A Canvas production update will occur on Saturday, March 20, 2021. Check out the full release notes. Production updates occur on third Saturday of each month, and the next planned update is Saturday, April 17, 2021. Updates in the current release include:
Student Submissions Using Webcam
For file upload assignment types, students can use their webcam to submit assignments similar to the Canvas Student app. The File Upload interface now includes two buttons – one to upload a file from the device and one to use the webcam.
The first time students use the feature, they will need to give permission to Canvas to access their computer webcam. Instructors can view uploaded images submitted via a student’s webcam as they see other file uploads in SpeedGrader and anywhere that submissions are available.
If needed, share the Assignments: Webcam Submissions video with your students.
Speedgrader Submission Reassignments
For online assignments with a due date, instructors can now view a Reassign button in SpeedGrader to reassign an assignment to an individual student to ask for a redo the submission. The instructor must first provide feedback regarding the assignment to enable the button. Please note:
- The Reassign Assignment button is not available for External Tools (LTI), on paper, and no submission assignments.
- The Reassign Assignment button is only available for assignments with due dates.
- If an instructor returns to SpeedGrader after navigating away from the page, the Reassign Assignment button shows that the assignment has been reassigned.
- If the assignment’s settings do not allow students to make an additional attempt, the Reassign Assignment shows that the assignment is not able to be reassigned.
The reassignment does not change the original due date for the student but does place the assignment back onto List View Dashboard with the instructor’s feedback.
Rich Content Editor File Preview Enhancements
Files linked in the Rich Content Editor can be configured to preview in an overlay or inline instead of the previous manner of opening in a new browser tab. When linking to a file in the rich content editor, users can indicate a preview type:
- Preview in overlay displays the existing file preview functionality, but the file preview opens and overlays the entire page.
- Preview inline loads the displays the preview directly in the window once the file is clicked. If the option to expand the preview by default is also selected as an option, the file is automatically expanded in the page and the user does not need to click the file to view it. Instead, the user can close the preview by clicking the Minimize Preview link that displays along with the image.
For more information about this file preview feature, please watch the Rich Content Editor: File Preview Enhancements video.
Changes in Course Availability Dates in Settings
The term defined for your Canvas@UD course site manages how students view and participate in your course. By default, the participation start date is two weeks before the official start of the semester and the end date is two weeks after the official end of the semester. If you need to override the dates provided by the term, you must override course availability dates and extend participation in your course settings. Until now, that option in your course settings may have caused some confusion. In the new interface, Canvas has replaced the Starts/Ends date and participation option box with a Participation section that displays a drop-down menu that defaults to Term dates. If you need to override the term dates to start student participation in your course early or to extend the participation in your course for make-up work, change the Participation option to Course and add the new start and end dates.
For more information, browse the Canvas Release Notes to find updated features or bug fixes that apply to you based on your Canvas usage. If you have any questions about the changes or about how to use Canvas effectively, IT-Academic Technology Services staff is always available at the IT-ATS Welcome Bar or you can send your questions to canvas-info@udel.edu.
