To help you stay informed about Canvas, here are highlights of Canvas updates and changes from Q2 2024 (April – June). For a comprehensive list of Canvas updates, see Instructure’s Canvas Releases page.
- Discussions Redesign: New features and a new interface will be coming to Canvas Discussions and Announcements, beginning July 20, 2024. Features include @mentions, quotes replies, anonymous discussions, edit history, and reporting. Prior to July 20, you can turn the Discussions Redesign on in your courses under Settings > Feature Options. Learn more by reading our Discussions Redesign blog post and registering for our Discussions Redesign virtual workshop.
- Find and Replace: Available immediately in the Canvas editor, the new Find and Replace tool allows you to quickly replace certain phrases in your Canvas content. To use the Find and Replace tool, go to Tools > Find and Replace or use the keyboard shortcuts, Ctrl+F (PC) or Cmd-F (Mac).
- Randomize Student Order in SpeedGrader: You can now view your student submissions in SpeedGrader in a random order. In SpeedGrader, click the settings button, then select “Randomize students” or “Randomize students within submission status” from the “Sort student list” dropdown.
- Multi-select Gradebook Filters: Available immediately in Grades, you can now select multiple filters at the same time to better filter your Gradebook. For example, you could use a Status filter to filter only late submissions in a particular Assignment Group. Click Apply Filters to get started with gradebook filters.
- New Options in “Message Students Who”: The “Message Students Who” feature in Gradebook now includes students whose total grade is higher or lower than a target, students who submitted on time assignments (all, graded, and non-graded), and the ability to skip excused students when messaging students who did not submit.
- Grading Schemes Update: The custom Grading Schemes interface has been updated, and Grading Schemes can now be archived.
- New Quizzes Updates: Item Analysis and Moderation have been improved. For more about New Quizzes, read the Q1 product update blog post.
Additionally, here are a few upcoming Canvas changes that will take place in July 2024:
- Announcements enhancements: Beginning July 3, Announcements will include a “Mark all as read” button, the ability to notify students of changes to an announcement, and availability dates.
- Releasing Modules to Students and Sections: Beginning July 20, you will be able to differentiate instruction by releasing modules or pages to individual students or sections of your course. Be on the lookout soon for a blog post on the Teaching Innovation Blog about this feature!
- Canvas Inbox enhancements: Beginning July 20, Canvas Inbox will include a signature option and an autoresponder option.
- Rubrics Redesign: Beginning July 20, Rubrics will include a variety of interface and functionality enhancements, making it easier to identify where rubrics are used and to edit existing rubrics. You will be able to turn these changes on or off in your individual courses under Settings > Feature Options > Rubric Enhancements.
Look for an update about Q3 2024 changes at the end of September. We will keep you updated on all things Canvas!
This update is brought to you by the Teaching Innovation Team, a part of the Division of Online and Strategic Learning. Did you find this update useful? We’d love to hear from you! Fill out our feedback form to share your thoughts about this new quarterly email update and any other ways we can keep you updated on Canvas.