Fall 2023:

Student enrollments in Canvas for Fall 2023 courses will be added starting 8/14/2023. The course default start date in Canvas is set to 8/18/2023 (See How Do I Modify Course Default Start Dates.).

Reminder Start-of-Semester Tips:

• Check the Course Default Settings for course access dates, grade release and visibility options, and file storage limits.
• Reuse Course Content from the previous Canvas course site.
• Check the Tutorials page if you plan to use third-party tools, such as Panopto, Turnitin, and more.
• Review our start-of-semester Checklist.
• Remember to PUBLISH your course.

NEW Canvas Features:

• Gradebook option to Split Student Name Columns in the Gradebook
• Enhanced Gradebook Filters
• New Quizzes improvements include Grade by Question
• Instructors can Submit an Assignment on Behalf of a Student
• Canvas Rubrics available for External Tool Assignments
• New Bulk Publish Modules

Generative AI and Its Implications for Teaching

Our collection of generative AI resources is available to address common concerns and considerations, such as Academic Integrity, Assignment Design, Accessibility, and Ethical concerns. Our goal is to help instructors explore practical applications and pedagogical strategies for teaching as you determine what approaches and policies regarding AI are the right fit for your classes.

NEW Turnitin Draft Coach

Beginning this summer, Cornell instructors and students now have access to Turnitin Draft Coach through their Cornell Google Docs account. Available under “Extensions,” this new tool allows students to receive instant feedback on their academic writing. Students and other users can check their Google documents for grammar, similarity, and citation feedback. The advantage of using Draft Coach for students is that they can make corrections, improve their writing, and take responsibility for academic integrity prior to final submission. 

Draft Coach is automatically available for Cornell students using Google Docs. There are several strategies you might consider for encouraging Draft Coach’s use in your classes. One is to encourage or require its use for low-stakes assignments or to help students learn how to write a research paper that includes properly citing original sources. Another option is to encourage students to use Draft Coach before submitting an assignment to improve their papers.

Draft Coach Resources for Instructors. Students can access the online guide at Understanding Turnitin Draft Coach.

Feedback Fruits for Peer Review

FeedbackFruits has released some experimental features that are available to users upon request. One of these is the Automated Feedback Coach. This tool uses OpenAI and is aimed at helping students write better feedback and improve the quality of feedback they receive from peers. Please contact us if you are interested in trying it out.

Canvas New Quizzes

The most recent updates include:

• Anonymous Grading – Instructors will see a checkbox when creating a New Quiz to make the quiz anonymous.
• Zero-Point Quizzes –  Instructors will now see an option to not display the quiz in the gradebook or student’s grade page. The option to not count the quiz towards the final grade will also be selected.

Here is a summary of Updates and Feature Options for New Quizzes.

iClicker

iClicker remotes and the student app are now free for all undergraduate students enrolled in the Cornell Academic Materials Program (CAMP). Visit Getting Started with iClicker for details and information on the new workshops.

See What's New in Learning Technologies for more updates.

Visit our YouTube Channel for Helpful Tips:

• Five Tips for Choosing the Right Assessment Tool
• Five Things to Know about Gradebook in Canvas
• Five Things to Know about Ally
• Engage Your Students with Classroom Polling

Workshops & Resources:

• Explore CTI Teaching Resources: Help design, implement, and assess inclusive student-centered learning environments.
• CTI Learning Technologies Resource Library: Find Cornell documentation and tutorials, as well as links to vendor documentation, on using Canvas and other learning technologies.
• Check our Event Calendar for upcoming workshops and webinars.



Check our previous workshop recordings to explore specific teaching strategies and tool-specific "How-to" workshops.

• Daily online Drop-in Sessions: the CTI staff will be available live to answer your questions.

• CTI Tech Lab: Staff are ready to assist with your technology needs for teaching.

• Contact email: canvas@cornell.edu.