Make CANVAS MS Word Compatible

[JamesFinlayson]

Please make CANVAS MS Word compatible. As an instructor, I go through painstaking detail to ensure that my Annoucements and feedback have all the pertinent things underlined, boldfaced, etc., and that I have tables as needed, only to have CANVAS' browser mess up my formatting. After spending 30 minutes on hold to speak to CANVAS tech support at ASU, I was sent here to express my wishes along with the others that CANVAS update its script to keep MS Word cut-and-paste formatting. Uploading the document is not the same.

Thanks,
James Finlayson, JD, Ph.D.
Colonel, USAF

[chriscas · Accepted solution]

Hi @JamesFinlayson,

Welcome to the Instructure Community!  We're glad you found the site, even if it's not under the best circumstances.

Whet you're experiencing is likely that there are some core differences between print formats (like Microsoft Word) and web format.  One of the biggest fundamental differences between the two is that print format has a specific page/paper size (letter, legal, A4, etc) and web content is usually dynamically sized based on the device and browser window the user has.  This may not seem too important to the conversation right now, but I'd say i's one on the reasons web formatting diverges from print.

When you copy/paste from Word, the Canvas rich content editor (RCE for short, the textbox you type or paste everything into) does some conversions of the behind the scenes code to help translate the print format over to the web format in the best way it can without making things over-complex and keeping with the Canvas standards.  The things you're most likely to notice differences in right away would be line spacing, image size/placement, and tables just in general.

Without seeing exactly what things look like on your end, I'm guessing your bold/underlined things are generally coming over as intended, but the tables are likely the source of your frustration.  Am I correct?  If so, could you maybe provide some screenshots of the content in both Word and Canvas so we could see the differences?

I hate to say this, but it's going to be very hard (if not impossible) for content to be copy/pasted from Word to any web platform and have it look identical.  There could perhaps be some improvements so how Canvas handles some things, but it wouldn't be a quick or easy thing to address, and could honestly make things worse overall rather than better.

I wonder if there could be a workflow that would be better for you than working in Word.  Could you perhaps share the reasons for your current workflow?  Are you teaching multiple classes, some that need printed documents and some that need online content, just want to have a personal backup version of your content, etc?

We look forward to hearing back form you soon.  The more info you can give us, the more likely it is that someone will be able to give you some potential workarounds or other guidance.

-Chris

[dbrace · Accepted solution]

Hi @JamesFinlayson.,

I am sorry to hear your frustrations. I will "second" everything that @chriscas said.

I do have one recommendation for you. If you have already created a document in Microsoft Word, instead of copying and pasting from Microsoft Word into Canvas (which can also cause problems when copying and pasting from Microsoft Word into something else, not just Canvas, like Gmail or a Google Doc), have you considered this three-part process:

1. first, save the Microsoft Word document to your computer
2. second, upload the Microsoft Word file into the "Files" area of the course
3. third, use the guidance in the  How do I link to a document from Canvas in the Ric... - Instructure Community - 618244  support article to add the Microsoft Word file into the textbox area for what you are working on

TIP: Use the "View Link > Link Link Options" section to find out how to use the "Preview line" and "Expand preview by Default" options.

Does that help you?

-Doug

[chriscas · Accepted solution]

Hi @JamesFinlayson,

Welcome to the Instructure Community!  We're glad you found the site, even if it's not under the best circumstances.

Whet you're experiencing is likely that there are some core differences between print formats (like Microsoft Word) and web format.  One of the biggest fundamental differences between the two is that print format has a specific page/paper size (letter, legal, A4, etc) and web content is usually dynamically sized based on the device and browser window the user has.  This may not seem too important to the conversation right now, but I'd say i's one on the reasons web formatting diverges from print.

When you copy/paste from Word, the Canvas rich content editor (RCE for short, the textbox you type or paste everything into) does some conversions of the behind the scenes code to help translate the print format over to the web format in the best way it can without making things over-complex and keeping with the Canvas standards.  The things you're most likely to notice differences in right away would be line spacing, image size/placement, and tables just in general.

Without seeing exactly what things look like on your end, I'm guessing your bold/underlined things are generally coming over as intended, but the tables are likely the source of your frustration.  Am I correct?  If so, could you maybe provide some screenshots of the content in both Word and Canvas so we could see the differences?

