Canvas FAQs for Staff

Modules that are available in Canvas, will not be available in the Queen’s Online Virtual Learning Environment (QOL VLE). Previous QOL VLE modules and materials will still be accessible in the QOL VLE.

Modules for AY 2019/20 which are available in Canvas, will not be accessible in the QOL VLE.

Note: Only the ‘Modules/Learning Home’ of Queen’s Online is being replaced by Canvas. All other areas of Queen’s Online, where you can access other online resources and services will remain the same.

What you can do within a module in Canvas is determined by the role you have been assigned in that course. There are 5 different roles.  These are;

Observer: Access to view learning materials, discussions and announcements. This role is unable to participate in any of the activities, build content, view grades or view student and module statistics or reports.

External Examiner:  View only access role, to view announcements, discussions and all grades. This role is unable to participate in any of the activities, build content, grade or view student and module statistics or reports.

Course Designer:  This role has access to view materials, discussions and announcements. Course Designers can also build learning content (collaborations, discussions, outcomes and rubrics) and have the ability to publish and extend module/activity dates. This role does not have the ability to grade or view student and module statistics or reports.

Teaching Assistant: This role can view and build learning content, collaborate with students and grade submissions. This role does not have the ability to view student and module statistics and reports.

Teacher:  This role can view and build learning content, collaborate with students and grade submissions. This role also has the ability to view student and module statistics and reports.

Note: Canvas roles are not related to job titles and should be set based on level of permission required.

Note: In line with Data Protection requirements, Canvas must protect the privacy rights of individuals when processing data.  Those responsible for assigning Canvas roles, should remember that data being accessed by staff members must be limited to what is necessary for their role.

For more information on Data Protection please click here.

Yes.

Familiarisation Areas: These are available so that academics can experiment with the various features and tools available. This is your own personal space, no other academics or students are enrolled in this area. 

Test Student: You have access to a ‘test student’ via the ‘student view’ feature. This will let you view and interact with your module content to test what it is like from the student perspective. To access the student view feature, click Settings then click Student View on the right hand menu.

Note: The ‘test student’ feature can be used for most functionality in Canvas and can be reset as required.

Canvas Guide: How do I view a course as a test student using Student View?

No. It is not possible to ensure that all your students receive email notifications about Announcements in Canvas.

Notification Settings: Students are able to customise their Notification settings in the same way that staff members can and can choose to turn off the notifications for Announcements. However, even if they turn this notification off, they will still see the Announcement when they login to Canvas.

Advice: If you are planning to use Announcements to communicate information about your course, advise your students to keep this notification turned on.

Canvas Guide: How do I set my Canvas notification preferences as a student?

Current Apps: These plugins are currently available in Canvas: Turnitin UK, Office 365, Mediasite, You Tube, Wikipedia, Vimeo and Twitter. 

Adding Apps into your Canvas Course: In your live course, click Settings, then click the Apps Tab. You can filter by all, not installed or installed. Simply click the App you want then click Add App. Once added, some apps are available to you within the Rich Content Editor.  (via a drop down list icon).

(The image below shows how to find the installed Apps in the Rich Content Editor)

Canvas Guide: How do I use the Canvas App Center in a course?
More information: Canvas Feature Requests 
More Information: Integrated Apps and how these can be used in Canvas 

Canvas has a Quizzes feature that can be used for formative assessment. However, until we pilot the use of Canvas Quizzes for summative assessment, we advise that you continue to use your current method. If using Questionmark, you can provide the following link from your Canvas course: https://ondemand.questionmark.eu/home/610094/saml_login

Canvas Guide:  How do I create a quiz with individual questions? 

Yes, it is possible to change the settings within the Gradebook or Speedgrader to stop feedback being seen by students before you are ready. In Canvas this managed by the Grade Posting Policy. You can select a default grade posting policy for all course assignments, as shown below:

Posting policies can be set to automatic or manual, see below how they will display in Gradebook.

Anonymous Assignments: If you create an anonymous assignment, Canvas will automatically hide grades and feedback for the assignment.

Non-Anonymised Assignments: If the assignment is not anonymous and you have not set the Course to ‘Manual’ Grade Posting Policy, you will need to select ‘Manual’ grade posting policy for the assignment before you begin marking, as shown below:

Canvas Guide: How do I select a grade posting policy for a course in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I select a grade posting policy for an assignment in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I post grades for an assignment in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I hide or post assignment grades in SpeedGrader?

Note: If you have setup an assignment using the Turnitin Integration in Canvas and are using Turnitin Feedback Studio to mark students’ assignments,  you MUST set the ‘Feedback Release Date’ to a date and time that you want your students to receive their grades and feedback. This date will also trigger anonymity to be forced off in Turnitin.

More information: Turnitin within Canvas – Staff Guide

More information: Important Information about Turnitin Assignments within Canvas

Any late submissions will show up in the Grades as Blue in the New Gradebook.

Each colour is a default associated with a Gradebook status: late (blue), missing (red), resubmitted (green), dropped (orange), or excused (yellow), as shown below.

The Status option in the New Gradebook allows you to change the default colours in the Gradebook. Colours can be adjusted by selecting a default colour or using a supported hex code.

Colours are a per-user setting. Colours set in your course apply to any of your other courses that use the New Gradebook, however, they do not apply to any other user who may view the Gradebook. Additionally, status names cannot be changed.

