Upcoming Canvas Changes
2021-01-16
- End-of-Life for Rich Content Editor—Enforcement of New Rich Content Editor
- Deprecation of Multiple Push notification types
For more information, please see Upcoming Canvas Changes.
In this Canvas release (December 19), newly recorded media and uploaded media via the Upload/Record Media link is stored in the Course, Groups, or User Files folder, respectively.
For instructors, the Gradebook View menu includes the View Ungraded as 0 option, which is a visual change only and does not affect any grades. [DELAYED]
Additionally, the Student View button displays in supported individual Canvas pages.
Feature Options
- A new Outcomes feature allows institutions to separate mastery scales and calculation methods for outcomes, replacing per-outcome criterion ratings and calculation methods.
- Updated Features
- Gradebook
- View Ungraded as Zero
- New Rich Content Editor
- Uploaded Media File Placement
- Outcomes
- Account and Course Level Outcome Mastery Scale Management
- Pages
- Individual Page Student View
- Change Log
- Release Resources
Gradebook
View Ungraded as Zero
|
Production Feature Availability |
DELAYED TO 2021-02-20 |
|
Location to Enable Feature |
Gradebook |
|
Feature Functionality Details |
N/A |
|
Affected Canvas Areas |
Gradebook |
|
Affects User Interface |
Yes |
|
Affected User Roles |
Instructors |
|
Related Idea Conversations |
|
|
Feature Video |
Summary
The Gradebook View menu includes the View Ungraded as 0 option, which is a visual change only and does not affect any grades.
Change Benefit
This change aligns parity with the Individual View Gradebook and provides instructors with a visual change in identifying grading calculations for ungraded assignments.
Affected User Roles
Instructors
The View menu includes the View Ungraded as 0 option, which allows instructors to view student grades as if all ungraded assignments were worth zero points. This setting also persists for the Individual View Gradebook.
When the View Ungraded as 0 setting is enabled, Ungraded as 0 displays as a heading in all assignment group columns and the total column to indicate this feature is turned on in the Gradebook. This feature also includes grading periods, if used for a course.
Canvas will not populate zeros in the Gradebook for student submissions within individual assignments. Only the assignment groups and total columns will automatically factor in all scores of zero into the overall percentages for each student.
Enabling this option has no effect outside of the Gradebook; students cannot see any difference in their grade pages. Similarly, TAs or other instructors in the course will not see any change in their view of the Gradebook. Only the user who enables this option in the Gradebook will see the affected grades.
Note: This feature affects the configuration of the Total Column in the Gradebook, which also applies to CSV Exports. The CSV file displays columns for the Current and Final scores: the Current score reflects the total while ignoring unsubmitted assignments (option disabled), and the Final score counts unsubmitted assignments as zero (option enabled).
New Rich Content Editor
Uploaded Media File Placement
|
Affected Canvas Areas |
New Rich Content Editor |
|
Beta/Test Environment Support |
Yes |
|
Affects User Interface |
Yes |
|
Affected User Roles |
All Users |
|
Related Idea Conversations |
|
|
Feature Video |
New Rich Content Editor: Uploaded Media File Placement (2020-12-19 Release) |
Summary
Newly recorded media and uploaded media via the Upload/Record Media link is stored in the Course, Groups, or User Files folder, respectively.
Change Benefit
This change ensures users can reuse media uploaded or recorded as media content. Previously, newly recorded and uploaded media could not be repurposed without being exported as part of course content.
Affected User Roles
All Users
When users record media or upload media using the Upload/Record Media link, the media file is stored in the Files folder for the media location (course or group). For students who record or upload media for an assignment submission, the media file is stored in the User Files folder.
These media files can be downloaded and shared like all other files in the Files page. Media files default to an unpublished state.
Notes:
- This change does not affect institutions who are using their own media tool and have disabled the Upload/Record Media link.
- This change only applies to media files created or uploaded after December 19.
Storage Quotas
This change to newly recorded or uploaded media via the Upload/Record Media link does not affect Canvas file quotas. However, media files uploaded via any other method (such as the Upload Files link) do affect the course, group, or user files quota, respectively. To learn more about available options for using media files in Canvas, view the Canvas Media Comparison PDF.
Outcomes
Account and Course Level Outcome Mastery Scale Management
This feature can be enabled in Canvas via a Customer Success Manager. Please view the content below for additional details.
|
Location to Enable Feature |
Outcomes |
|
Feature Functionality Details |
Contact Customer Success Manager |
|
Affected Canvas Areas |
Outcomes, Rubrics |
|
Beta/Test Environment Support |
Yes |
|
Affects User Interface |
Yes |
|
Affected User Roles |
Admins, Instructors |
|
Feature Video |
Outcomes: Account and Course Level Outcome Mastery Scale (2020-12-19 Release) |
Summary
Mastery scales and calculation methods have been separated for outcomes, replacing per-outcome criterion ratings and calculation methods.
Change Benefit
This change allows mastery scales and calculation methods to be set individually at both the account and course levels. Admins can have more control over the mastery scale and default proficiency calculations used for their account.
For full details about this feature, please see Canvas Release: Account and Course Level Outcome Mastery Scales (2020-12-19).
Pages
Individual Page Student View
|
Affected Canvas Areas |
Home Page, Announcements, Assignments, Discussions, Modules, People, Pages, Files, Syllabus, Outcomes, Quizzes |
|
Beta/Test Environment Support |
Yes |
|
Affects User Interface |
Yes |
|
Affected User Roles |
Instructors |
|
Related Idea Conversation |
|
|
Feature Video |
Summary
The Student View button displays in supported individual Canvas pages.
Change Benefit
This change allows instructors to view individual pages using the Test Student more quickly.
Affected User Roles
Instructors
The Course Settings page includes the Student View button, which allows users with instructor-based roles to view the course with the student perspective. Individual buttons have also been placed at the top of most course pages, which provides quick Student View access for the specific page.
In the Home Page, the Student View button has been removed from the sidebar and replaced with the smaller button at the top of the page, since the Home Page can be viewed by students.
The Student View button does not display in pages that are not visible to students, such as the Course Settings page.
If an instructor clicks the Student View button from a page or other location that has been hidden to students, such as in Course Navigation, the page redirects back to the home page.
User Summaries
Release features are summarized for individual roles in the User Summaries page.
Canvas Chat
Want to chat with other customers about any of these features? Sign up to view and join our Release Notes Collaborative Chats. Chats take place ten days after these notes are published.
New Feature Screencast
View a screencast of all the updates included in this release in the New Feature Screencast page.
tl;dr Podcast & Blogs
Features in this release may be included in product blogs and our product podcast, the Canvas tl;dr. For related links, check the Canvas Release Archive for this release date.
Feature Enhancements
The release notes indicate available functionality for a feature. If you want to see any future development planned for any features included in these notes, please visit the Roadmap. Have an idea you don't see prioritized in the next three months? Visit the Idea Conversations page.
Feature Support
All items listed in the release notes are immediately available for testing in the Canvas beta environment, unless otherwise indicated. If functionality in the beta environment does not match the functionality shown in the release notes, please submit a support case through your institution's preferred method as shown in your Global Navigation Help Menu. The Canvas Support Team can help escalate behaviors that may need to be resolved before they are deployed to the production environment, which takes place on the date of these release notes. When submitting a case, please indicate that the behavior is occurring in the beta environment.