I hate to say this, but it's going to be very hard (if not impossible) for content to be copy/pasted from Word to any web platform and have it look identical.  There could perhaps be some improvements so how Canvas handles some things, but it wouldn't be a quick or easy thing to address, and could honestly make things worse overall rather than better.

I wonder if there could be a workflow that would be better for you than working in Word.  Could you perhaps share the reasons for your current workflow?  Are you teaching multiple classes, some that need printed documents and some that need online content, just want to have a personal backup version of your content, etc?

We look forward to hearing back form you soon.  The more info you can give us, the more likely it is that someone will be able to give you some potential workarounds or other guidance.

-Chris

[dbrace · Accepted solution]

Hi @JamesFinlayson.,

I am sorry to hear your frustrations. I will "second" everything that @chriscas said.

I do have one recommendation for you. If you have already created a document in Microsoft Word, instead of copying and pasting from Microsoft Word into Canvas (which can also cause problems when copying and pasting from Microsoft Word into something else, not just Canvas, like Gmail or a Google Doc), have you considered this three-part process:

1. first, save the Microsoft Word document to your computer
2. second, upload the Microsoft Word file into the "Files" area of the course
3. third, use the guidance in the  How do I link to a document from Canvas in the Ric... - Instructure Community - 618244  support article to add the Microsoft Word file into the textbox area for what you are working on

TIP: Use the "View Link > Link Link Options" section to find out how to use the "Preview line" and "Expand preview by Default" options.

Does that help you?

-Doug

[Gabriel33]

Have you tried a "word to html" converter, like this one? https://word2cleanhtml.com/

There are others available, this was my first search result, and it seems to work well for tables at least.

The process would be the following:

1. Copy the text in the Word document (if the whole document, control-A to select it all, then control-C)
2. Paste it into a Word to HTML converter like the provided site and select the "convert to clean HTML" button (or similar, if a different site)
3. Copy the result (control A, control C)
4. In the announcement page on Canvas, select View, then HTML Editor
5. Paste the result into the text box in Canvas
6. Post the announcement or, if you want to preview, click the  </> button in the bottom right of the text box, then post it

That seems to hold some formatting better than copying it directly from Word. I wrote it as a lot of steps, but it's pretty fast to do.

--EDIT--

This converter seems to be better at maintaining some formatting: https://wordtohtml.net/

[dbrace]

SOMETHING TO CONSIDER

When using anything like this - whether to convert formatting or code or file type from one to another - be careful and make sure to read the privacy policy and terms of use.

[Gabriel33]

Right, that should be the standard for posting anything online and should go without saying in 2025, but you are right, I should have pointed it out. I don't believe I ever posted an announcement in Canvas that would present a privacy issue.

But if you are really worried about that, there is an option to save the file as HTML inside Word that can be done in a few extra steps than what I listed above, seems to require a bit of HTML knowledge too.

[dbrace]

Should it go without saying? It probably should not need to be said but whenever I hear about free resources that convert from "this" to "that", I always consider what that means and others might not.

-Doug

[SusanNiemeyer]

You are creating SO MUCH EXTRA WORK for yourself by trying to create content in Word and the copying and pasting it into Canvas.

You would be much better off by simply creating content in Canvas using the Rich Content Editor. If you are primarily teaching on Canvas, then learn to embrace Canvas. It will simplify your life. 

[TrishaMeyer1 · Accepted solution]

Hi @JamesFinlayson ,

In addition to the excellent advice from others, I want to point out that many of the text features you mention do not meet accessibility standards. Instructure/Canvas is dedicated to making its content accessible for those who are using screen readers and other adaptive technology. Underlined text should be used only for links, and boldface text should be used only in conjunction with other identifying language, such as "Important: [Text goes here]" because screen readers do not distinguish boldfaced or italicized text.

Tables should be used to present data and never for formatting purposes. 

It is possible that the frustrations you are experiencing are by design.

Here are some articles that may be helpful:

What are the Canvas accessibility standards?

How do I use the Accessibility Checker in the Rich Content Editor?

Canvas Course Accessibility Checklist