[ARCHIVED] [ARCHIVED] Incorrect Behavior when Posting to Group Discussions via App

[awarmar]

Has anyone seen odd behavior when students are using the Canvas app to post in group discussions? I have an instructor who has recently learned that twice he has had students  (three in one instance and one in the other) who were somehow able to post to the "main" discussion area on two different group discussions instead of the respective group areas. Clearly, this causes all sorts of issues with the group conversation itself and with Speedgrader. It doesn't seem to always happen when students use the app to post to the board; but when it does happen, the students were always using the app. The instructor didn't know if the students were using iOS or Android. Any insight or adivce would be appriaciated! 

[KristinL]

Hi Amanda - There was an update to Canvas Student for iOS released over the weekend in hopes of fixing issues like this. Please encourage the student to update and see if that changes what they experience.

[925024864]

Yes... I just opened escalated case #03061688 for a Canvas for Android user who is experiencing this very issue, whereas when 'Acting as User' on a PC with current Chrome, it works as designed.

[awarmar]

Awesome--thanks, Kristin and Earl! I'll pass this along and encourage them to update. 

[rseilham]

 @awarmar ‌, 

Any luck with the updates? There have been 3 iOS app updates since April 24th. Another post in the community reports that a recent update fixed this issue.  

[awarmar]

I've not heard back on it from the Instructor, so I'm assuming no news is good news. Thanks for following up! 

[rseilham]

925024864‌, 

Any updates on your ticket? I know the Android app hasn't been updated since late March, but the issue might not require a new app update. 

[925024864]

The case(s) is/are on 'Hold' with escalated Canvas Support.     :<(

[925024864]

It is case #03061688 in 'On Hold Cases' since April 24th, at L1 with agent Alan Warenski. If anyone has any similar cases (a 'group discussion' submission/post is NOT posting to the 'group' page, but rather ONLY the main/base folder for the discussion), please reference 'On Hold' L1 case #03061688, so that we all get notified once this has been resolved. I hope this helps!

[rseilham]

Thanks, this is helpful. We have a had a few cases at our school as well. There is definitely something funny going on with group discussions. I suggest you download each and every "bug" fix app update and test, test, test.  

[rseilham]

We were told that this is a known issue with no ETA of a fix, but also heard that has possibly been fixed in the latest student app release. I still need to test this out, but if you have seen a fix, please share. Thanks. 

[925024864]

Thanks Ryan Seilhamer, the case(s) is/are still 'On Hold' in 'support escalations' and I was unaware of any possible fix in the student app. I will try to actively recruit a user to test this out and I'll post the results here. Thanks again!

[rseilham]

Hi 925024864‌, 

I did some investigating and found out this is still an issue, but only if a student accesses a group discussion through an assignment (or To do). If they go to the discussion through the discussion section, it will post to the correct student group.

If the student goes through assignments (or To Do), they have to tap on the submission tab, then the "Go to Discussion" link. This link apparently is taking students to the general discussion and not their specific student group. This is why teachers don't see student’s submissions because it's not inside their group.

I've attached a video below: 

This video is currently being processed. Please try again in a few minutes.

[925024864]

Thanks Ryan Seilhamer, this is exactly the behavior that has been reported, and the fix that is pending and 'On Hold'.  Thanks for verifying the current status. At least now we know exactly what to tell our users. So, now we wait...   ;>)

[rseilham]

925024864‌, 

I shared the previous information with an engineer on the iOS team and since they now know the root of the problem, they will file a bug ticket to get this fixed. Still no ETA, but hopefully soon, since historically when they identify the issue it's fixed pretty fast. As someone who supports other mobile apps, these support issues get tricky because of all the different devices. I'll make sure to add any updates here. 

[rseilham]

925024864‌, 

Version 6.2.7 of the Canvas Student app has a bunch of bug fixes and it appears this is one of them. With that, when I tested this inside our app, it "kind of" works and I'm trying to figure out if this is an edge case or a wider issue. 

Check out the video below. When I tap on the assignment and then the discussion, I am originally brought to the wrong discussion board, but if I pull to refresh, it redirects me to the correct place? 

This video is currently being processed. Please try again in a few minutes.

[rseilham]

Alright, false start. We figured out there was still an issue and it only works "sometimes." I tested a beta version of the app yesterday that fixed this when the student navigated to the discussion through an assignment, but it was still show the same issues if it was accessed through the To-do list. Engineers are working hard to solve this issue. Stay tuned...

[rseilham · Accepted solution]

This issue has been fixed in the 6.2.9 release of the Canvas Student app on June 2nd. The app no longer opens the main discussion board and takes the user to the group discussion board through assignments and to-dos. 

[lach0083]

We are still experiencing issues with this as of October 15

[fbidwell]

I am working with the same instructor as on Amanda's original post. A student is having the same problem with the Student app for Android (v 6.3.1).  Any word if this has been fixed in the most current version, or is slated to be fixed soon?

[rseilham]

Let me dig a little deeper with this and get back to you. Thanks. 

[rseilham]

 @fbidwell ‌, 

I was able to reproduce this issue on my device where the discussion goes to the main board through the To Do list and the assignment section in the class. The only way I can post to the actual group discussion board is to go to it through the group's section in the app. I highly suggest you report this issue to Canvas support or your local tech support. I'll be doing the same and update this post if I find anything out. Thanks. 

[fbidwell]

Ryan,

  Thanks for checking into this! I reported this to Canvas last week, but since the student was on 6.3.1 and the most recent update is 6.3.4, support wanted the student to update and try again. Your input would be most helpful in getting this bug resolved! 

[rseilham]

The mobile team put in a ticket to research this, so I'll let you know when I know anything else. Hopefully soon! 

[lach0083]

I am also experiencing this problem in one of my group discussions. One student was able to enter the group discussion and leave a general reply outside of a group. I haven't gotten a hold of the student to find out how they were accessing canvas when they posted (it was 10/7 and it is now 10/16 so who know if theyd remember), but from reading everything here it seems that we might be experiencing the same issue. I hope this is resolved soon as it is causing disruption with the group discussion flow and grading.

[rseilham]

 @lach0083 ‌ - Android or iOS? Thanks! 

[rseilham]

Hi  @lach0083 ‌, 

Any updates on this issue with groups discussions? Thanks! 

[mckanryj]

I am also still experiencing this problem. Students are being redirected to the main discussion area in the mobile app instead of their group area. There does not seem to be a way for the students to navigate into the group area to post. And often they don't realize they are not posting in their group area.

It also seems to be very slow to show the posts students have made. As many of our students use their mobile devices this is quite problematic. We strongly encourage use of groups in discussions so they do not get to unwieldy. So there any news on a fix coming for this? 

Jen McKanry

Instructional Designer

University of Missouri - St. Louis

[Nancy_Webb_CCSF]

We have evidence of this still happening in the iOS app in 2022, student appears to have used the to-do list to get to the main discussion area instead of being sent to her group's area.  Will report this issue.

[lesley_cryderma]

We just had a report of this happening and I was able to confirm that the student was using the Canvas app for Android.