Disable file attachments in comments for assignment submissions

[MeredithWismer]

It's a bit of sabotage to allow students to put attachments in the comments--it means my attempts to limit type or number of submissions is thwarted. Since students can still post comments after the assignment deadline has passed some try to get away with late work by doing this. Or use this to try and skirt plagiarism detection.  This all makes my life more difficult and a structural solution would save me (and students) a lot of wasted time.

[Stef_retired]

Thanks for sharing this idea, @MeredithWismer . As it moves forward for broader discussion, you might want to add your thoughts to a different idea associated with one of the pain points mentioned in your idea description:  Disable Student Comments on Closed Assignment.

[JessicaShumake]

I'm in complete agreement with @MeredithWismer. This is a major pain point for me too! 

What's equally frustrating is when students use the gradebook to attach late assignment files after a published deadline is passed.

[JessicaShumake]

Several of my students are routinely going into the 'grade' item for an assignment and then clicking on "add a comment," which enables them to upload assignment files after a published deadline has closed in Canvas.

The loophole means that when I assign a zero for a missing assignment, students will then tell me during class that they accidentally uploaded the work as a comment rather than using the required assignment submission area. The student's assignment files are technically there—that is visible to me and the student—in Canvas as a comment.

What this means, in practice, is that there is no technical way for me to lock an assignment once a submission deadline has passed. I would like to prevent the loophole of students uploading assignments, as comments, after deadlines because it is not fair that some students are exploiting the comment feature by routinely uploading files after deadlines and then feigning that it was an accident.

In my humble opinion, it should not be technically possible for students to upload assignment files as comments in the gradebook, after a deadline.

I understand that I can refuse to accept work submitted as a comment; however, I do not want to engage in heated debates about grades or to write syllabus policies that forbid exploiting this Canvas loophole. There has to be a technical solution to this human problem: disable the upload of files as comments in the gradebook after a submission deadline has passed.

[Gregory_Putman]

I absolutely agree and am struggling with students taking advantage of this. 

I'm finding this same feature/problem being discussed in multiple places and as multiple idea suggestions.  I'm trying to find them all and up vote them all hoping that at least one will get enough votes to be taken seriously...  Note that it appears this topic of conversation has been going on since at least 2016 if not earlier in one section of this community or another. 

Many similar issues with basic function seem to go on for years with no resolution - like not being able to make a bonus question in quizzes, the grade book not doing an actual average grade calculation, no option for moderating discussions...  does anyone know if there is a place we can post our comments that circumvents the voting system so we can "accidentally" sneak them to designers/programmers?

[ProductPanda]

Comments from Instructure

As part of the new Ideas & Themes process, all ideas in Idea Conversations were reviewed by the Product Team. Any Idea that was associated with an identified theme was moved to the new Idea & Themes space. Any Idea that was not part of the move is being marked as Archived. This will preserve the history of the conversations while also letting Community members know that Instructure will not explore the request at this time.