In the Speedgrader you can also see if an assignment is submitted late.

Canvas Guide: How do I change the color for a grading status in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I change the status of a submission in the New Gradebook?
For more information please see: The New Canvas Gradebook

Yes. You can use the Gradebook feature to do this. The link below will bring you to a Canvas guide that explains how to use the Gradebook.

Canvas Guide: How do I use the New Gradebook?

Yes. You can set up peer review assignments for students in Canvas.  Students can then leave written and/or audio feedback for their peers.

How do I use peer review assignments in a course? (Canvas Guide) 

Yes, it is possible to change the settings within the Gradebook or Speedgrader to stop feedback being seen by students before you are ready. In Canvas this managed by the Grade Posting Policy. You can select a default grade posting policy for all course assignments, as shown below:

Posting policies can be set to automatic or manual, see below how they will display in Gradebook.

Anonymous Assignments: If you create an anonymous assignment, Canvas will automatically hide grades and feedback for the assignment.

Non-Anonymised Assignments: If the assignment is not anonymous and you have not set the Course to ‘Manual’ Grade Posting Policy, you will need to select ‘Manual’ grade posting policy for the assignment before you begin marking, as shown below:

Canvas Guide: How do I select a grade posting policy for a course in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I select a grade posting policy for an assignment in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I post grades for an assignment in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I hide or post assignment grades in SpeedGrader?

Note: If you have setup an assignment using the Turnitin Integration in Canvas and are using Turnitin Feedback Studio to mark students’ assignments,  you MUST set the ‘Feedback Release Date’ to a date and time that you want your students to receive their grades and feedback. This date will also trigger anonymity to be forced off in Turnitin.

More information: Turnitin within Canvas – Staff Guide

More information: Important Information about Turnitin Assignments within Canvas

Yes. You can use the Gradebook feature to do this. The link below will bring you to a Canvas guide that explains how to use the Gradebook.

Canvas Guide: How do I use the New Gradebook?

Yes. You can set up peer review assignments for students in Canvas.  Students can then leave written and/or audio feedback for their peers.

How do I use peer review assignments in a course? (Canvas Guide) 

Yes.

Canvas Calendar Export: It is possible to export the Canvas Calendar into other online calendars. However, Canvas will not automatically update your other calendar if you make changes within Canvas.

External Calendars Import: It is not possible to import other external online calendars into the Canvas Calendar.

Canvas Guide: How do I view the Calendar iCal feed to subscribe to an external calendar as an instructor?

At this time, the initial focus of the roll-out will be on credit-bearing academic modules whose enrolments come through QSIS, our student record system. However, we are aware of this requirement and will be investigating this further in the future.

Canvas is being implemented across the university in phases.

All Undergraduate and Postgraduate Taught modules will be on Canvas in the academic year 2019/20.

More information:  Digital Learning Programme and Canvas

To create, view or interact with Office 365 content, you and your students will first need to login to Office 365 through the link in the Canvas course navigation menu.

If an ‘unexpected error’ message is displayed when creating a collaboration:

1. Please check that there are no spaces at the beginning of the collaboration’s document name/title and that none of the following special characters have been used:  \ / : * ? ” < >
2. If the error continues to occur please:
   a) Go to the main module home page, click office 365 in the course navigation menu on the left, your office 365 files should then appear.
   b) Click log out on the right-hand side. Once logged out, sign back in, by clicking  log in (you may have to enter your sign in credentials again).
   c) Once you have logged back into office 365, navigate back to the collaborations section and create the collaboration.

   

3. If the error persists try deleting your browser cache/history and cookies (see guides for all supported browsers here: Mac or PC) then repeat step 2.

If the message ‘you are not allowed to view this content’ is displayed when opening a collaboration:

1. Please check that the user attempting to open the collaboration has been added as a collaborator.
2. If the user has been added to the collaboration and the error persists, please log out and back in to Office 365 within Canvas, by completing step 2 above.

Note:  Please ensure that you are not signed in to different Office 365 accounts (staff/student/personal etc) even if using separate browsers, as this can cause issues with linking to the correct Office 365 account.

Canvas Guide: How do I create a Microsoft Office 365 collaboration as an instructor?

The ’email all students’ function is done in Qsis, not Canvas, depending on the permissions of the staff member.

In Qsis, open Main Menu / Self-Service / Faculty Centre then My Schedule and select a relevant class to open in Class Roster. You may need to click on view all to display all components of a class (such as Tutorials etc.).  Select the option to email an individual student or a group of students.

To email an individual student: Click on their Name and a message will open in your own email account.

To email a group of students: Click the Select All link. You can then un-tick those you do not want to notify.

a) Click the Notify Selected Students button and the Send Notification screen will open.

b) Your email will be in both the From and To fields, this ensures you get a copy of any sent emails.

c) The students selected will be in the BCC field.

d) You may wish to add other staff to the CC field.

e) The default subject can be changed.

f) You can also spell check the message using the book icon.

g) When ready, click the Send Notification button.

If you wish to export the email addresses to excel please click the following icon at the top of the table:

More Information: Please see page 3 of this guide.
More Information: How to view/print a module roster of student photographs in Qsis

Note: If you require any further support, please contact the Qsis Support Team on studentsystemssupport@qub.ac.uk

No. It is not possible to ensure that all your students receive email notifications about Announcements in Canvas.

