Canvas Feature Updates – October 2026
Platform – Progress Bars Updated to InstUI
Production Environment Availability: 10/7/2026
Progress bars in uploads, exports, and imports are updated to InstUI. Updating the progress bars to InstUI provides a more consistent, responsive, and maintainable interface aligned with the latest Canvas design. Functionality remains unchanged, but users may experience minor visual updates to improve consistency.
SpeedGrader – Group Excuse Consistency- Instructors
Production Environment Availability: 10/7/2026
In SpeedGrader, excusing a group submission excuses every student in the group, while excusing an individual student in the Gradebook excuses only that student, leaving the rest of the group unaffected. Previously, excusing a group submission from SpeedGrader only excused the individual student, leaving the rest of the group members unexcused. Instructors excuse a whole group in one step instead of repeating the action for each member, which saves time and reduces the risk of leaving a student unexcused by mistake.
Dashboard – Backup Reminder for Courses and grade
Production Environment Availability: 10/17/2026, enabled in VCU Canvas instance 11/11/2026
An Alert icon displays on Dashboard course cards whenever course grades and content have not been exported. The icon indicates whether an export has never been made or shows the number of days since the last export. From the pop-up menu, instructors can download the course content and grade export directly or dismiss the reminder for seven days.
On the Dashboard, click the Backup Reminder icon [1]. Then choose one of the following:
- Download the course content [2]
- Download student grades [3]
- Dismiss the notification for 7 days [4]
Gradebook – Learning Mastery Gradebook Sections and Student Groups Filters
Production Environment Availability: 10/21/2026
The Learning Mastery Gradebook includes Sections and Student Groups filters in the Apply Filters menu. Instructors and TAs can filter the gradebook by section, student group, or both to view outcome results for specific students. The Sections filter restores an option the original Learning Mastery Gradebook offered but the updated interface didn’t include.
Note: When a section and a student group are both selected, the gradebook displays students who match both filters. Filters don’t persist when a user leaves and returns to the page or refreshes the page.
In the Learning Mastery Gradebook, click the Apply Filters button [1]. Then, select the Sections filter [2], a student group from the Student Groups filter, or both.
Enhanced Rubrics – Create From Outcome Selector
Production Environment Availability: 10/21/2026
In Enhanced Rubrics, the Create From Outcome option in Enhanced Rubrics opens the Improved Outcomes Management outcome selector instead of the legacy selector. The selector opens in a modal and includes the same outcome group navigation available on the full Outcomes page. This change applies only to Enhanced Rubrics. The legacy rubric view continues to use the legacy outcome selector. The Improved Outcomes Management feature option must be enabled for the new selector to display.
Navigation – Notebook Removed from Course Navigation Settings
Production Environment Availability: 10/21/2026
The Notebook menu item no longer displays in the course navigation settings as an option instructors can hide. Previously, the instructor course menu listed Notebook as a hideable item, even though instructors have no Notebook settings to control. Helps instructors manage their course menu without a Notebook option they can’t use.
Categories Canvas