@DrTDeHaan ...
Notifications are configured at the user level. As an instructor, you cannot change notification settings of your students. That is something that every user (student, teacher, TA, admin, etc.) needs to set up on his/her own. If you go to your own "Account" >> "Notifications" screen, you'll see a row for "Course Content". If you hover your mouse over "Course Content", a small pop-up help window will show to let you know this particular setting affects Pages, Quizzes, and Assignments. This is where your students can turn notifications on/off, but it's entirely up to each student. These notifications can be set up for their entire Canvas account as a whole...and they can configure these notifications on a per course basis, too.
Hope this helps a bit. Let Community members know if you have any questions.