Notification Settings: Students are able to customise their Notification settings in the same way that staff members can and can choose to turn off the notifications for Announcements. However, even if they turn this notification off, they will still see the Announcement when they login to Canvas.

Advice: If you are planning to use Announcements to communicate information about your course, advise your students to keep this notification turned on.

Canvas Guide: How do I set my Canvas notification preferences as a student?

QSIS: Enrolment and registration first takes place in Qsis and then this information flows through to Canvas.

Canvas: In Canvas you can check the student enrolment information by clicking on People in your course navigation menu. Clicking on the All roles dropdown will show you each Canvas role in your course, with the number of active users beside each role (See Fig. 1).

Contact your School Administrator and ask them to confirm with Qsis, the number of students in your course, or alternatively, contact the QSIS Support Team.

Canvas Guide: How do I use the People page in a course as an instructor? 

No. It is not possible to ensure that all your students receive email notifications about Announcements in Canvas.

Notification Settings: Students are able to customise their Notification settings in the same way that staff members can and can choose to turn off the notifications for Announcements. However, even if they turn this notification off, they will still see the Announcement when they login to Canvas.

Advice: If you are planning to use Announcements to communicate information about your course, advise your students to keep this notification turned on.

Canvas Guide: How do I set my Canvas notification preferences as a student?

Yes.

Date and time release functions: These are available for ‘Canvas Modules’ (i.e. units of study, for example: weeks, topics, themes) and other features such as assignments, quizzes, discussions and announcements.

The guide below explains how to edit a module’s settings to lock all content and release it on a particular date/time.

Canvas Guide: How do I lock a module?

No, however students can access their course timetable or class schedule via Qsis and their exam timetable via Queen’s Online. Students can view instructions on how to access this information here under FAQ 6.

More information: Student FAQS

Yes. However it is important to note that some of the activity/resource types in Moodle do not exist in Canvas, and this will impact on how some of the Moodle course materials appear in Canvas.

The table below shows some of the activities/resources in Moodle which do not exist in Canvas and explains how they will be imported (based on Moodle version 3.0).

Advice: It is advised that you make an audit of your Moodle course before importing, and make a note of the features listed in the table below.

Back up your Moodle Course

The next step is to back up your Moodle course.  To do this, go to your Moodle course, click the Turn Editing On button and click the Backup menu item within the Course Administration menu. (If you don’t see this, you will need to ask for help from the administrator of your Moodle site.)

Follow the instructions on how to create and save the back up (Note: Make sure you do not include the enrolled users in your back-up file).

Then you can log in to Canvas and import the contents of your Moodle course into your Canvas course.

Canvas Guide: How do I import content from Moodle into Canvas? (Canvas Community Guide)

Module Names in Qsis: Information in Canvas, (including module name/course title) flows through from Qsis. There is a 30 character limit in Qsis for a course title (short name), anything above this will not be included.

Course Titles in Canvas: To change your Canvas course title and reduce the number of characters, please contact QSIS Support Team  and amend to 30 characters or less (including spaces & punctuation).

Once complete in Qsis, the new course title will automatically flow through to Canvas in 24-48 hours.

In Canvas, there are two areas for names:

1. Display Name: Displays in areas where you are collaborating. (e.g.) Discussions, Messages and Comments.
2. Full Name: Appears in some areas in Canvas. (e.g.) Gradebook, Chat, EPortfolio and integrated applications such as Office365 or TurnItIn UK.

How to change your Display Name: Submit a ticket via the Help button in Canvas.

How to change your Full Name: If your Full Name has legally changed and needs to be updated in Canvas, you will need to change it in Qsis first. Please contact the QSIS Support Team directly. Once this is complete, it will automatically update in Canvas in 24-48 hours.

Yes.

Date and time release functions: These are available for ‘Canvas Modules’ (i.e. units of study, for example: weeks, topics, themes) and other features such as assignments, quizzes, discussions and announcements.

The guide below explains how to edit a module’s settings to lock all content and release it on a particular date/time.

Canvas Guide: How do I lock a module?

Yes.

Canvas Calendar Export: It is possible to export the Canvas Calendar into other online calendars. However, Canvas will not automatically update your other calendar if you make changes within Canvas.

External Calendars Import: It is not possible to import other external online calendars into the Canvas Calendar.

Canvas Guide: How do I view the Calendar iCal feed to subscribe to an external calendar as an instructor?

Yes. However it is important to note that some of the activity/resource types in Moodle do not exist in Canvas, and this will impact on how some of the Moodle course materials appear in Canvas.

The table below shows some of the activities/resources in Moodle which do not exist in Canvas and explains how they will be imported (based on Moodle version 3.0).

Advice: It is advised that you make an audit of your Moodle course before importing, and make a note of the features listed in the table below.

Back up your Moodle Course

The next step is to back up your Moodle course.  To do this, go to your Moodle course, click the Turn Editing On button and click the Backup menu item within the Course Administration menu. (If you don’t see this, you will need to ask for help from the administrator of your Moodle site.)

Follow the instructions on how to create and save the back up (Note: Make sure you do not include the enrolled users in your back-up file).

Then you can log in to Canvas and import the contents of your Moodle course into your Canvas course.

