Canvas Discussions Redesign

Canvas announced a Discussions Redesign effective July 20th, 2024. This enhancement aims to improve instructors’ and students’ experiences by offering new customizations and interactive components, including @mentions, anonymous posting, post logging, and enhanced searching and sorting capabilities. Other features such as Discussion Summaries and Checkpoints are planned to be released in the coming months.

One change with the Discussions Redesign is that the new default is to use threaded Discussions, so instructors must check a box to "Disallow threaded replies" if they want unthreaded/flat Discussions. (See screenshot.)

Screenshot of how to disallow threaded replies

The previous version of Discussions defaulted to a non-threaded Discussion.

Change can be hard, so to ensure a smooth transition and help you make the most of these new features, Canvas has prepared the following resources:

Instructional Video: This brief video provides an overview of the new features and changes that users can expect to see in the Discussions Redesign. You can watch it here Links to an external site..

Two-Page Guide: This concise document explains which features have changed and includes tips to assist you in leveraging the new features effectively. You can download the guide here Links to an external site..

Instructor User Guide: A detailed “How-To” instructor user guide has been created, which can be found here. Links to an external site.

Student User Guide: A detailed “How-To” student user guide has been created, which can be found here Links to an external site..

These resources will hopefully facilitate a seamless adoption of the Discussions Redesign.

If you have questions, please reach out to the TLC.