Word Count

[dcwaslus]

This idea has been developed and deployed to Canvas

Can we get a word count tool for our courses?

Well, I don't know about a word count minimum requirement.  I was just thinking put something in like the corner of the text box or in the toolbar where it shows how many words have been written.  Yeah, I've had assignments where I had to have a 300 word minimum, and would have to copy and paste it into Word to figure out if I had enough.  I think this is an easy script to make, but I don't want to assume anything since I have very little programming experience or ability.

Comments from Instructure

For more information, please read through the https://community.canvaslms.com/docs/DOC-14438-canvas-production-release-notes-2018-04-21 .

[scottdennis]

Hi Monte,

Don't worry - the heat is still on!    We are doing a development project now that has to get done before we can turn this one but we still plan to do it.

[wilco001]

Bailin - thanks for sharing this - it will make some of my instructors very happy! I've installed the Word Count Tool extension in both Firefox and Chrome on my Win 7 computer. The tool works beautifully in FF, but not at all in Chrome. Has anyone else tried it in Chrome? (I did let the developer know.)

So, I added the Word Count extension in Chrome. It only gives total word count, but may be okay for my instructors.

Also, now knowing that a word count is available in Turnitin is very useful!

[monte]

I’m using the Word Count tool in Chrome on an iMac (OS X El Capitan), and it is working very well. Whatever I highlight in the essay box, the tool is giving me word and character counts.

[wilco001]

Thanks, Monte - anyone using it with Win 7?

[bxf13b]

I'm with you.  What I found are temporary workarounds.

[erica_daniell]

I would also like to make a plea for imposing a max word or character count.  Sometimes I am looking for a few sentences as an answer, and I'd like to prevent students from writing paragraphs. 

[scottdennis]

Hey Erica,

That sounds like a good but different idea.  I'd encourage you to submit it as such.  You might want to check out How does the voting process work for feature ideas?​

Thanks,

Scott

[hrutherford]

This would be a great idea.  The new assessment process at my institution would be easier if there was a word count available in both discussion forums as well as in the text box feature of assignments.

Thanks,

Heather

[hrutherford]

Thanks for the tip on how to complete this for Apple users, however is there a PC version?

[hrutherford]

I would hope it would be for the instructor to see when grading too! This will make things easier for faculty to complete grading.