the Done button [2].
Click the Tools link [1]. Click the Apps link [2].
If you have previously inserted a YouTube video through the apps, you can select the YouTube app option from the Recently Used list [3]. If the YouTube app is not listed, view all apps by clicking the View All link [4].
You can also add a linked YouTube video by clicking the Apps icon [1], then selecting the YouTube app link [2] or the View All link [3].
Note: To view the Apps icon, you may have to click the Options icon [4].
Open YouTube
Click the YouTube link [1].
You can also filter menu options using the Search field [2].
Search Videos
Enter a search term in the Search field [1]. Then press Return (Mac) or Enter (PC) on your keyboard.
To view more information about a search option, click the video name [2].
Embed Video
To embed the video in the Rich Content Editor, click the Embed button [1].
To manage the video embed options, click the Embed drop-down menu [2]. You can select to embed a video hyperlink [3], or you can select to embed a small, medium, or large version of the video in the Rich Content Editor [4].
View Embedded Video
View the embedded video in the Rich Content Editor.
Save Changes
Click the Save button to save any changes made in the Rich Content Editor.
Notes:
The assignment, discussion, pages, and quizzes details pages display a Save & Publish button.
The Syllabus page displays an Update Syllabus button.
Discussion replies display a Reply button.
View Content
To view the embedded video, click the Play icon [1].
To view the linked video in a new browser tab, click the video link [2]. To expand the linked video to view in Canvas, click the Play icon [3].
Need to see which students have viewed your videos? Panopto makes it simple to view analytics and statistics. Just click on the Stats button for each video.
From your library, click the three-dot menu > Stats
From the video player, click the Stats button
An overview of the session data will appear
Need more info on viewing statistics? View this page.
Below is information about using LockDown Browser for Canvas Classic or New Quizzes. Please review this information after downloading and installing LockDown Browser on your device.
If you need to know whether your course is using a Classic Quiz or a New Quiz with LockDown Browser, please contact your course instructor.
Introduction to LockDown Browser for Students
LockDown Browser for Mac or Windows (Classic Quizzes)
If you plan to use LockDown Browser for a quiz or test, please provide students a link to the student quick start guide. The guide provides information on starting a test that requires LockDown Browser.
Below are links to the LockDown Browser Quick Start Guides for Canvas Classic Quizzes and New Quizzes.
