In Permissions, Separate "Manage (create/edit /delete) groups" into 3 permissions

[cms_hickss]

This idea has been developed and deployed to Canvas

For more information, please read through the  Canvas Release Notes (2021-09-18). 

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Please change each the "Manage (create / edit / delete) groups" from a single setting to three separate settings.

Current:

Manage (create / edit / delete) groups

Should become:

• Create groups
• Edit groups
• Delete groups

One reason for this request:

This would allow you to set TAs (or other roles) to having only the permissions needed for that role instead of none of them or all of them. For example, the ability to edit groups but not add and delete groups.

[buellj]

A huge thank you cms_hickss​ for adding all of these as separate requests.

[admin_brake]

In some of our large enrollment courses, groups are managed by different roles. Having these as separate permissions enables a better level of security and efficiency.

[elisabeth_green]

Especially important in classes that allow students to form their own groups but need some instructor management...

[allison]

Thanks for sharing this idea. I think it's something definitely worth considering, though we would need to look closely at how many users would actually benefit from this change relative to other permissions change requests. This request may fall below some of the other requests that could have a wider impact. While I'm doing some digging on my side related to usage (groups, TAs, large courses), can you share with me all the juicy details about exactly how this change would benefit your workflow?

Here are some prompts to get you started:

- What types of large courses? Survey courses?

- How often do TAs need to add students to groups when groups are used this way?

- What kinds of improved security would result from this change?

- What kinds of improved efficiency would result from this change?

- Of the three unbundled permissions, which is most important for the TA to have?

Thanks for your continued interest in improving Canvas.

[cms_hickss]

I am starting o sound like a broken record, but again, because DELETE is bundled into the permission, this permission is turned off for TAs. I should note, that in our previous LMS our TAs had more access than they do now.

Since TAs cannot create groups, they don't use this function. Since EDIT is lumped in there TAs cannot EDIT a group.

We have teachers who would like to give the EDIT and CREATE options to their TAs (especially in large classes) but cannot as they do not want the TA to be able to DELETE.

[admin_brake]

I agree - it the DELETE permissions that are the show-stopper in a bundle of permissions.

Melody Brake - Colorado State University

[kona]

Yep, it's the delete issue that's the problem for us as well!

[BROEKERC]

Rationale: this functionality is needed to allow TAs to edit groups but not delete.  The problem is the bundling of permissions. We use groups in many courses such as Nursing, English and Business and adding/editing groups happens each semester.  The efficiency that would result in this change is that it would make it easier for TAs and faculty in team taught courses to make the updates. 

RE: Of the three unbundled permissions, which is most important for the TA to have? DELETE needs to be unbundled. 

[cdoherty]

Rationale for Stanford: To prevent accidental deletions.

[allison]

Thanks, everyone for your comments. This is an idea I will archive for now. But the big takeaway here is that the DELETE permission should generally exist apart from the CREATE and EDIT permissions. Lesson learned and we'll see how we might apply that principle going forward.