Prepare for the course copy by following the steps below. The course your are copying from is referred to as the source course and the course you are copying to is referred to as the destination course.
In the source course write down the course name, CRN, and term. Also, write down the official start and end dates of the course (as listed in the schedule).
In the destination course
First verify that the destination course is empty.
If the destination course already has content and you copy a course into it, content might be overwritten or duplicated.
If there is content in the destination course but you don't need it anymore, you should erase everything in the course before you copy content in it. See the Canvas Guide: How do I reset course content?Links to an external site.
Write down the course name, CRN, and term of the destination course. Also, write down the official start and end dates of the course (as listed in the schedule).
🐼 This episode of Panda Shorts will show how to make a backup of your course and then copy a source course into a destination course. The Back to School Checklist will also be shown.
Video: Copying a Course with the Import Tool
Use the Table of Contents (TOC) menu to jump to the part of the video that is of interest to you. How to access the TOC menu
Click the arrow at the bottom of the video.
Select an entry to jump to a specific spot in the video.
If you are reading a Canvas Guide that mentions a "Copy a Course" button, that option is not available at Coastline. Instead, use the Import Course Content tool and select Copy a Course from the menu.
Date Adjustment Tip
When copying a course from one term to another, you will need to adjust the dates for both the source course and the destination course. Change the ending dates to the official course ends dates (and not the course ending date that is automatically populated in Canvas). Look at each date carefully and make sure you have the correct month, day, and year.
See the image below for a sample of what the dates might look like when copying a 16-week course from thLinks to an external site.e Fall 2022 term to the Spring 2023 term. Notice that the beginning and ending dates for both the source course and the destination course are the official course start and end dates.
If the dates did not adjust correctly after the course copy, then clear the course (reset course content) and try again.
Off by a Year?
Do the dates seem off by a year? Here's why By default, the course end date in Canvas is set to one year after the official course end date. See the image below for an example of what the course start and ends dates might look like in Canvas, on the Course Details tab. Notice that the end date is one year after the official course end date.
The course end date is set this way in Canvas in case the instructor gives a student an Incomplete. If the instructor allows the student one year to complete work, the student can still have access to the course in Canvas.
You can change the course end date in Canvas at any time, just be sure to give students enough time after the course ends to see their final grade and feedback. It's recommended that the course end date in Canvas be at least one week after the official end date of the course.
Beware of Zoom Events
If your course has Zoom events in the course calendar, do not select the "All Content" option. If you do, all the Zoom events from the course will get copied over in to the new course. Instead, follow the steps below:
In the "Content" section, choose "Select specific content."
Then select all of the content *except* "Calendar Events" (as shown in the image below).
Once the copy (import) has completed, be sure to check the following:
Import Errors
After you copy the course, the copy status will appear under Current Jobs.
Completed with no errors - If Completed appears in green Completed and nothing else is displayed after it, then the copy job was free from errors. A sample of a job without errors is shown in the image below, on the left.
Completed with errors - If Completed appears in gold Completed followed by the number of issues, then the copy job encountered errors. Click on the # issues link to see a list of errors. You will need to fix each error in the list. A sample of a job with errors is shown in the image below, on the right.
Dates
Check the dates of the assignments, discussions, quizzes, and events. You can see all the due dates and available from/until dates in one place. See 🐼 Assignments: Bulk Edit Dates for more details.
If only a few dates need to be adjusted, use the Bulk Edit Dates method to fix the dates.
If a majority of dates are wrong, you might not have adjusted the dates correctly when you copied the course. You can either use the Bulk Edit Dates method to fix the dates or clear the destination course (reset course contentLinks to an external site.) and perform the course copy again. See the Date Adjustment Tip above before you try again.
Once your course is ready for students, Publish the course. Students can't access the course until the course start date, so it's OK to publish the course early. See the Canvas Guide: How do I publish a course?Links to an external site.
How do I export a Canvas course?Links to an external site. - Export your course if you want a copy of your course as a backup on your local computer. If you want to copy your course into another instance of Canvas (at another college for example), you can export your course from Coastline's Canvas instance and then import it into the other Canvas instance.
How do I reset course content?Links to an external site. - If you want to erase everything that is in your course, reset the course content. You might want to reset the course content if you import a course and all of the dates are wrong.
Assignments: Bulk Edit Dates Course Settings that Allow Students Access to Your Course