Canvas Guide: How do I import content from Moodle into Canvas? (Canvas Community Guide)

What is Mediasite?
Mediasite is a video streaming platform, which is fully supported by Information Services and integrates directly with Canvas. It allows staff to record, upload and share recorded lectures, seminars, events and other video and audio content.

Benefits of using Mediasite in Canvas:  

1. In Canvas various types of media can be incorporated into your course without taking up ANY of your allotted Canvas storage.
2. All content will be fully backed up by QUB.
3. All video & audio content plays seamlessly in China and other areas due to content being delivery by the University Janet consortium.
   Content can be shared with a large or controlled audience. (like other peers for content control or editing)
4. Full training is available on regular courses throughout the year.

Accessing Mediasite in Canvas: 
Mediasite can be accessed and content embedded into Canvas in the Rich Content Editor. More information is available via the links at the bottom of this page.

Mediasite Training:  
Mediasite training webinars are available here. This training will demonstrate a wide range of Mediasite features and may include:

• Collaborative online space to create and manage your media
• Editing, publishing and sharing your content
• Managing permissions with your class or external parties
• Adding links and chapters, Including polls or quizzes in your video content
• Tagging your content (for search)
• Online editor
• The use of captioning (subtitling your content)
  Note: Mediasite offers this functionality with absolutely no prior knowledge of video editing required.  

  More Information: Mediasite in Canvas Guide 
  More Information: Mediasite at Queen’s
  More information: Resources for remote teaching with Canvas

The default module (Canvas course) storage allowance is 500MB. There is a separate storage allowance of 50MB for User and Group areas in Canvas. Please click on one of the headings below to view important information about each Course, User and Group storage area including what is and isn’t counted against quotas and file upload limits.

• Canvas Course (files area in course) 500 MB
• User (personal ‘My Files’ storage) 50 MB
• Group (student group) 50 MB 

If you require additional storage on your Canvas module, please contact the Digital Learning Solutions team from the ‘Help’ menu in Canvas.

More Information: What is my module storage allowance in Canvas? 

The ’email all students’ function is done in Qsis, not Canvas, depending on the permissions of the staff member.

In Qsis, open Main Menu / Self-Service / Faculty Centre then My Schedule and select a relevant class to open in Class Roster. You may need to click on view all to display all components of a class (such as Tutorials etc.).  Select the option to email an individual student or a group of students.

To email an individual student: Click on their Name and a message will open in your own email account.

To email a group of students: Click the Select All link. You can then un-tick those you do not want to notify.

a) Click the Notify Selected Students button and the Send Notification screen will open.

b) Your email will be in both the From and To fields, this ensures you get a copy of any sent emails.

c) The students selected will be in the BCC field.

d) You may wish to add other staff to the CC field.

e) The default subject can be changed.

f) You can also spell check the message using the book icon.

g) When ready, click the Send Notification button.

If you wish to export the email addresses to excel please click the following icon at the top of the table:

More Information: Please see page 3 of this guide.
More Information: How to view/print a module roster of student photographs in Qsis

Note: If you require any further support, please contact the Qsis Support Team on studentsystemssupport@qub.ac.uk

What you can do within a module in Canvas is determined by the role you have been assigned in that course. There are 5 different roles.  These are;

Observer: Access to view learning materials, discussions and announcements. This role is unable to participate in any of the activities, build content, view grades or view student and module statistics or reports.

External Examiner:  View only access role, to view announcements, discussions and all grades. This role is unable to participate in any of the activities, build content, grade or view student and module statistics or reports.

Course Designer:  This role has access to view materials, discussions and announcements. Course Designers can also build learning content (collaborations, discussions, outcomes and rubrics) and have the ability to publish and extend module/activity dates. This role does not have the ability to grade or view student and module statistics or reports.

Teaching Assistant: This role can view and build learning content, collaborate with students and grade submissions. This role does not have the ability to view student and module statistics and reports.

Teacher:  This role can view and build learning content, collaborate with students and grade submissions. This role also has the ability to view student and module statistics and reports.

Note: Canvas roles are not related to job titles and should be set based on level of permission required.

Note: In line with Data Protection requirements, Canvas must protect the privacy rights of individuals when processing data.  Those responsible for assigning Canvas roles, should remember that data being accessed by staff members must be limited to what is necessary for their role.

For more information on Data Protection please click here.

At this time, the initial focus of the roll-out will be on credit-bearing academic modules whose enrolments come through QSIS, our student record system. However, we are aware of this requirement and will be investigating this further in the future.

QSIS: Enrolment and registration first takes place in Qsis and then this information flows through to Canvas.

Canvas: In Canvas you can check the student enrolment information by clicking on People in your course navigation menu. Clicking on the All roles dropdown will show you each Canvas role in your course, with the number of active users beside each role (See Fig. 1).

Contact your School Administrator and ask them to confirm with Qsis, the number of students in your course, or alternatively, contact the QSIS Support Team.

Canvas Guide: How do I use the People page in a course as an instructor? 

Module Names in Qsis: Information in Canvas, (including module name/course title) flows through from Qsis. There is a 30 character limit in Qsis for a course title (short name), anything above this will not be included.

Course Titles in Canvas: To change your Canvas course title and reduce the number of characters, please contact QSIS Support Team  and amend to 30 characters or less (including spaces & punctuation).

Once complete in Qsis, the new course title will automatically flow through to Canvas in 24-48 hours.

