Observer Account Settings- Notifications & Alerts

Desktop/Computer

How do I set my Canvas notification preferences as an observer?

Canvas includes a set of default notification preferences you can receive for the courses you are observing. Notifications are sent to Canvas contact methods as specified in your account User Settings. However, you can change the default settings by setting your own notification preferences. These preferences only apply to you; they are not used to control how course updates are sent to the student you are observing.

Some notifications may not apply to the observer role. To learn more about each notification, default settings, and notification triggers, view the Canvas Notifications PDF Links to an external site..

Notifications are sent as one of four delivery types: notify me right away, daily summary, weekly summary, or don't send. If you change a setting, the change is made immediately to your account.

Notification settings apply to all courses you are observing; you cannot change settings for individual courses.

You can reply directly to email notifications outside of Canvas and have the reply appear in Conversations. However, please be aware that attachments added as part of an external reply are not included with the message shown in the Canvas Inbox.

Open Notifications

In Global Navigation, click the Account link [1], then click the Notifications link [2].

Set Notification Preference

You can select to view an observed student's name in a notification. Select the Show name of observed students in notifications checkbox [1]. Currently only grade update notifications include observed student names.

Each notification is set to a default preference. To change a notification for a contact method, locate the notification and click the icon for your preferred delivery type.

To receive a notification right away, click the check mark icon [1]. These notifications may be delayed by up to one hour in case an instructor makes additional changes, which prevents you from being spammed by multiple notifications in a short amount of time.

To receive a daily notification, click the clock icon [2].

To receive a weekly notification, click the calendar icon [3]. The date and time of your weekly notifications are posted at the bottom of the notifications page.

If you do not want to receive a notification, click the remove icon [4].

Notes

• Each set notification preference will automatically apply to all of your courses. They cannot be set individually.
• Twitter and SMS notification preferences do not support daily summary or weekly summary options.
• Unregistered contact methods will appear in notification preferences but will not receive notifications until you confirm the registration.

View Notification Details

To view details for a notification, hover over the notification name.

View Privacy Notice

If you've set a notification preference for an email address that is outside your institution, you may see a privacy warning. You can close the warning by clicking the OK button. Once the warning has been displayed, it will not display again.

View this Guide on the Canvas Community Links to an external site. | Printable Version Links to an external site.

Phone/Tablet

Open User Menu

Tap the Menu icon.

Manage Students

To manage student, tap the Manage Children link.

Open Student

To manage a student, tap a student's name.

Set Alerts

To enable a toggle alert [1], tap the toggle so it shifts to the right.

You can also be notified of alerts when an assignment is above or below a certain percentage. To enter the percentage, tap the numbers next to the assignment criteria [2].

Enter Percentage Alerts

To enter a percentage alert, tap the numbers on the keypad [1]. To delete a digit, tap the Delete icon [2].

To save the alert, tap the Done link [3].

If necessary, you can disable the alert at a later time by re-opening the alert and clearing the percentage.