[Discussions] Multiple Due Dates (checkpoints) for Discussions

[chriswhite]

This idea has been developed and is On Canvas Beta •  How do I access the Canvas beta environment?

For more information, please read through the Canvas Release Notes (2025-01-18) 

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With the way that many schools set up forum discussions and require "check-ins" to the forum throughout the week, it would be great if we could include multiple due dates in the discussion activities. For instance, I have classes that require everyone respond to the prompt by Thursday night and respond to at least 2 peers by the following Sunday. Being able to remind students that they have responses due, especially if we could scatter responses over multiple days, would likely increase participation.

[htandeta520]

Yes!

[boneill2]

Brilliant -- it's frustrating having to create two separate assignments for one discussion. 

[jlambert3]

Hi Jordan, it is 2018 and this idea was introduced in 2015. Instructors are still posting about this matter. Do you know if and when this idea will be addressed. Or if it has already, please help me figure out how to set multiple due dates for my discussion board without it being too confusing for my students. Thank you.

[smoeller]

I have several instructors who are using Moodle Workshop and they are hesitant to switch to Canvas because this feature is missing. Currently, for peer review assignments, we use different due dates for uploading the assignment (for instructor grading) and for peer review. Only the assignment due dates appear in student calendars, not the peer review due date. Please add the feature (better fix this). 

[brent_scholar]

So whatever happened to this suggestion from 2015?

[aadderley]

I was just getting ready to post the same thing!!! It is OVER 3 years, and we are still requesting it!!! 

[Jeff_F]

An enterprising person with our institution has suggested use of a to-do task as a prompt for students to post the initial reply by day x of the week.    Does this approach jive/ blend with the intended use of to-do's and will it course copy from a template?  Can a course designer set this up for the instructors later use which will be a copy of the course?

Or can only students create a to-do??  erinhallmark‌, can you please clarify.  On this page it seems to say only students can create to-dos.    https://community.canvaslms.com/message/104815-to-do-tab-on-calendar-item   (see last comment)

[boles]

Hi Jeff -

The new "to-do " calendar option doesn't resolve the issue. It's a private prompt; for yourself as instructor, or for the student individually. The instructor's prompt doesn't appear on the course calendar for students, and vice versa.

The work-arounds to the problem of not having the option of multiple due dates in discussions includes (1) creating a calendar event, but that doesn't work well because it doesn't show as a due-date in a module. (2) One can create a non-graded assignment in the module, which will also appear by default in the Calendar, with the title, "First Post Due Date for X Discussion." But that confuses students because they also see a different due date for the Discussion itself, presumably a few days after the first post due date, in the module and Calendar. To work around that work around, one could label the actual Discussion "Second Post Due Date for X Discussion" but that also confuses students because they have to go to that item, labled Second Post, to make the first post. I suppose one could label the actual Discussion, "Second Post Due Date for X Discussion, But Make First Post Here Too." Still confusing, especially to freshmen.

In short, there is no happy work around and Canvas simply needs to create the option of multiple due dates for Discussions, or at least Team Discussions, if not also for multi-part Assignments.

- Elson

Elson Boles

Professor, Department of Sociology

Saginaw Valley State University

Gilbertson Hall N266

University Center, 48710

[bdalton_sales]

Elson

I've got a couple of questions which I'd like to ask how you see this being implemented.  I've seen a few people who seem to think that this would be a trivial thing however my feeling is this would be more complex than it appears. I'm genuinely interested in knowing peoples opinion on these things.

How would you propose to present the multiple due dates in the Calendar if using multiple assignments is already confusing for students?  How would it present in the new ToDo list for students? 

How would you propose late penalties operate with multiple due dates? or shouldn't they?

How would available from and until dates operate with multiple due dates?  would they only apply once? 

How would late and missing labels be applied appropriately in the grade book, opportunity center etc. ?

How is this presented to the student on the Assignment page?  When they are submitting can they select the checkpoint they are submitting to or can they only submit to the current checkpoint even if a previous one hasn't be submitted?  Can they submit to future ones? 

How is each submission presented to the instructor in SpeedGrader? as a single submission or individually as the contribution from each checkpoint?  This would be particularly important for discussions where each checkpoint could be numerous posts, but also affects other assignment types.

There are a lot of other touch points I probably haven't thought of yet either.  Can anyone see where else in the UI might be affected?

[Jeff_F]

Thanks for the smile re: work around the work around.

For the time being I am thinking this may well remain a classroom management item where we prompt students to set reminders on their calendar.  Now only if the To Do entry in the calendar had a weekly repeat capability.  Then it would be a one step process to set that reminder.    You know what they say... if you give a mouse a cookie...