To create, view or interact with Office 365 content, you and your students will first need to login to Office 365 through the link in the Canvas course navigation menu.

If an ‘unexpected error’ message is displayed when creating a collaboration:

1. Please check that there are no spaces at the beginning of the collaboration’s document name/title and that none of the following special characters have been used:  \ / : * ? ” < >
2. If the error continues to occur please:
   a) Go to the main module home page, click office 365 in the course navigation menu on the left, your office 365 files should then appear.
   b) Click log out on the right-hand side. Once logged out, sign back in, by clicking  log in (you may have to enter your sign in credentials again).
   c) Once you have logged back into office 365, navigate back to the collaborations section and create the collaboration.

   

3. If the error persists try deleting your browser cache/history and cookies (see guides for all supported browsers here: Mac or PC) then repeat step 2.

If the message ‘you are not allowed to view this content’ is displayed when opening a collaboration:

1. Please check that the user attempting to open the collaboration has been added as a collaborator.
2. If the user has been added to the collaboration and the error persists, please log out and back in to Office 365 within Canvas, by completing step 2 above.

Note:  Please ensure that you are not signed in to different Office 365 accounts (staff/student/personal etc) even if using separate browsers, as this can cause issues with linking to the correct Office 365 account.

Canvas Guide: How do I create a Microsoft Office 365 collaboration as an instructor?

Canvas is being implemented across the university in phases.

All Undergraduate and Postgraduate Taught modules will be on Canvas in the academic year 2019/20.

More information:  Digital Learning Programme and Canvas

Yes.

Familiarisation Areas: These are available so that academics can experiment with the various features and tools available. This is your own personal space, no other academics or students are enrolled in this area. 

Test Student: You have access to a ‘test student’ via the ‘student view’ feature. This will let you view and interact with your module content to test what it is like from the student perspective. To access the student view feature, click Settings then click Student View on the right hand menu.

Note: The ‘test student’ feature can be used for most functionality in Canvas and can be reset as required.

Canvas Guide: How do I view a course as a test student using Student View?

Canvas is a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) for facilitating learning and teaching. Current processes for pastoral care will continue.

No. Canvas is a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) for facilitating learning and teaching. We have other tools available within the University for this purpose.

Any late submissions will show up in the Grades as Blue in the New Gradebook.

Each colour is a default associated with a Gradebook status: late (blue), missing (red), resubmitted (green), dropped (orange), or excused (yellow), as shown below.

The Status option in the New Gradebook allows you to change the default colours in the Gradebook. Colours can be adjusted by selecting a default colour or using a supported hex code.

Colours are a per-user setting. Colours set in your course apply to any of your other courses that use the New Gradebook, however, they do not apply to any other user who may view the Gradebook. Additionally, status names cannot be changed.

In the Speedgrader you can also see if an assignment is submitted late.

Canvas Guide: How do I change the color for a grading status in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I change the status of a submission in the New Gradebook?
For more information please see: The New Canvas Gradebook

Yes. You can use the Gradebook feature to do this. The link below will bring you to a Canvas guide that explains how to use the Gradebook.

Canvas Guide: How do I use the New Gradebook?

Yes. Once you have created a ‘group set’ in Canvas, you have 3 different options for grouping students:

a) manually arranging students into groups

b) automatically assigning students into groups

c) allowing students to self sign-up into groups

You can easily move students from one group to another (via drag and drop) and set a ‘group leader’ if required.

Note:

• If you choose to allow students to self-sign up, it is a good idea to set a limit to the number of students in each group.

• You can visit the Group Home Page and see student interaction and participation in group activities.

• If you assign a Group Leader to a group, they have the ability to remove, add students to the group and edit the group name.

Canvas Guide: How do I assign a student Group Leader to a group?

More Information:  Related Blog Post – Three Things by Dr Neil Anderson

Powerpoint presentations that have ‘audio’ attached should be saved as an MP4 video file. Once it is saved as a video file, it can be uploaded to Mediasite or MS Stream. We would recommend that you ‘host’ large video files on these platforms so you do not use up all your Canvas storage allocation. You can then easily take a ‘link’ to these recordings and embed the videos into a Canvas page for your students to view. (MS Stream and Mediasite are services supported by Queens.)

Currently there are no storage limits for Mediasite. For MS Stream, each individual staff member can upload a maximum of 5000 videos and the maximum size of an individual video file is 50GB, although short/small video file sizes are strongly recommended. Note: The overall video storage capacity available to Queen’s for all users will be monitored by both the Mediasite & Information Services Teams.

For more information on the optimal length of a video recording for student engagement, please see the FAQ ‘How long should videos be?’

Watch this short 5 minute video tutorial Canvas Conferences to learn how to use the Conference facility within Canvas to record your lecture/tutorial/meeting with students. Canvas guidance says the Conferences tool can support up to 100 students however, some staff have used this for larger classes. The recording lasts 14 days and can be accessed via Canvas Conferences. Transcripts and closed captions are not provided.

Note: An email notification to join the conference and the recording will be made available to only the students who were invited. (as long as the option to invite all course members has been unticked) If you are experiencing any contrary behaviours, please submit a support ticket through Help.

Note: Please bear in mind, due to the amount of people now using these systems across Queens and globally, you may experience some performance issues.

