Creating an assignment

The first type of assessment we will learn about is the assignment. Assignments can be work that a student (or group of students submit) electronically through Canvas or in class. Assignments also do not need to be limited to documents.

Students can submit an assignment through Canvas by:

Uploading a file.
Recording media (via webcam for example).
Submitting a website URL.
Typing directly into Canvas.

Through assignments, teachers can:

Provide students feedback via typing or recorded media.
Assign peer reviewers.
Send student submissions over to Turnitin for an originality check.
Create a grading rubric to grade with.

Creating an assignment from the modules page

There are multiple locations to create an assignment. For the purpose of this training course, we will be building them from the Modules page.

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1. Click on the Modules link on the left side of your screen.

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2. Click on Add item to module (1).

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3. Select Assignment from the drop down menu.

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4. If you have already created an assignment it will be listed here. You can also select New Assignment to create a new one.

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5. When you select New Assignment, you will have to give Canvas some basic information. The Group option will be discussed in a later module when we learn about the gradebook. Once you have your information in Canvas, click on Add Assignment.

6. Your assignment will appear at the bottom of the Module. Now, lets give that assignment some more information. Click on the link to your assignment.

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7. Click on Edit Assignment on the right side of your screen.

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8. Here is where you can provide information to your students about what you want them to do. You will have access to Canvas' text editor as well as the content editor. Two points of interest are the Submission drop-down and the more options link.

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9. The submission drop-down menu allows you to set the assignment to be turned in on paper (in class) or online (electronically).

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10. When you select Online Submission, you can choose via checkboxes what types of submissions students will have access to.

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11. Lastly clicking on More options will allow you to setup the assignment as group work, change how the grade will be displayed, and setup peer reviews.

Once you're done, make sure you save your changes and your assignment is setup and ready to go.

Adding a rubric to an assignment (optional).

Canvas allows teachers to create and utilize rubrics when grading assignments. In a peer reviewed assignment, the reviewers will have access to the rubric as well.

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1. After you've created an assignment, you can add/edit a rubric.

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Assignments allow for a wealth of assessment possibilities. Click next to learn about the Discussion Board