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Notifications are cool, here's why:

Rather than necessarily having to login to Canvas to see if there are new Conversations, Assignments, quizzes, etc, Canvas has a broad array of notifications it can send you to let you know that "somethings going on."  You can choose the specific types of Canvas activities that will generate a notification.  By default the notifications will be sent to your Whitman email address, but you can also register your mobile phone number to receive text messages, or download the Canvas mobile app and set push notifications to be sent to you.

How to find

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Email:

By default the notifications will be sent to your Whitman email address.

1. In the upper lefthand side of the Canvas web page, under the clocktower icon.
2. Click on Account, then Notifications. Here you can set your notification preferences.

Text Messages (SMS): 

1. In the upper lefthand side of the Canvas web page, under the clocktower icon.
2. Click on Account, then Settings. 
3. On the upper right side of the screen, under "Ways to Contact", click "+Contact Method" and follow the instructions that appear.
4. Above "Settings" (from step #2) click on "Notifications".  Here you can set your notification preferences.

Push notifications (via the Canvas app)

1.  On your mobile device or tablet go to the App Store (Apple devices) or the Google Play App Store (Android devices) and search for "Canvas Student" or "Canvas Teacher" (depending on which one you need).
2.  Follow instructions on the app to sign on.
3.  In the apps "Settings" you will find "Push Notifications" 
   ... OR ...
   If you sign on to Canvas through a web browser. 
   1. In the upper lefthand side of the Canvas web page, under the clocktower icon.
   2. Click on Account, then Notifications. Here you can set your notification preferences.

How should I set my notifications???

This is up to each individual using Canvas.  However, as a starting point, Technology Services recommends paying close attention to the notifications highlighted in the following PDFs:

Recommended starting point notifications for STUDENTS

Notifications to consider for FACULTY

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and set Notifications:

• General intro: https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Video-Guide/Notification-Settings-All-Users/ta-p/383690
• For students: https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Student-Guide/How-do-I-manage-my-Canvas-notification-settings-as-a-student/ta-p/434
• For faculty: https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Instructor-Guide/How-do-I-manage-my-Canvas-notification-settings-as-an-instructor/ta-p/1222
• As you work with your notifications, note that if you hover your mouse over the name of a Notification (in a web browser, not a mobile app), you'll get a short description of what the notification does.  If you really want to get into how notifications, check out this pdffrom Instructure (makers of Canvas). 

General things to be aware of:

• There are two types of activity notifications:  a “Notification” to email, SMS, etc, and the Course Activity Stream which displays inside Canvas.  There are some limited cases where no “Notification” goes out, but it does show up in the Course Activity Stream and vise versa.
• Notifications to students cannot be controlled by faculty members.  Each person in Canvas can set the way they choose to receive Notifications.  Faculty members can, however, make recommendations to students on how to set their Notifications.
• In general, Notifications can be set to be sent to you immediately, daily, weekly, or never.  However,…
• … Canvas mobile apps and text notifications can only be sent to you right away or never.  They don’t work with daily or weekly summaries.
• Notifications are set for a person’s entire account, but can be overridden by settings made for individual courses.
• You may be able to reply to emails Notifications from Canvas, but they won’t contain attachments from within Canvas.

WCTS suggestions:  notifications to pay attention to

The following is not an exhaustive list of all settings,(see this PDF for a complete listing and explanations), but rather highlights that faculty members may choose to change from their default state to something else, as well as recommend their students set in a certain way.

Course Activities

✏️ Due Date — Basically means any time a due date is added or changed to anything (new or existing)

✏️ Course Content — Notifications generated when you (faculty member) make a change to an Assignment, Quiz, or Page AND you check “notify users” when you do so. (There are a few limited exceptions where a notification will go out, but most of the time, you’re in control)

✏️ Announcements and Announcements Created by You — self-explanatory

Grading —  (Differs from “Grading Policies” notification).  Addresses grade availability for students for individual assignments, quizzes, etc, faculty members can have the notifications include the actual grades.

Invitations — Alert you to invitations to collaborate on something in a course, e.g. Collaboration (Google Doc), Conference, Peer Review etc.

All Submissions — Notify faculty member that an individual student has submitted something to you.  By default, this notification is turned off.

Late Grading — Notifies faculty members— a student has submitted a late assignment.

✏️Submission Comments — Notifies student that there are comments on an assignment (and what the comments are), or notifies them that an instructor has re-uploaded their submission.

Discussions 

All settings in this area

Conversations

✏️ Added To Conversation — Someone in the course added you to an existing Conversation.  You can reply to it from your email account as long as you don’t have attachments associated with it.

✏️  Conversation Message — You have been sent a conversation

Scheduling 

All settings in this area

Alerts

Administrative Notifications — Includes accepted course enrollments, generated reports, context export, migration export, new account users, and new student groups.  Applies only to instructors

Content Link Error — A student clicks on a link that is “broken” (because the content is unpublished, because they don’t have permission to view it, or because its just broken).  This notification is for instructors.