Contacting Students: Email, Canvas Inbox, & Canvas Announcements
In this section we'll share the information you need to contact students. To increase the chances that students will receive your messages, you'll want to familiarize yourself with Canvas messaging tools, as well as reasons why students might not receive messages.
Here's the Short Version:
Using Canvas Tools to Send Messages:
- You'll probably want most of your communication to happen using Canvas tools.
- To ensure students receive your communications, you'll have to tell them which tools you will be using and guide them in setting up their notification preferences accordingly.
- The most common tools used to send messages are Canvas Conversations (Inbox), Announcements, and Submission Comments (feedback comments on assignments).
Using Email:
- You'll still want to use email before the course begins (and possibly to reach out to non-participating students throughout the term, and possibly after the course ends).
- A best practice is to send a welcome email (using both district and personal email addresses) before the term begins in addition to posting a welcome announcement in Canvas on the first day of class.
Canvas Inbox (Conversations)
- What it is (and is not): Canvas Inbox (Conversations) is a messaging tool within the Canvas Learning Management System that allows instructors and students to communicate directly, similar to email, but keeps all course-related messages organized in one place. Importantly, Canvas Inbox is not email. It's a message that lives in Canvas for which students can elect to receive email and/or push notifications.
- Notification Settings: The "Conversations" section of the notifications page refers to Canvas Inbox messages.
- How will students know they've received a message? What are the obstacles?
- They might log into Canvas and just see them: If they log in to Canvas, they will likely just see that they have new messages. The "Inbox" is a prominent icon in the main navigation menu in Canvas, and it will display how many unread messages they have.
- Obstacles: As anyone who has ever let unread messages get out of hand knows, as the number grows, it can become difficult to notice and take action on new messages. Also, if they've fallen behind, they may not be logging in to Canvas.
- Hopefully they will also receive a notification: This depends on how they've set up their notification preferences. Students must log into Canvas, setup their email address as a contact preference, and then select which notifications to receive (such as Canvas Inbox messages), where to receive them (such as by email), and how often to receive them (immediately, as a daily summary, or as a weekly summary).
- Obstacles: A new student who hasn't yet logged into Canvas and set up their notification preferences might not be receiving any notifications. In general students may not have notifications set up in the most effective way.
- They might log into Canvas and just see them: If they log in to Canvas, they will likely just see that they have new messages. The "Inbox" is a prominent icon in the main navigation menu in Canvas, and it will display how many unread messages they have.
Canvas Announcements
- What it is: Canvas Announcements is a tool that allows instructors to post messages to all students in a dedicated location.
- Tip: Pin the most recent announcement(s) to the top of your Canvas Home page Links to an external site. (the default is three, but depending on how often you send announcements, you may want to choose just 1 or 2).
- How will students know you've posted an announcement?
- If you've pinned announcements to the top of your Canvas Home page, hopefully they will see them there!
- Hopefully they also have their notifications set up such that they will successfully receive a notification.
Publication Status & Term Start/End Dates Matter
- If your course is unpublished: You cannot send any messages of any kind to students. You can't message them through the Canvas Inbox, and they won't be able to see or receive notifications for announcements.
- If your course is published, but the term start date is in the future:
- You can message students through the Canvas Inbox and notifications for Inbox messages will be sent, but students may not have their Canvas notifications set up yet.
- Whether or not students will be able to enter your Canvas course as see announcements depends on whether or not viewing the course is restricted outside of the term start and end dates. Notifications will not be sent for announcements either way.
- If your course is published, but the term end date is in the past: You cannot send any messages of any kind to students. You can't message them through the Canvas Inbox, and they won't be able to see or receive notifications for announcements.
Emailing Students
- Tip: Use student emails, both district and personal, to send a Welcome Email before class starts and to reach out to non-participating students.
- Where to Find Student Email Addresses: You can find your students' email addresses (both district and personal) in MySDCCD (aka PeopleSoft / Portal): MySDCCD > College Faculty Dashboard > College Faculty Schedule > Click Course Number > Select Follow Up > Click on "Contact List" Button. Then copy one column of email addresses at a time and paste them into the BCC line of your email.
Guide Students to Setup their Canvas Notifications
- Tip: Help students choose which Canvas notifications to receive (and how to receive them) based on channels you intend to use to contact students.
- Common channels (and Canvas terminology): Canvas Conversations (aka Canvas Inbox), Announcements, and Submission Comments (feedback comments on assignments)
- How do I manage my Canvas notification settings as a student?
- How do I manage notifications for a single course as a student?
- Tip: Include this info in a Canvas orientation module Links to an external site..
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