Updated 01/25/21 11:07 am
Answers to Your Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
My student's grades seem to be calculating incorrectly?
How do I make my Canvas Course visible?
Please see the Setting Up Your Course page for more information on making your Canvas course visible.
My students cannot see my course content. What do I do now?
Please see the Canvas guide on publishing and unpublishing modules for information on making content available to students, and making sure that each activity in the module has also been published.
Can I have an extra Canvas shell?
Yes: every instructor is provided an extra Canvas course, called a Sandbox. When you log into Canvas, look for it on your Dashboard. Typically the Sandbox is used to explore and experiment with Canvas. You can request an additional Sandbox using the Canvas Special Shell request form.
Later, you can transfer the content of your Sandbox to your live Fall course. Consult the Importing and Migrating Courses page for more information.
What if my course shell is not yet available in Canvas? How can I start building my course?
Please confirm your course schedule with your department. This is to ensure that no course or department changes have been made. While you wait, please consider building your course in your Canvas Sandbox. You can request a new Sandbox to plan and build your course using the Canvas Special Shell request form.
Once you get access to your official course shell, you can transfer the contents of your Sandbox to your official Canvas course shell. Consult the Importing and Migrating Courses page for more information.
NOTE: The Sandbox should only be used for designing and building a draft of your course. Please do not enroll students in your sandbox!
What if I don't have Canvas account access yet?
If you are a returning lecturer without access, or if you are a BRAND NEW Cal State LA instructor, please reach out to your department and see if they can help you activate (or reactivate) your Cal State LA network account. Departments should communicate with students regularly if the Canvas course shell is not ready by the start of the term.
How can I move content from one course to another in Canvas?
Please see the Canvas guide on copying content from another Canvas course for instructions on copying course content from one Canvas shell to another.
How do I use Zoom breakout rooms?
Please see the Zoom guide on managing breakout rooms for more information.
How do I use a Zoom Virtual Background?
Please see the Zoom guide on virtual backgrounds for more help and information.
What has changed with the Canvas Text Editor?
How do I give students extra time on a Canvas quiz?
Once you publish a quiz, you can give students (e.g., students who need OSD accommodations) extra time on your quiz. Please see the Canvas guide on giving students extra time on a published quiz for more help and information.
Can I combine two or more of my Canvas sections into one big course shell?
If the two sections are officially cross-listed, then you may complete the Canvas Cross List request form to combine the sections.
NOTE: This form should only be used if you need to combine official University cross-listed courses into a single course shell. Please note that due to FERPA regulations, courses that are not officially cross-listed and do not meet in the same class period and room location CANNOT be combined into a metacourse. Doing so is a violation of student privacy.
If you need to have the same content in multiple sections, you can now easily copy course material from one to multiple courses in Canvas using the copy content feature.
How do I send an announcement to my students?
Class announcement(s) can be sent after the course is Published to only those students in each individual course. Please see our Announcements page for more information.
What should I do if Zoom is down?
Use Canvas Announcements to notify your students of any schedule changes to live Zoom meeting sessions. Please see our Announcements page for more information.
Need Help?
Virtual Support Room
Current Operating Hours:
- Monday and Friday: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm (Last questions accepted at 3:45 pm)
- Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm (Last questions accepted at 4:45 pm)
Enter the "Drop In" Virtual Support Room during open hours.
There may be a brief wait when you enter the virtual support room.
To access support by phone, please call:
(669) 900-6833
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Email Support
Send an email to [email protected]
Current Operating Hours: Monday - Friday: 9:00 am - 4:30 pm
Phone Support - Not currently available
❌Telephone support is NOT AVAILABLE at this time.
For assistance, please use the Virtual Support Drop In Support or send an email to [email protected]
Walk-in Lab Support - Not currently available
❌CLOSED beginning Friday, March 13 at 1:00 pm and will remain closed until further notice.
As of March 17: The campus is currently limited to essential staff only. Most services, including the University Library, are closed.
Staying Informed
- Check Cal State L.A.'s Health Watch webpage for official campus updates on the Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation
- Check the CSU's coronavirus webpage for official CSU system-wide updates
- Verify/Update your phone number to receive official campus Eagle Alert messages
- Follow the CalStateLA ITS twitter feed for ITS updates
- Check out the ITS webpage on Resources for Virtual or Remote Access
System Status Monitoring
Please visit the following links to verify whether these systems or services fully operational or to verify any outages.