[ARCHIVED] Making Content Visible

[deepa_pillai]

Hello, I'm new to Canvas and have 2 basic questions.

i) I uploaded content under Files but it is not visible to students. How do I change the settings such that my students can view the content?

ii) Under People, I see my student list. How do I email all of them at once?

Deepa

[stephen_taylor]

Hi Deepa, 

There are multiple ways to make your files visible.  It depends on how much access you want the students to have. 

Firstly if when you look at the course your Files has this symbol next to it  then it means the files area cannot be accessed by students in your course. In this instance you need to add the files to a page.  Create the page, choose files from the right hand box and select the file or files you want to be accessed.  This will put them in the page as clickable links your students can access. 

If they are Word or PDF documents you can also set it to automatically preview the file, saving your students having to download them.

If they do have access to the files then as with everything on canvas you have to ensure they are published, which you do in the files folder by pushing this button (though it may not look like this) 

Then from the options select the green tick.

As for messaging all your students at once, go into Announcements, Press +Announcement, write your message then press save.  That will send a message to all students enrolled.

[deepa_pillai]

Thank you, Stephen for your detailed response

[kmeeusen]

Hello deepa.pillai Welcome to the Canvas Community!

 @stephen_taylor  has given you some good advice, but not perhaps the route I would take.

While you can make your Files area available to your students, this is not the most organized way to present course content to your students. It is better to organize your content under modules in a manner that presents to students what they need and even when they need it. With Modules you can present your learning materials and activities - files, pages, discussions assignments, links to external content and quizzes - as organized units of study. There is a nice blog post explaining this at Share UDL Course Design Tips, Tricks, and Techniques 

But for me, that is putting the cart before the horse, and you will need some basic Canvas skills in order to effectively using Canvas to provide instruction for your students. While it seems to be protected behind a portal, I did find faculty Canvas resources at University of Sterling

Within this Community there are also Introductory resources for new faculty using Canvas. Below are some you might find helpful:

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I would actually recommend https://community.canvaslms.com/community/instcon/instructurecon-2019/blog/2019/08/01/getting-starte... 

Good luck with your grand new adventure, and stop by anytime you need specific help.

Kelley

[deepa_pillai]

Thank you, Kelley. I am going through the links you provided right now. Much appreciated.

Deepa