When copying content from a previous course is there a better way to search for the previous course?

[LeoSpizzirri]

I am copying old course content into a new course. Canvas gives me two options to find the old course.

One is a list of all my old course in a dropdown. These are organized by quarter, but, conveniently, the quarters are in no particular order. It is absurd.

The second option is to search for a course. I copied and pasted the name of the old course from Canvas itself and somehow the named course was not the first result (see image). I scrolled for a while and it did not show up. I tried variations and could never find the course I wanted. 

My search term is at the bottom.

Both of these problems seem absurd and I have a hard time believing this could be implemented so poorly. Am I doing something wrong? Is there a better way?

[dbrace · Accepted solution]

Hi @LeoSpizzirri,

The options that are available to teachers for searching, depends on how your courses are named and their code.

As an example, at my school we use the following:

• Name: Research and Composition (18760-202510)
  • the "18760" is the course registration number (CRN)
  • the "202510" is the semester/term code (this stands for "Spring 2025")
  • this name does not have to be unique but in best practice it probably be
• SIS Code: ENG-105-06-18760-202510
  • "ENG" is the department
  • "105" is the course number
  • "06" is the section number
  • "18760" is the CRN
  • "202510" is the semester/term
  • the SIS code must be unique

This means that if someone is looking for a course that they know is from 2024, they can type in "2024" and see all of those courses.  It also means that if someone is looking for a course that is ENG-105, they can type in "ENG-105" and see all of them and use the semester/term that appears below to select (most likely) the most recent version.

My recommendation would be to go into the "Settings" area of a course and see its name and code. You would then be able to use what you see there as an example for how you can try to find it (or other courses like it, either by name, code or term) when trying to do an import.

Based on the conventions at your school, your Canvas team might have a better recommendation for how to search.

-Doug

[dbrace · Accepted solution]

Hi @LeoSpizzirri,

The options that are available to teachers for searching, depends on how your courses are named and their code.

As an example, at my school we use the following:

• Name: Research and Composition (18760-202510)
  • the "18760" is the course registration number (CRN)
  • the "202510" is the semester/term code (this stands for "Spring 2025")
  • this name does not have to be unique but in best practice it probably be
• SIS Code: ENG-105-06-18760-202510
  • "ENG" is the department
  • "105" is the course number
  • "06" is the section number
  • "18760" is the CRN
  • "202510" is the semester/term
  • the SIS code must be unique

This means that if someone is looking for a course that they know is from 2024, they can type in "2024" and see all of those courses.  It also means that if someone is looking for a course that is ENG-105, they can type in "ENG-105" and see all of them and use the semester/term that appears below to select (most likely) the most recent version.

My recommendation would be to go into the "Settings" area of a course and see its name and code. You would then be able to use what you see there as an example for how you can try to find it (or other courses like it, either by name, code or term) when trying to do an import.

Based on the conventions at your school, your Canvas team might have a better recommendation for how to search.

-Doug

[Jeff_F · Accepted solution]

Hello @LeoSpizzirri - when I do this I use the course id number. When doing so the course name/title is recognized after a second or so. Click it to select it. Voila!

All set?

Course ID number