As a new semester approaches, help your students (especially new students) get off to a smooth start by making sure your online course site in Canvas is ready and provides them with the information they need. 

If you have any questions about any of these steps, contact College of Education's Digital Learning support at digitallearning [at] umass [dot] edu (digitallearning[at]umass[dot]edu), or UMass Amherst IT's Instructional Media Lab at instruct [at] umass [dot] edu (instruct[at]umass[dot]edu). 

If you are new to Canvas, visit  Getting Started Teaching in Canvas for an overview of steps to take to get access and get started. Once you are in Canvas, visit the Canvas Training and Resources class (hosted by IDEAS) for documentation and an excellent self-paced introduction.

Summary (TLDR)  

▢ Mark your calendar for Preview Week.
▢ Request a Canvas site. 
▢ Import or create content. 
▢ Check and update content. 
▢ Prepare and send a welcome email. 
▢ Post essential information on the home page. 
▢ Remove any unused links from the Navigation.  
▢ Review Assignments page and Gradebook.

See below for more details about each step. 

Detailed Checklist

▢ Mark your calendar for Preview Week

Canvas sites open to students a week before classes begin. Students who log in during Preview Week are typically looking for the syllabus and a few weeks of content so that they can get ready. Make sure you have the syllabus, a few weeks of content, and/or an introduction to the course posted on the site. If you are still working on the site, you can hide anything that is not ready for students to see by unpublishing individual pages in the View All Pages view, or by unpublishing entire Modules.  

▢ Request a Canvas site

A new request is required each semester so that new students can be enrolled. If you do not request a Canvas site, one will be created automatically for you about a week before classes begin. Request your site as soon as possible to make sure it is set up properly—especially if you are combining sections. 

Summary of the steps: Log in to SPIRE; go to your Faculty Center; under “Learning Management Systems”, select “Canvas Course Requests”; select the term (e.g. Winter 2026), then select the class section (or sections) you want included in your Canvas site. 

If your course has multiple sections, and you want all the students to access the same Canvas site, select all of these sections when making your request. If your course has multiple sections, and you want the students in each section to be in separate Canvas sites, submit a separate request for each section.

For detailed instructions see: Request a Canvas Course Through SPIRE 

✪ If you are primarily using other tools to manage your class (such as Google Classroom or Teams), students may still end up looking on Canvas for your class. So include at least one page on Canvas with basic information about the class, your contact information, the syllabus, and a link to the other tool(s).

▢ Import or Create Content

New Canvas sites are blank. If this is a new class, or you want to start from scratch, go ahead and start building. If you want to import content from a previous class or another Canvas site, go to the home page of the new site and select the Import Existing Content tool. For instructions, see the Get Started in Canvas page or watch this video from IDEAS: Import Content into Your SPIRE Course.

If you are reusing content from another instructor, and you can see the course on your dashboard, you can use Import Existing Content to import all or part of the course. If you don't see the course on your dashboard, the instructor may still need to fill out this form: Grant Permission to Another Instructor to Copy Your Canvas Course.  

▢ Check and Update Content

Especially when reusing content, make sure to check details (such as dates). Review both the syllabus file and pages on the Canvas site. Check the home page to make sure basic course information is correct ( e.g. your email, office hours, links). Check dates on modules, pages, and especially assignments to make sure they correspond to the current semester. Test links to external readings and other tools to make sure they are still active and accurate. This is also a good time to think about common questions or misconceptions in previous semesters and add or adjust language about processes and other logistics. 

▢ Prepare and send a welcome email

A week or two before the start of class, use your UMass email (or the announcement feature of Canvas) to send a short note to your students that includes a short introduction to you and the course, your contact information, a link to the syllabus, the link to the Canvas site, and any other information they will need before the first day of classes. This is a good opportunity to set the tone for how you will interact with students in the class. 

▢ Post essential information on the home page. 

Make the front page of your Canvas site a quick reference throughout the class. Post links and information that students may need quick access to, such as your contact information, meeting times, major deadlines, and links to regularly-used texts and tools. If possible (and sustainable) consider updating the home page each week so that students know what they need to do that week as soon as they enter the site. (This can be done by directly editing the page each week, or by swapping in each week's page as the front page.)       

▢ Clean up navigation. 

Remove unused tools from the navigation menu so that students won't get lost following dead ends (e.g. If you are not using "Lucid" go to Settings > Navigation and disable the tool.) 

In general, you can help students navigate the site by making sure link names and page titles match, are clear, and make sense to the students (e.g. replace jargon or acronyms unless they are familiar to students at this level). Differentiate and make pages memorable by adding color coding*, images, and other visual cues such as icons and/or topic-related images. * Accessibility note: When using color coding, add another visual cue (word, icon, or symbol) so that students who can't see color will still get the information. 

▢ Review Assignments page and Gradebook.

Groups of assignments on the Assignments page correspond to the structure of the Gradebook. Check the grading scheme in your syllabus and adjust the groups to match (e.g. if Participation is 30% of the final grade, put all the graded discussions related to participation in the same group and set it to be 30%.) 

If you are not using Canvas to track and deliver grades, make sure to hide the Gradebook so that students do not get confused (or shocked) by what they see.

If you want to provide students with progress reports and a sense of how they are doing without focusing on grades, you can adjust the Gradebook to provide done/not done and other non-grade information. Contact digitallearning [at] umass [dot] edu (digitallearning[at]umass[dot]edu) or the IDEAS team at instruct [at] umass [dot] edu (instruct[at]umass[dot]edu) for ideas. 

