An overview of the Message Student Who feature in Canvas.
Messaging Course Participants In Canvas
What is the Message Students Who feature?
Message Students Who is a feature in Canvas that allows you to send a message to students based on some criteria. Course Analytics are used to determine which students meet that criteria.
You can use this feature to send a message to all of the students who fit certain criteria, or to an individual student who fits certain criteria.
When you write to multiple students at once using this feature, they cannot see which classmates received the same message.
Where can I find the Message Students Who feature and how does it work?
There are two primary ways that instructors will access the Message Students Who function: through the Course Analytics pages, and through the Gradebook. Read on in the two sections below to learn more about each of these options.
Access through Course Analytics
In Course Analytics, there is a Message Students Who button on three of the pages: Course Grade, Weekly Online Activity, and Students. Selecting the Message Students Who option on these pages produces slightly different results.
Course Grade
This prompts a pop-up window within Canvas. Selecting Message Students Who from the Course Grade page of Canvas Analytics allows instructors to to contact students within a certain score range, who have missing assignments, or who have late assignments. These three options present as tabs in the window. Instructors can tailor each of the fields to ensure the message reaches the appropriate students. After composing the message and completing all other fields, select the blue "Send" button.
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Weekly Online Activity
On the Weekly Online Activity page of Canvas Analytics, instructors may select Message Students Who to the right of the search bar.
This prompts a pop-up window within Canvas. Selecting Message Students Who from the Weekly Online Activity page of Canvas Analytics allows instructors to to contact students who either have or have not viewed or participated in a specific course resource. These four options present as tabs in the window. Instructors can tailor each of the fields to ensure the message reaches the appropriate students. After composing the message and completing all other fields, select the blue "Send" button.
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Students
Accessing the Message Students Who feature through the Students page of Course Analytics produces the same results as going through the Course Grade page of Course analytics.
Access through the Gradebook
A version of the Message Students Who feature may also be accessed by instructors through the Grades section of their course. Selecting the Grades option from the left-hand Course Navigation Menu brings instructors by default to their Gradebook. Each graded activity in the course populates into the Gradebook as well. Hovering over an assignment reveals a three dot menu next to the name of the corresponding assignment. Instructors may select the three-dot menu to display additional actions; one of these options is Message Students Who.
Selecting the Message Students Who option here triggers a pop-up window within Canvas titled “Compose Message.” Instructors may then use the drop-down menu under “For students who…” to specify recipients: participants who have not yet submitted that particular assignment; participants who have already submitted; participants who have not yet been graded; participants who scored more or less than a specific grade cut-off; or participants for whom the assignment has been reassigned.
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How can the Message Students Who feature to help me as an instructor?
Below are examples based on hypothetical courses and course policies:
- Send a message to all students who are missing a specific homework assignment with a reminder that they can turn it in late for partial credit.
- Send a message to all students with overall grades below 80% (or any other cut-off) encouraging them to visit your office hours and TA hours.
- Send a message to a student who was late turning in an assignment letting them know you have received it for grading but will have to deduct 2 points for lateness.
- Send a message to students who have not yet viewed a linked article reminding them that it should be read before your seminar meets next.
- Send a message to all students who participated in a Discussion thread to provide positive feedback on the conversation’s quality.