Types of Assessments

Three major types of assessments can be created in Canvas. In order for a column to appear in the Gradebook for an assessment it must be one of the three following options:

Assignment

An assignment can be a document or work created by a student and submitted directly to Canvas. Common examples include research papers, scans of handwritten work, videos, or other media items. Assignments can also be used to record non-submitted work like participation and attendance grades. In an assignment, instructors can assign due dates and points, and include detailed instructions. Unlike discussions, only the instructor sees the student submission when using assignments.

Graded Discussion

A Canvas discussion is a board with threaded conversations on a specific topic. Discussions allows for interactive communication between two or more people; users can participate in a conversation with an entire class or group. Discussions can be ungraded and not have a due date, but a discussion structured in this way will not appear in the Gradebook.

Quiz

The Quiz tool can be used to assess students using a variety of question types, including multiple choice, short answer, file upload for handwritten work, and others. They can be created as auto-graded assessments, which can save the instructor time. Additional features like timed assessments and proctoring tools can be added to an assessment created via the Quiz tool.

Resources

Canvas Learning Center resources on Assignments, Quizzes, Tests & Grading