The file storage limit in Canvas in 750mb. If you want more storage you can request this through the Help button inside Canvas and it can be increased to 1GB. However, if you want to upload numerous, large audio/video files into Canvas you will very quickly reach your storage limit and this will not be sustainable in the long term and may impact the system performance. Therefore, we would recommend that you use MS Stream for uploading large video files or Mediasite for large video or audio files, essentially ‘hosting’ them outside of Canvas. You can then easily take a ‘link’ to these recordings and embed the videos into a Canvas page for your students to view. (MS Stream and Mediasite are services supported by Queens.)

Use various tools such as Announcements, Discussions, live Chat, Inbox/email, Groups or Collaborations in Canvas to keep in touch and encourage communication and engagement with your students. For more information check out the Getting Started with Canvas at Queens online course. (available on your Canvas dashboard or through Help) Lesson 5 Groups and Communications will guide you through all these tools.

Announcements: Watch this short 2 minute video tutorial Announcements Overview to learn how to use Announcements in Canvas. Announcements are used in Canvas to communicate important information to all students. Further information and guides.

Discussions: Watch this short 5 minute video tutorial Discussions Overview to learn how to use Discussions in Canvas. Discussions should be used in Canvas to encourage communication, participation and engagement between instructors and students. They will help to build a sense of community and can be used as graded activities. Further information and guides.

Chat: Watch this short 2 minute video tutorial Chat Overview to learn how to use live chat in Canvas. The Chat feature in Canvas allows staff and students to interact with each other in real time. Further information and guides.

Inbox/Email: Watch this short 4 minute video tutorial Conversations Overview to learn how to use the Inbox/email functionality within Canvas. Conversations are effectively your emails within Canvas (Inbox on the Global Navigation menu). This is where you can send and receive email communications between instructors and students. Further information and guides.

Groups: Watch this short 3 minute video tutorial Groups Creation & Management to learn how to use the Groups functionality within Canvas. The ‘People’ link within Canvas enables you to create groups of students within a Canvas course. When you create a group, you are essentially creating a digital space for those students to collaborate and communicate. Each Group has its own announcements feature, discussions area, content pages, space for files, opportunities to hold conferences and participate in real-time collaboration. Further information and guides.

Collaborations: Watch this short 2 minute video tutorial Create & Manage Collaborations in Canvas to learn how to use the Groups functionality within Canvas. Collaborations are used in Canvas to enable students to communicate with each other by being able to view and edit a shared document. Further information and guides.

The file storage limit in Canvas in 750mb. If you want more storage you can request this through the Help button inside Canvas and it can be increased to 1GB. However, if you want to upload numerous, large audio/video files into Canvas you will very quickly reach your storage limit and this will not be sustainable in the long term and may impact the system performance of your module. Therefore, we would recommend that you use MS Stream for uploading large video files or Mediasite for large video or audio files, essentially ‘hosting’ them outside of Canvas. You can then easily take a ‘link’ to these recordings and embed the videos into a Canvas page for your students to view. (MS Stream and Mediasite are services supported by Queens.)

Watch this short 4 minute video tutorial Host Video on MS Stream to learn how to use MS Stream to ‘host’ your large video files. You can then embed them into a Canvas page and as they are hosted outside of Canvas, it will not use up your Canvas storage allowance. Note: MS Stream is not compatible with audio files. Supported files for MS Stream can be viewed here.

Watch this short 4 minute video tutorial Host Video on Mediasite to learn how to use Mediasite to ‘host’ your large video/audio files. You can then embed them into a Canvas page and as they are hosted outside of Canvas, it will not use up your Canvas storage allowance. Note: When uploading an audio file into Mediasite you may receive an error message to say the upload/processing has failed. This is currently being investigated but the file will upload and will be available in your ‘My Mediasite’ area. More information on Mediasite can be viewed here.

You could either schedule a number of separate meetings and add the relevant students to each meeting. You could also schedule a number of Teams meetings, inviting all students to all the meetings but name the meetings, group A, group B, etc. Then tell the students which group they belong to and then join only that meeting.

If you record a Teams session, then the video is available to the meeting organiser in MS Stream. If others are to view this then the organiser must grant them access, so a link to the video on Stream could be added to Canvas but permissions would need to be updated if the students are to view it. Note: The video is downloadable from Stream in MP4 format, this could then be loaded into MediaSite for normal inclusion into Canvas. However, if downloaded from Stream no captions or transcript comes with it.

You can set up a Canvas Conference in your Familiarisation Area to test how to use Conferences as an instructor. However, you will not be able to access the conference as a student using the ‘student view’ functionality. More information on the Canvas Conference interface is available here. You can also set up a test conference in MS Teams and perhaps invite a colleague to become more familiar with the process and how it works.

Watch this short 6 minute video tutorial Online Meeting in MS Teams to learn how to use MS Teams to record your lecture/tutorial/meeting with students. MS Teams may be more robust for dealing with larger class sizes, there is no time limit on your recordings and the huge benefit is that the recording will be saved into MS Stream and this automatically provides a transcript and closed captions for your recording.

Watch this short 5 minute video tutorial Canvas Conferences to learn how to use the Conference facility within Canvas to record your lecture/tutorial/meeting with students. Canvas guidance says the Conferences tool can support up to 100 students however, some staff have used this for larger classes. The recording lasts 14 days and can be accessed via Canvas Conferences. Transcripts and closed captions are not provided.

