Extend Student Access
In 2023, Rowan Online began working with multiple committees and departments to propose new processes and procedures to LMS (Canvas) course availability. The new proposals focused on the length of time students retained access to a course in Canvas once the course ends, including cases where students require an extension, such as an incomplete grade. In the past, all On-the-Ground Canvas courses had an automatic extension of ninety-days (90) after the course end date. Faculty raised concerns regarding the default access period of 90 days, stating that the extended access lends to academic fraud in some cases and/or undesired sharing of course content into the next term. In addition, it has been noted that the default 90-day access period is inadequate in some cases where students need on-going access to the course.
As of Thursday, August 15, 2024, the default period, and automatic extension is now fourteen (14) days after the course end date as it appears on the official schedule in Banner. In addition, faculty teaching On-the-Ground Canvas courses now have a self-service Extend Student Access feature. Faculty are now able to extend their courses at their discretion up to the limits currently set forth by the Registrar’s Office for incomplete grades (e.g., spring term courses can be extended through to the end of Fall term). Beyond the standard incomplete grade limits, faculty can further extend their courses by reporting their extension to the Registrar and contacting Rowan Online support.
For more information and instructions on using this feature, please visit the Rowan Online Portal and select My Courses to create course shells, request cross-lists, and extend student access. Please note this feature is also available for extending student access for Spring 2024 courses.
UDOIT
UDOIT is a course level accessibility checker that scans Canvas course content, identifies possible accessibility issues, and guides content creators on repairing issues using inclusive design principles.
UDOIT is available to Rowan faculty who teach in-person. To enable use of this tool in a Fall 2024 on-the-ground course, submit a request in the Rowan Support Portal. Enroll in the Canvas UDOIT User Guide for additional information.
Stay tuned as additional resources will be added and announced throughout Fall 2024
Assign-to Functionality Change
In July 2024, Canvas released the updated Assign-to functionality that affects modules, assignments, quizzes, and discussions. This newly updated functionality was first released in July 2024 and will continue to update with improvements. Updates to this functionality include slide-out tray from an object’s edit menu in addition to appearing at the bottom of an assessment page. For more information on this functionality and updates, review the Canvas: Assign-to New Look knowledge base article.
Discussions & Announcements update
The new interface updates for Canvas’s Discussions and Announcements were updated in May of this year. These updates and improvements do not involve any migration of content as updates and newly added features were made to the user interface. Visit the Discussions & Announcements Redesign document for a more detailed view of the redesign
New Quizzes
Canvas continues to make updates and improvements to the New Quizzes tool. However, no updated timeline has been provided at this time for enforcement of the tool or deprecation of Classic Quizzes. Faculty may submit a request to Rowan Online to enable use of New Quizzes in their courses. Support for the tool is being provided although use of the tool is not required.