FAQ

Instructors and Teaching Fellows

Why isn’t my syllabus in my Canvas course site showing in OCI?

In order for your syllabus to appear in OCI, your course in Canvas must be published. Also, it can take up to three hours for a syllabus to appear in OCI. If you still do not see your syllabus after several hours, please email canvas@yale.edu for assistance. 

How do I migrate my Classes*v2 course to Canvas?

We are in the process of migrating the most recent copy of every unique course taught since Fall 2008 by instructor.  When the migration is complete, we will notify all instructors to let them know how to find their migrated materials.  At that time, we will re-open this form so that instructors can request any additional courses that were not included in the bulk migration. If you have any questions or need immediate support, please email us at canvas@yale.edu.

I am a teaching fellow and need to be added to a course. What should I do?

Please contact the course instructor to request being added to the course. You can direct them to our help article: How do I add users to my course? If they need assistance, please ask them to contact canvas@yale.edu.

Can I request more storage space over the default setting?

Yes. By default, you are given 500 MB of file storage for each Canvas course. If you feel you need additional file storage, please contact us at canvas.yale.edu.

Who do I contact for help with my e-Reserves (Course Reserves)?

General information on using e-Reserves in Canvas is available via the library’s Course Reserves website.

Additional help is available from the library staff Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

 

I feel like I need more assistance with Canvas training. How can I get more help?

The Center for Teaching and Learning has created a help guide that can be beneficial to everyone who needs a little more help with anything in Canvas. You can access these articles here: Help Canvas @ Yale. Instructional Technologists are available to meet with you to provide you with additional training or one-on-one training to set up your Canvas @ Yale course. For appointments and information, please schedule your consult. Please also see Training Opportunities for further information on assistance with Canvas @ Yale.

I have a lot of media content to upload into the Media Library. Who do I contact to help with this?

Please email canvas@yale.edu with the subject line “Media Library.”

I used a Media Gallery in Classes*v2. Why it is not available in Canvas’ Media Library?

Your Media Gallery content will not be automatically migrated to Media Library. Please contact canvas@yale.edu with the subject line “Media Library.”

Transition to Canvas @ Yale

Why are we moving to Canvas?

Canvas has successfully supported Yale’s distance and hybrid course offerings since 2014, yet it is a challenge for students and instructors to use Classes*v2 for some courses and Canvas for others. A fall 2015 pilot of Canvas showed a significant majority of instructors and students would prefer to use Canvas over Classes*v2 (Sakai). The University has decided to converge on a single platform for all of our courses. In making this decision, we’re following the lead of many of our peers who have recently adopted Canvas as their campus learning management system: this list includes many of our former partners in the Sakai open-source community, such as Stanford, Michigan, and Indiana.

Can I add unofficial participants to my Canvas site, like I did in Classes*v2?

Yes, you can add unofficial participants to your Canvas site, as you did in Classes*v2.

  • To add participants, please see the article How do I add users to my course? Most Yale affiliates already have a Canvas user account connected to their NetID; others will have accounts based on their email address.
  • If a participant does NOT yet have a Canvas user account, please complete the Guest Account Request form.
What type of training and support will be available during the transition to Canvas?

The Center for Teaching & Learning offers Canvas workshops for instructors, orientations for schools and departments, and one-on-one consultations with faculty who will be moving to Canvas. Online self-help materials will also be available, including a self-paced Canvas orientation course for instructors. We will offer the same level of support that has been offered for Classes*v2, with the addition of 24/7/365 support for instructors through our partnership with Instructure, Canvas’s parent company.

How does Canvas compare to Classes*v2?

Canvas has all of the core functionality found in Classes*v2, but there are some differences in the way that each tool works. Please see the Canvas-Classes*v2 Comparison table on the Canvas Tour page for more information. If you discover that there are things you cannot do in Canvas, please contact us for a consultation; we may be able to identify new ways of achieving the same goals with Canvas.

Will my Canvas syllabus automatically show up on Online Course Information?

Yes, syllabi posted to Canvas’ Syllabus Tool will automatically show up on Online Course Selection, and in Online Course Information every term. Please see the article How do I post my Syllabus in Canvas? for more information.

How do I copy materials from Classes*v2 “Resources” into Canvas?

The simplest way to copy files from Resources is to use the “Compress to ZIP Archive” option within Classes*v2 Resources. Please see the article How do I create a zip archive file in Resources? for detailed instructions.

Once you have a .zip file, you can upload it to the Files area of a Canvas site, or your personal Files area (click your name after logging onto Canvas and you’ll find your personal Files). Please see the article How do I upload ZIP files as an instructor? for detailed instructions.

I have multiple versions of my course saved on Classes*v2, and want to save them all. How should I do this?

Classes*v2 will remain available for several more years, at least, and a formal archival strategy is in development at this time.  If you are concerned about your content in Classes*v2, please contact request a consultation for information and recommendations.

