deleting next and previous buttons between modules

[lmcmullen]

I teach 2nd grade and don't want my students moving to the next module when they finish one. I can't unpublish the 2nd module either so is there another option to deleting the next button?

[James · Accepted solution]

@lmcmullen 

There is no option for removing the previous and next buttons that an instructor can implement on their own. The local Canvas administrator can modify the global JavaScript to remove this, but then it applies to everyone, not just your classes. There are ways around that, but it is not really a scalable solution and would need updated each semester. That JavaScript would need to look at the tooltip to see if it contained "Next Module:" although that approach is language-centric and may not work for someone using Canvas in a different language. It appears that the presence of a <br> element within the title may be sufficient and wouldn't depend on the language.

You didn't say why you couldn't unpublish the module, so I don't know if it's possible for you to add a requirement to the module that would not make it available until a certain date. See this lesson from the Canvas Instructor Guide for additional information: How do I add prerequisites to a module?

[chemmerly]

After reading the solution, I can only assume this applies to pages within a module as well. I have created a module branching activity, and I would prefer for students to only see the links to navigate through the activity; the "previous" and "next" buttons create some confusion for them as to whether they should click a link or click the "next" button.  It seems there's no way to get rid of these buttons within the pages of a module without a Canvas admin doing it globally for the entire group. Is that correct?

[James]

If you are using mastery paths to control what they see, then it should honor what next and previous does for them.

An instructor can do nothing on their own.

An administrator can implement the change at the sub-account level, so it doesn't have to be global for the entire institution. For example, I put my math classes into a sub-account so that I can do things with my classes that other courses don't need.

An administrator can also use a class on the body element to do some customization at the course (as opposed to sub-account) level. For example, there is a class on the body element that looks like context-course_12345. The 12345 is the course ID from the URL.

Then you could use CSS like this to remove the entire navigation portion from the bottom.

body.context-course_12345 #module_navigation_target { display : none; }

That is not scalable as you will need to do this for each course. You can use commas to add more than one selector, but given the length of the selector vs the length of the code, it may be easier to read if you repeat the entire thing for each course.

A better solution is to educate your students as to the best way to navigate your course. Removing the next and previous is going to be problematic for those students who are used to using it for their other courses. Of course, those are the students who are not likely to get the message about the best way to navigate the course. As much as some things annoy me, I've found it's better to try to work within the Canvas UI unless you're going to change it for everyone. Consistency is good for the students. I imagine that's part of why Canvas makes it so hard for instructors to change things and requires administrators to do it. Another reason might be that it would be too easy for a well-meaning but clueless instructor to do something that really messes things up.

[chemmerly]

Thank you! I appreciate your detailed reply. It was helpful.

[sueharlan]

Hi,

I don't know if you have found a work-around by this time, but I place a "end of module" page as the last page in each module. For younger students you could place a stop icon. Of course, this doesn't prevent them from moving on, but helps the user know where they are in the modules.