Additional Checklists 

• New Semester Course Checklist (College of Education)
• Canvas Course Checklist ( in the Canvas Instructor Training class).
• Ten Things To Do in Canvas (IDEAS)

If you are new to teaching online, running into a challenge, or simply interested in trying something new, the following groups and resources can help.   

Online Teaching Principles 

Teaching a fully online class requires the same essential instructional skills as in-person instruction.  The difference is that familiar techniques that are second nature in the classroom require more intention an planning: especially those related to providing structure, modeling learning behaviors, and creating connection and community among students. 

The IDEAS group on campus has an excellent set of resources on their Online Teaching Resources page that cover the basics of teaching online, as well as deep dives into other issues 

Foundations of Online Teaching

• Online Teaching and Learning Theory
• Equity & Inclusion in Online Teaching

Structure, Design & Accessibility

• Developing Learning Objectives in an Online Course
• Developing an Effective Syllabus for an Online Course
• Designing Accessible Online Courses
• Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

Developing Assessments

• Approaches to Assessment Online
• Formative Assessment Online: Guide Students to Success
• Create Authentic Summative Assignments Online
• Providing Effective Feedback on Students' Learning Process
• Creating Effective Online Quizzes and Exams

Encouraging Engagement

• Develop Engaging Instructional Materials
• Develop Engaging Learning Activities
• Facilitating Class Discussions Online

Communicating Effectively

• Communicate Effectively with Online Students
• Course Welcome and Introductions

Access and Equity in Online Classes 

Online learning offers opportunities for people who aren’t typically able to attend full-time, in-person programs. In order to help make sure they succeed, make sure your course is designed to support people who don’t match the model of a “typical” student.  

• Equity & Inclusion in Online Teaching (IDEAS)
• Promoting Equity and Humanizing Online Courses (UCI)
• Replacing Surveillance Pedagogies with Meaningful Assessments  (Digital Learning)

Canvas Access and Documentation

• Canvas Login Page
• Canvas Support and Resources (IDEAS)

Getting Started:

• Requesting a Canvas Course through SPIRE (IT)
• Upcoming Canvas Trainings (IDEAS)

Getting Help: 

• Instructional Media Lab: instruct [at] umass [dot] edu (instruct[at]umass[dot]edu) or 413-545-2823
• Canvas 24/7 Support Line: via chat and phone +1 (855) 219-3080

Crisis Support: If you have been contacted by, or are aware of, a student in crisis, you can refer them to the Center for Counseling and Psychological Health (which has a 24/7 crisis line), contact the Dean of Students Office at (413) 545-2684, or look for specific services and hotlines in the UMass Amherst Crisis Resources (a.k.a the "Maroon Folder.")  

Online Learning Orientation and Support:

These resources are especially helpful for students who are new to online learning.
We recommend sharing these resources in your introductory communications and linking them from your site.

• UMass Amherst Student Orientation and Resource Area *consider assigning this to any students who are new to online learning
• Learning Online: Pointers for Success * also this one
• Alphabetic Guide to University Resources for Online Students
• Student Headquarters for UWW Interdisciplinary Studies (intended for interdisciplinary students, but contains good advice for everyone)

General Academic Support:

• Resources for Graduate Students in the College of Education (forms, milestones, resources)
• Office of Professional Development in the Graduate School
• Disability Services
• UMass Amherst Libraries
• Writing Center
• Institute for Social Science Research (ISSR)- resources and support for researchers using social science methods

Online students can access UMass Amherst library resources by using their NetID to log in. 

Library Guide to Education
Library Resources for Remote Learning and Instruction
Access to Library Resources from Off-Campus
Note: URLs that start with “https://silk.library.umass.edu” will provide a log in to access the resource. 
Open Access Resources
The library supports the use of open educational resources in classes. Open access materials can be shared outside of class and students can continue to access these resources well after their enrollment ends. We recommend that online instructors choose open access materials whenever possible. Scholarworks is the local UMass Amherst repository of open access resources. 

Jennifer Friedman, associate dean of research and learning in the Libraries, appointed as interim dean of the Libraries for the month of July can provide further assistance. Her email is jfriedman7 [at] umass [dot] edu (jfriedman7[at]umass[dot]edu) and she can be found in Library profile sections at Jennifer Friedman - LibGuides at University of Massachusetts Amherst 

Consider adding the following to your class to help make your online students feel more supported and connected to the class community.

• Post a recorded welcome statement from you (video or audio) in which you introduce yourself, your goals for the class, and your approach to teaching.
• Ask students to fill out a survey or introduce themselves in a discussion so that you have a sense of what they bring to the course (goals, concerns, skills, knowledge, pets)
• Create an open discussion forum that students can use for community building. First to introduce themselves to each other, and then to ask questions, share ideas, and support.
• Post a draft of community norms that you expect students to follow when interacting online. Invite students to discuss norms as a group and offer additions & revisions.
• Include language in the syllabus and on the site that addresses the ways students can struggle and openly invite them to contact you for help if they need it. (Note that not all students know that this is something they are allowed to do, especially students who are first generation, international, or who belong to other marginalized identities.)
• Describe what steps you want students to take to show engagement if they need to miss a live class or skip a week to care for family, health, or other obligations.  

For more advice on community building refer to these handouts: 

• Creating Community in an Online Environment
• Preparing for Difficult Conversations During Remote Teaching
• Managing Difficult Conversations In Remote Learning Environments