What will happen to all of the video and audio files I uploaded to Classes*v2?

Please request a consultation if you have video and audio files you need transferred from Classes*v2 to Canvas, our Canvas Transition Team will be happy to help transfer this content for you.

Are photo rosters available in Canvas?

Yes, Canvas provides the same photo roster tool that faculty have been using in Classes*v2.

What about my project sites on Classes*v2?

We are in the process of moving project sites off of Classes*v2. If you have a project site on Classes*v2 that is critical to your teaching, please request a consultation for information and recommendations.

How long can I retain access to student grades, discussions, etc. in my Classes*v2 sites?

Beginning in summer 2017, no new course sites will be created in Classes*v2, but instructors will retain access to legacy Classes*v2 sites for several more years, while a formal archival strategy is developed.  If you are concerned about your content in Classes*v2, please contact request a consultation for information and recommendations.

Will Classes*v2 material be archived?

An archive service for will be announced in October 2017, however, all Classes*v2 course materials will remain available until May 2019. Please contact canvas@yale.edu with any questions.

I have courses on yale.instructure.com or yaleuniversity.instructure.com which will need to be moved. How will this happen?

The Canvas Transition Team has already met with the schools and programs that supported courses on one of the two legacy instances of Canvas, and we are working on a transition plan for moving the sites to http://canvas.yale.edu. Please contact your local Canvas support team member or request a consultation for an updated status of when your course will move.

Students

How do I "shop" a Canvas Course?

NOTE:  School of Management does have a different process for enrolling in their courses.  Please contact the SOM registrar for more information.

1. Search for Courses and View Course Syllabi

Students will need to search for courses using Online Course Selection (OCS) or through the Online Course Information (OCI) and will have access to view course syllabi.

NOTE: If a course does not have a syllabus, it may mean that the instructor has not posted a syllabus or they have not published the course site.

2. Register to Shop the Course

Students will need to add the course to their OCS worksheet.

Once you have added a course to your worksheet, it could take several hours before you are enrolled in the course site.  Course enrollments are processed every two hours.

When your enrollment is processed, you will be added to the course as a “shopper.”

3. Finalize and Seal Your Worksheet

Once you have made your final course selections for the semester, you will need to seal your OCS worksheet.  

Once you have sealed your worksheet, your enrollment in the courses you have chosen will change from “shopper” to “student”.  For all courses you shopped but decided not to take this semester, you will automatically be un-enrolled.

How do I find my course?

1. On the main left-side navigation in Canvas, click on Courses, then All Courses.

2. Here you can see all the courses that you are enrolled in, including your past enrollments for courses taught in Canvas.

Note: you can favorite a course by clicking on the star, which will make the course appear on your dashboard.

**If you are not able to click into your course, please reach out to the instructor to see if they have published the course. **

I am affiliated with a Professional School - who do I contact?
Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
 
If you are looking for support for a Forestry and Environmental Studies course, please contact Jordanna Packtor at 203-436-5403 or jordanna.packtor@yale.edu.
 
Yale School of Management
 
If you are looking for support for a School of Management course, please contact SOM IT Helpdesk at somit@yale.edu.
 
Yale School of Nursing
 
If you are looking for support for a Yale School of Nursing course, please contact Ekaterina Ginzburg at Ekaterina.ginzburg@yale.edu, or Office Extension #32204.
I have a NetID - why is Canvas not recognizing my account?
If you do have a Canvas account and you receive an “Account Information Not Recognized” error, you may have one of two issues:  
 
Browser Issues
Please try doing the following:
  1. Clear your browser’s cache
  2. Close your browser
  3. Reopen your browser
  4. Go to http://canvas.yale.edu and click the “NetID” login option.
  5. Enter your Yale NetID and password.
 
Accessing the Wrong Canvas Instance
Yale currently supports 3 separate instances of Canvas.  Please make sure that you are logging into the correct one.
 

 

I accidentally entered the wrong NetID password several times.
If you enter the wrong password for your account too many times, your account can be “locked.”  To unlock your account, you will need to contact the ITS Help Desk:
 
ITS Help Desk Phone:  203-432-9000
ITS Help Desk Email:  helpdesk@yale.edu
What is my password?

Yale affiliates - use your Yale NetID and password; this is the same login information that you use to access your Yale email. If you do not remember your NetID password, please contact the ITS Help Desk at (203) 432-9000.

Non-Yale Canvas users - use the Guest login option with the email address you provided to the instructor or program coordinator. If you do not remember your Canvas password, please use the Forgot Password? link on the Guest login screen.

I forgot my NetID password
To reset your password, you will need to contact the ITS Help Desk:
 
ITS Help Desk Phone:  203-432-9000
ITS Help Desk Email:  helpdesk@yale.edu