Managing Your Canvas Site

Need to log in to Canvas? Follow this link to the Canvas log in portal.

This website and resources are intended for Portland State instructors. For PSU students looking for help with Canvas and general tech support, please contact the OIT Helpdesk.
Additional Canvas resources for PSU students can be found in OIT’s Canvas Resources for Students.

Canvas has many features and tools for teaching a course. But you also need these “under the hood” functions for managing your course site.

Personal Settings

Before getting started in Canvas, be sure to update your personal settings. It’s an important step to make sure you stay connected with your classes. You’ll need to do this only once, unless your preferences change.

The following list outlines the main settings you should consider reviewing and are linked to detailed guides:

Course Import Tool

Copy a course when you want to use or repurpose previously created content — including course settings, syllabus, assignments, modules, files, pages, discussions, quizzes, and question banks. You can also copy or adjust events and due dates. Not all content can be copied as part of a course. (Learn about “Import Limitations.”) Canvas lets you copy all content from one course site to another or select specific content.

Course shells for each new term will be available in the preceding term. For example, winter course shells will be available midway through the preceding fall term. If you need a place to work on your course sooner or just want a sandbox where you can test new ideas, create a new Canvas course shell from your Canvas Dashboard.

Student View

It’s always a good idea to check your course from the student’s perspective. This helps you identify what elements a student can access and how the course navigation menu displays for them.

To enter Student View, select “Settings” in the course navigation menu. Next, select “Student View” from among the settings area’s options.

Screen detail of Settings in Canvas, with added arrow pointing to the link that launches Student View.

Student View has a highlighted frame or border.

You can navigate the course as a student, with some slight exceptions:

Groups: As an instructor in Student View, all group information will be available to you, while students will only have access to their own group.
Inbox: The Test Student doesn’t have a Canvas Inbox, so you won’t be able to test communications.
Other tools: Some other tools (e.g., Panopto, VoiceThread, etc.) may not function as expected.

To exit Student View, select the “Leave Student View” button.

Screen detail from Student View in Canvas, with added arrow pointing to the "Leave Student View" button.

Canvas Link Validator

You can check all external links throughout your course with the course link validator. It finds invalid or unresponsive external links in both published and unpublished content. However, some links it flags as unresponsive (to Canvas servers) will still work for students.

Additional Course Settings

These settings are available only to the course instructor:

Set a course image: This allows you to change the dashboard image associated with your course.
Enable a grading scheme: This gives students a letter grade for assignments and the overall course.
Allow students to attach files to discussions: This allows students to include files and images on discussion boards.
View course analytics/statistics: This offers insight into student engagement in your course.
Publish your course: This makes your course visible to students. You must “publish” your course for students to have access.
- Important note: Each item in your course needs to be published for students to access it. This includes all pages and links in your modules as well as assignments, quizzes, and discussions.
Display announcements on the course home page: This allows you to show announcements on your course home page, so students notice them upon entering. You control how many announcements to display.

Adapted from “Managing Your Canvas Site” in Start Here 102: Best Practices in Online instruction, licensed CC BY 4.0 by Grace Seo, University of Missouri.

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Course Management Timeline

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PSU is unique in part because of its demographics. PSU was founded to serve veterans from WWII. These insights might help you support students and encourage them to persist in their studies.

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PSU is unique in part because of its demographics. PSU was founded to serve veterans from WWII. These insights might help you support students and encourage them to persist in their studies.

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Your department will process your teaching contract. The first date of your teaching contract is usually two weeks before the term begins.
You’ll need access to a live Canvas shell. Typically, you’ll be enrolled in your live shell during week seven of the previous term. Contact the OAI Support Desk if you are not enrolled by week eight.
Verify that your department will assign you a teaching assistant (TA), if applicable.
You may receive an email from the Disability Resource Center (DRC) that one or more of your students has an accommodation. Review the email carefully to understand and implement each accommodation.
Even though your course is online, place a copy of your textbook on course reserve at the library, for students on campus — if possible.
Most departments require at least one office hour appointment per week during the term. Schedule these in Canvas via Zoom and communicate them with an announcement, in your syllabus, or, if appropriate, on the Canvas course homepage. Instructors report that students don’t take advantage of online office hours. Low attendance is common. Consider these recommendations.

Students report that a challenge to their success is the instructor’s lack of familiarity with the required course technology. You can get up to speed by enrolling in this Canvas course: Growing with Canvas. Next, think about your technology needs and contact the library if you need to borrow any tech items to teach your course.
Have you taught in Canvas at PSU before? You can Import course materials from an existing Canvas course shell.
Ensure that your course materials are appropriate for the modality. Students want course materials designed for the modality. If you have publisher integrations or specialist technology, consider how to integrate them within your Canvas course shell.
It’s helpful to experience your course as students do. Try the Student View feature within Canvas.
If your course uses videos, make sure they have captions. This helps students follow along, take notes, and reinforce concepts — and it’s also necessary for Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodation.
Within Canvas, you can lock modules — but do it carefully and with intention. Students often report such gatekeeping issues as a barrier to their learning.
When you finish setting up your Canvas course, publish it.

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PSU is unique in part because of its demographics. PSU was founded to serve veterans from WWII. These insights might help you support students and encourage them to persist in their studies.

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You can

Start and stop recording.
Share screen from classroom computer display, doc cam or HDMI connection.
Mute/unmute Zoom participants.
Share computer audio to Zoom participants through screen sharing options.
Engage in limited chat with Zoom participants.

You cannot

Show chat screen and gallery view simultaneously.
Pause recording.
Launch Zoom polls.
Launch or manage breakout rooms.
Display remote participants in classroom.

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Featured link

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