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Faculty Course Set-up Timeline and Overview
Overview
Faculty gain access to their Canvas course shells six weeks prior to the start of the semester. This time is critical for preparing your course materials, scheduling Zoom sessions, updating your syllabus, and ensuring your course is ready for student access during the two-week preview period.
This guide outlines a suggested timeline for setting up your course, along with links to related how-to guides and tutorials.
Estimated Time to Complete: 2–3 hours total, spread across the six weeks leading up to the semester start. Students receive access two weeks prior to the start of the semester. The below timeline accounts for that.
Instructions
Six Weeks Before the Semester Starts
- Access your Canvas course shell: https://captechu.instructure.com/
- Begin updating your Course Homepage
- Add your name, credentials, and contact info
- Include a brief bio and (optionally) a profile image
→ How to Customize Your Canvas Course Homepage
Five Weeks Before the Semester Starts
- Set up your Capitol Live (Zoom) sessions
- Schedule recurring class meetings for synchronous courses
- Schedule a Welcome Session for asynchronous courses
→ How to Schedule Zoom Meetings in Canvas
→ Hosting a Welcome Session in Asynchronous Courses
Four Weeks Before the Semester Starts
- Review and update your eSyllabus
- Update contact info, meeting times, and class schedule
- Use the copy feature if reusing a previous syllabus
→ How to Edit Your eSyllabus in Canvas
→ How to Copy Your eSyllabus from a Previous Term
Three Weeks Before the Semester Starts
- Finalize Assignments and Due Dates
- Ensure all assignments are dated and available
- Add rubrics where applicable
→ How to Set Canvas Assignment Due Dates
→ Creating and Attaching Rubrics to Canvas Assignments - Set up the Gradebook
- Configure late and posting policies
- Organize gradebook view
→ Setting Up Canvas Gradebook Policies
Two Week Before the Semester Starts
- Review and Publish course content
- Use Student View to ensure all modules, files, assignments, and quizzes are published
- Post a Welcome Announcement
→ Checklist: What to Review Before Publishing Your Canvas Course
→ How to Publish Your Canvas Course
→ How to Post a Welcome Announcement
Troubleshooting
- I don’t see my Canvas course shell: Contact the Registrar or Online Learning to verify course assignments.
- I’m getting an error in the eSyllabus tab: Email ask@captechu.edu for support.
- Zoom isn’t showing in Canvas: Ensure the Zoom LTI is enabled in your course navigation.
Still Need Help?
If you have any questions or run into issues during your course setup, contact the Online Learning team at ask@captechu.edu. We’re happy to help!