Overview
This article explains the interaction between cross-listed courses in Canvas and assessment data. The content is designed for System Administrators and Faculty using the Advanced Canvas Integration.
Understanding Cross-listing
A cross-listed course is a single class offered by multiple disciplines (for example, a course listed as both "History 101" and "Political Science 101").
In Canvas, these are often combined into one "parent" course shell to simplify instruction. The integration ensures that even when courses are combined in Canvas, the data remains organized by the original department in the back-end system.
Configuration Requirements
- Create Independent Courses: Create the independent courses within Canvas.
- Align IDs in System Administration: Create course sections in System Administration, ensuring that the Course Section IDs are unique and match the Student Information System (SIS) IDs on the multiple Canvas courses.
- Create a Shell Course: Create a shell course in Canvas and add the original Canvas courses into that shell.
- Verify SIS ID Links: The SIS ID from the shell course does not need a link to a course section in System Administration. The PSS-Canvas integration continues to recognize the Course Section ID-SIS ID match from the original courses.
How Data Flows
When courses are combined in Canvas, the system maintains the original enrollment records for each student. The process works as follows:
The Canvas Setup: Moving Course A and Course B into a new shell called Course C allows for the management of a single site in Canvas.
The Mapping: The system maintains links between the work and the original Section A and Section B created in System Administration.
The Result: Assessment activities created in the combined Course C automatically appear under the correct individual sections in Planning & Self-Study.
Timing and Data Security
- Late Cross-listing: If courses are combined after the completion of student assessments, the data still flows into the system correctly.
Unlisting Courses: If courses are separated (unlisted) after assessments are finished, that assessment data is removed from the system.