Note: An email notification to join the conference and the recording will be made available to only the students who were invited. (as long as the option to invite all course members has been unticked) If you are experiencing any contrary behaviours, please submit a support ticket through Help.

Note: Please bear in mind, due to the amount of people now using these systems across Queens and globally, you may experience some performance issues.

To record audio or video, you must ensure your device and your web browser has access and/or permission to use your webcam/microphone. Look at the guidance for PC and for Mac to check your audio/video permission settings and also check your browser preferences. It is a good idea to test your microphone/webcam in advance of any live/synchronous sessions where possible.

You can select whether to ‘upload’ or ‘record’ media through the Canvas inbuilt tool. If you decide to record, you can also select an audio or video option, however there is no facility to ‘edit’ your recording.

Research suggests the optimal length for a video recording is 6 minutes to capture student engagement. You could consider doing a short 5 minute ‘introductory video’ before your lecture/weekly content. Or perhaps after your lecture/weekly content you could consider doing a short 5 minute ‘recap video’ on the important points for students remember. Or if you want to capture a longer lecture (e.g. 30 mins) you could consider breaking the topics into bite-sized pieces. Click here to read the short ‘optimal video length’ research article.

To register for a Mediasite account and for further information Click here

Watch this short 2 minute video tutorial Recording Video in Canvas to learn how to use the Canvas inbuilt recorder to do a piece to camera from within your Canvas course.

Watch this short 2 minute video tutorial Screencasting using MS Powerpoint to learn how to use powerpoint to record your presentation with audio/video.

You can also use Mediasite to record a presentation or capture your desktop. To register for a Mediasite account and for further information Click here

Watch this short 14 minute video tutorial Keep Teaching With Canvas to firstly learn how to create a Canvas ‘page’ and create ‘links’ to your teaching resources/documents. (e.g. lecture notes, powerpoints, PDFs.) You can also create links to ‘external resources’ such as websites & articles or fully ‘embed’ audio/video content into a Canvas page. This will give students everything they need in one place and you can easily write instructions and give context to all your teaching and learning content.

The default module (Canvas course) storage allowance is 500MB. There is a separate storage allowance of 50MB for User and Group areas in Canvas. Please click on one of the headings below to view important information about each Course, User and Group storage area including what is and isn’t counted against quotas and file upload limits.

• Canvas Course (files area in course) 500 MB
• User (personal ‘My Files’ storage) 50 MB
• Group (student group) 50 MB 

Once you have finished developing content in your ‘Module Development Area’ you can import it into your ‘live Academic Module’ (i.e. available closer to go-live, where students will be enrolled) by completing the following steps:

1. In your live Academic Module, click Settings then click Import Course Content.
2. In the Content Type drop down menu, click Copy a Canvas course.
   
3. Search and click on your Module Development Area. (it will have DEVELOP at the start of the title)  Click on All content then click Import. 
   
   Note: You can click ‘Select specific content’ if you want to select individual items (i.e. a page, a discussion, a quiz etc) and do NOT want to copy over all content.
   
4. The job will be queued under Course copy and should take just a few moments to complete, depending on the amount of course content involved.
5. Navigate to different areas of the live Academic Module to confirm the content has been imported and check for any content that requires re-activation / re-insertion (see below).

IMPORTANT NOTE: Some settings and content are NOT INCLUDED in the course import and will require RE-ACTIVATION/RE-INSERTION in the module. The links below provide more information on the items that are not included and how to use the course copy/import tool.

Canvas Guide: How do I copy content from another Canvas course using the Course Import tool? 
Canvas Guide: What is the Course Import Tool? (includes a list of items that are not included in the course import) 

Modules that are available in Canvas, will not be available in the Queen’s Online Virtual Learning Environment (QOL VLE). Previous QOL VLE modules and materials will still be accessible in the QOL VLE.

Modules for AY 2019/20 which are available in Canvas, will not be accessible in the QOL VLE.

Note: Only the ‘Modules/Learning Home’ of Queen’s Online is being replaced by Canvas. All other areas of Queen’s Online, where you can access other online resources and services will remain the same.

Yes.

Date and time release functions: These are available for ‘Canvas Modules’ (i.e. units of study, for example: weeks, topics, themes) and other features such as assignments, quizzes, discussions and announcements.

The guide below explains how to edit a module’s settings to lock all content and release it on a particular date/time.

Canvas Guide: How do I lock a module?

Student photographs can be accessed in Qsis as per the methods below, depending on the access permissions of the staff member:

Accessing student photos through Academic Self-Service in Qsis

This information can be accessed by Academic staff. A ‘Student Photo Report’ that includes student photos and email addresses can be accessed via the class roster:

To access this report, follow the steps below in Qsis:

a. Click Main Menu then Self-Service

b. Click on Faculty Center then My Schedule

c. To view all components in a class, such as Tutorials (e.g. TT01 etc.) click on ‘view all’ along the top of the table

d. Click on the 3 people icon beside the relevant class/component to access the class roster

e. Click on the yellow button titled ‘Student Photo Report‘

Note: If you require any further support in using the methods above to access Qsis please contact the Qsis Support Team on studentsystemssupport@qub.ac.uk

More information: Qsis Solutions for School administrative staff
More information: Qsis for Academics
More information: Qsis Academic Self-Service Guide
More information: How to email students directly from Qsis

Yes. You can set up peer review assignments for students in Canvas.  Students can then leave written and/or audio feedback for their peers.

