How do I use Course Pacing?

[#1]

If enabled by your institution, you can use Course Pacing to define a pace in which students must complete course tasks. This allows students with different start dates to have the same time frame in which they must complete course tasks..

Notes:

• The Course Pacing feature preview is in active development. To provide direct feedback about this feature, please post in the Course Pacing user group.
• Course Pacing must be enabled in the course settings.
• If the Course Pacing feature preview is not available in your course, the feature has not been enabled by your institution.
• Course Pacing can be managed on a course level or by individual students.

Open Course Pacing

In Course Navigation, click the Course Pacing link.

Create Course Pacing

To create a course pace, click the Get Started button.

View Course Pacing

To exclude weekends from course pacing, click the Settings icon [1]. Then click the Skip Weekends link [2].

To manage blackout dates, click the Manage Blackout Dates link [3].

Note: The first assignment that is adjusted is based off the course start date. The second assignment that's adjusted is based off the first assignments due date.

Manage Blackout Dates

To add blackout dates enter a title for the event in the Event Title field [1]. Add a start date [2] and end date [3]. To add the blackout dates, click the Add button [4].

To delete blackout dates, click the Delete button [5].

To save your changes, click the Save button [6].

Manage Course Pacing

Course Pacing start and end dates default to the course start date and end dates noted in Course Settings [1].

You can create a course pace to determine when course assignments are due using the assignments' Days field. By default, all course pacing assignments display the course start date.

To modify the number of days an assignment is due based on the course start date, use the Days field [2]. Subsequent assignments display the adjusted due date [3]. You can manage a subsequent assignment's due date using the Days field.

Manage Student Pacing

When a Course Pace has been created you can manage individual students [1], the start date displays the student's enrollment date. The student's end date is based on your determined course pace [2].

The student's assigned due dates display based on their enrollment date and the course pace [3].

Publish Course Pace

To save your changes, click the Create Pace button.

[Sylvia_Ami]

I suggest you include in this guide that there must be at least one student enrolled in the course before you can click the "Course Pacing" link. I had only a Teacher enrolled and when I clicked on Course Pacing, I got an error. Then I enrolled one student and the error went away.

Also, the Course Pacing link is in course navigation and not on the Modules page.

[AllisonHowell]

@Sylvia_Ami You should be able to access the Course Pacing link without students being enrolled. I'm not sure why you received that error, but if it occurs again, please reach out and we'll look into it. 

And thank you for pointing out the navigation change, we are in the process of updating documentation as we redesign the course pacing experience. We'll get that fixed! 

[canvas_admin]

Is there a way to exclude a section and/or a role (i.e., auditor) from the course pacing feature if the modules use a system of requirements & pre-requisites?

[AdamWester]

When setting a course pace, does this process allow for students who are enrolled late to use the same due dates? Or does it start to go off of the student's enrollment date?

[mloder]

Is there a way to set the "start date" of each student based on their first interaction in the course? We bulk enroll students but sometimes they don't enter the course for days... which would make course pacing flexibility less helpful at scale when using course pacing.

[StaceyMurray]

Can you set one course pace and it adjusts based on when the student is enrolled without creating sections in the course?