Quick Tip: Customize Your Canvas Syllabus & Course Summary page

POSTED: Aug. 22, 2023


The start of a new semester means updating and sharing your syllabi with your students.  Canvas gives instructors a dedicated place to post their course syllabus and related information -- aptly named the “Syllabus” page -- which you and your students can access from the course navigation menu on the left.

TIP: Don’t have a Syllabus page in your course navigation menu?  You can go to your Settings, click the Navigation tab, and enable the Syllabus tool.

The Syllabus page consists of two sections: 1) the Syllabus Description and 2) the Course Summary. 

Syllabus Description

The Syllabus Description area is where you can upload a copy of your syllabus, course schedule, and any additional related course information.  

To customize the Syllabus page, click the Edit button in the top right corner.  In the textbox, use the Insert > Document > Upload Document option to upload a copy of your syllabus.  Make sure to customize the display text and remove any placeholder text.

Course Summary

The Course Summary is an automated list of all due dates in the course, presented in chronological order.  You cannot edit the Course Summary directly, but adjusting due dates for assignments, quizzes, discussions, etc. will update the information in the summary.  

TIP: Unpublished assessments will be hidden from students on the Course Summary, although they will be visible to you as the instructor.  

The Course Summary is a great tool for students to see all the assignment due dates at a glance; however, if you prefer not to use it, you can disable it by deselecting the “Show Course Summary” checkbox below the description.

Canvas Syllabus page

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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