How do I use peer review assignments in a course? (Canvas Guide) 

In Canvas, there are two areas for names:

1. Display Name: Displays in areas where you are collaborating. (e.g.) Discussions, Messages and Comments.
2. Full Name: Appears in some areas in Canvas. (e.g.) Gradebook, Chat, EPortfolio and integrated applications such as Office365 or TurnItIn UK.

How to change your Display Name: Submit a ticket via the Help button in Canvas.

How to change your Full Name: If your Full Name has legally changed and needs to be updated in Canvas, you will need to change it in Qsis first. Please contact the QSIS Support Team directly. Once this is complete, it will automatically update in Canvas in 24-48 hours.

If you add questions to a quiz using the ‘New Question Group’ function, then changes in the question bank will be reflected in the quiz.

However, if you add a question using the ‘Find Questions’ function, this creates a copy of the question from the bank in its current form. Any changes to the question in the bank will NOT be reflected in the quiz from that point on.

Canvas Guide: How do I create a quiz with a question group linked to a question bank? 

Canvas has a Quizzes feature that can be used for formative assessment. However, until we pilot the use of Canvas Quizzes for summative assessment, we advise that you continue to use your current method. If using Questionmark, you can provide the following link from your Canvas course: https://ondemand.questionmark.eu/home/610094/saml_login

Canvas Guide:  How do I create a quiz with individual questions? 

Yes, it is possible to change the settings within the Gradebook or Speedgrader to stop feedback being seen by students before you are ready. In Canvas this managed by the Grade Posting Policy. You can select a default grade posting policy for all course assignments, as shown below:

Posting policies can be set to automatic or manual, see below how they will display in Gradebook.

Anonymous Assignments: If you create an anonymous assignment, Canvas will automatically hide grades and feedback for the assignment.

Non-Anonymised Assignments: If the assignment is not anonymous and you have not set the Course to ‘Manual’ Grade Posting Policy, you will need to select ‘Manual’ grade posting policy for the assignment before you begin marking, as shown below:

Canvas Guide: How do I select a grade posting policy for a course in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I select a grade posting policy for an assignment in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I post grades for an assignment in the New Gradebook?
Canvas Guide: How do I hide or post assignment grades in SpeedGrader?

Note: If you have setup an assignment using the Turnitin Integration in Canvas and are using Turnitin Feedback Studio to mark students’ assignments,  you MUST set the ‘Feedback Release Date’ to a date and time that you want your students to receive their grades and feedback. This date will also trigger anonymity to be forced off in Turnitin.

More information: Turnitin within Canvas – Staff Guide

More information: Important Information about Turnitin Assignments within Canvas

Canvas has moved to a new Gradebook. The below information will be updated in due course. For more information please see: The New Canvas Gradebook

‘Comment bank’ functionality is not available in Speedgrader.

However, there are several other options in Speedgrader that can help you provide student feedback in a fast, efficient way. These include:

1. colour coded annotations tools (point annotation, highlight annotation, free text annotation, strikeout annotation, free draw annotation & area annotation)
2. use of rubrics (including none scoring rubrics)
3. grade input box
4. overall/general comment box
5. file attachment of feedback
6. record/upload media (audio or video) feedback
7.  speech-to-text recording of feedback

Canvas Guide: How do I use Speedgrader?

Canvas Guide: How do I leave feedback comments for student submissions in SpeedGrader?

What is Mediasite?
Mediasite is a video streaming platform, which is fully supported by Information Services and integrates directly with Canvas. It allows staff to record, upload and share recorded lectures, seminars, events and other video and audio content.

Benefits of using Mediasite in Canvas:  

1. In Canvas various types of media can be incorporated into your course without taking up ANY of your allotted Canvas storage.
2. All content will be fully backed up by QUB.
3. All video & audio content plays seamlessly in China and other areas due to content being delivery by the University Janet consortium.
   Content can be shared with a large or controlled audience. (like other peers for content control or editing)
4. Full training is available on regular courses throughout the year.

Accessing Mediasite in Canvas: 
Mediasite can be accessed and content embedded into Canvas in the Rich Content Editor. More information is available via the links at the bottom of this page.

Mediasite Training:  
Mediasite training webinars are available here. This training will demonstrate a wide range of Mediasite features and may include:

• Collaborative online space to create and manage your media
• Editing, publishing and sharing your content
• Managing permissions with your class or external parties
• Adding links and chapters, Including polls or quizzes in your video content
• Tagging your content (for search)
• Online editor
• The use of captioning (subtitling your content)
  Note: Mediasite offers this functionality with absolutely no prior knowledge of video editing required.  

  More Information: Mediasite in Canvas Guide 
  More Information: Mediasite at Queen’s
  More information: Resources for remote teaching with Canvas

The default module (Canvas course) storage allowance is 500MB. There is a separate storage allowance of 50MB for User and Group areas in Canvas. Please click on one of the headings below to view important information about each Course, User and Group storage area including what is and isn’t counted against quotas and file upload limits.

• Canvas Course (files area in course) 500 MB
• User (personal ‘My Files’ storage) 50 MB
• Group (student group) 50 MB 

If you require additional storage on your Canvas module, please contact the Digital Learning Solutions team from the ‘Help’ menu in Canvas.

More Information: What is my module storage allowance in Canvas?