Canvas Guides (English)Canvas GuidesCanvas Instructor GuideDiscussionsHow do I view and sort discussion replies as an instructor?

How do I view and sort discussion replies as an instructor?

You can view all replies in a discussion by scrolling or searching content. Focused discussion replies are shown in hierarchal order; threaded discussions are hierarchal, collapsable, and expandable.

You can also search for discussion replies and copy a direct link to a discussion reply.

If the steps in this lesson do not match what is displayed in your course, learn how to view and sort discussion replies in the Discussions Redesign interface.

Open Discussions

Open Discussions

In Course Navigation, click the Discussions link.

Open Discussion

Open Discussion

Click the name of the discussion.

View Discussion

View Discussion

In a discussion, you have several options to view and sort discussions. Use the search field [1] to search for replies or specific authors. To filter by unread replies, click the Unread button [2]. To view deleted replies, click the Show button [3]. You can also collapse and expand all discussion replies [4].

To subscribe to a discussion, click the Subscribe button [5]. Subscribing to a discussion allows you to follow the discussion and receive notifications as set in your notification settings. You are automatically subscribed to any discussions you reply to. When you create a discussion, you are also automatically subscribed to the discussion. If you are subscribed, the button will have a green background. To unsubscribe, click the Subscribe button and the background will turn gray.

To edit the discussion topic, click the Edit button [6].

To open options for the discussion, click the Options icon [7]. Options allows you to mark all existing posts (replies) as read, delete the discussion, and close the discussion for comments. If your discussion is graded, you can view the rubric for the discussion, if any, as well as access SpeedGrader to grade the discussion.

You can view how many unread and replies are in a thread [8]. The number on the left indicates unread replies, while the number on the right indicates the total number of replies.

Note: The Discussions page supports keyboard shortcuts. To view a window with a list of keyboard navigation shortcuts, press Alt+F8 (on a PC keyboard) or Option+F8 (on a Mac keyboard) simultaneously on your keyboard.

View Graded Discussion

View Graded Discussion

If your discussion is a graded discussion, you can view the discussion the same way as regular discussions. However, you can view the number of points the discussion is worth [1], and if there is a due date [2]. The Options icon [3] will show the rubric for the graded discussion, if any, as well as a link to SpeedGrader.

View Group Discussion

View Group Discussion

If a discussion is a group discussion, you can view the groups that have access to the discussion. To access and view the group discussion, click the group links.

Group discussions only appear for students if they are a member of the group.

View Replies

View Replies

Discussion replies are shown in order of post date. In discussion replies, the unread icon indicates the reply is new and unread [1]. The read icon indicates a reply is read [2]. When you navigate away from the discussion or refresh the page, Canvas automatically marks the replies as read. After Canvas has changed the reply status, you can manually mark discussion replies as read or unread at any time.

You can also change your Discussion Settings so you can manually mark discussion replies as read.

View Threaded Discussion

View Threaded Discussion

Threaded Discussions are discussions with replies within replies. In addition to post date, replies are shown in hierarchal order, with replies naturally indented to indicate when a student replies to another student's reply.

When viewing threaded discussion replies, collapse and expand individual threaded discussions by hovering over the top of the white box containing the entire reply [1]. When a threaded discussion reply is collapsed, you can view the reply indicators showing the number of unread and total replies [2].

View Liked Discussions

View Liked Discussions

If you allow students to like replies in a discussion, a Like icon appears next to each reply in the discussion. Blue icons indicate replies that you've liked. The number of total likes also appears next to the icon.

View Enrollment Notice

View Enrollment Notice

If a discussion includes a reply from an inactive student, a label displays next to the student's name. Inactive student graded discussions can still be graded in SpeedGrader, but students do not receive any notifications about their discussion and cannot view course grades.

Search for Reply

Search for Reply

To search for a discussion reply, enter any term in the Search field [1]. Search results include matches for user names [2] and reply text [3].

View Reply in Discussion

View Reply in Discussion

To clear search results and view the reply as part of the entire discussion, click the View in discussion link [1].

To copy a direct link to the discussion reply, right click the View in discussion link and select the Copy Link Address option [2].

View Reply Settings

View Reply Settings

Each discussion reply has its own options menu.

In original discussion replies, you can return to the main discussion topic by clicking the Go to Topic link [1].

In threaded discussions, if you are viewing a reply within a reply, return to the original reply by clicking the Go to Parent link [2].

To edit or delete the reply, click the Edit or Delete links [3].

View Graded Discussion Settings

View Graded Discussion Settings

Graded discussions also include an Open in SpeedGrader link to grade the discussion replies.

Reply to Discussion

Reply to Discussion

To reply to a discussion, reply to the main discussion topic by clicking the Reply field [1]. If your discussion is threaded, you can reply to any other post in the discussion by clicking the Reply link [2].