O365 + Canvas: Part II – Providing Office 365 (OneDrive) files as Assignments for Students

When incorporating assignments with Office 365 (OneDrive) files there are two options.  The first is to have students create their own products, whether it be a Word, PowerPoint, or Excel file.  Students can then “attach” their creations to a Canvas Assignment through the submission options in Canvas.

The second is for teachers to share out a specific file with students, like a template for students to complete.  Students will receive their own copy to edit and submit.  See the setup instructions below for each of these options

Student Created Office 365 (OneDrive) Files Assignment

With this option, students create their own file from scratch within their own OneDrive accounts.  This is easily accessible through ClassLink.  Teachers then create an assignment in Canvas and make it available so that it can accept students’ Office 365 (OneDrive) files. Follow the steps below for this type of setup:

TIP: For this to work, students need to connect their Office 365 (OneDrive) accounts to their Canvas course.  This can be done the exact same way as mentioned in the Connect Office 365 to Canvas section of the O365 + Canvas: Part I post.

Teacher View

1. Once you’re in your Module section, click on the  Add button to add a new Module item
2. From the drop-down box in the popup window, choose Assignment.
   • Click on [New Assignment] from the new list in the larger box.
   • Create a Name for the Assignment in the provided box.
   • (Optional) Select an indent option.
   • Then click on Add Item.
3. Once returned to the Module, click on the new assignment you just created.
4. In the upper right, click on the Edit button.
5. Add instructions in the Rich Text Editor box.
6. Scroll to the different settings of the Assignment.  In the Submission Type box be sure Online has been select from the drop-down menu and that the box is selected. This will provide the opportunity for students to submit their Office 365 (OneDrive) file that was created.  It may take you back to the External Tool list.  Click on the Select button to move on. 
7. Complete the remainder of your settings with the assignment and publish it to your students.

Student View

1. Once the assignment has been published to the students and they’re ready to turn in their file, they will click on the blue Submit Assignment button as always.
2. From the submission options, they will choose the Office 365 tab.
3. It will open their OneDrive files and folders, and they will choose the file they need to submit and then click on the Attach File button.
4. It will then show the file selected.  They can add comments if they wish.  They will then click on the blue Submit Assignment button.
5. Do not be alarmed about the possible failure message.  Students can click passed OK and move on.

Once submitted, the teacher should now have the file available to be viewed in the SpeedGrader of the Assignment.

Teacher Created Office 365 (OneDrive) Files Assignment

With this option, teachers provide the students with a file, such as a template they would like them to complete. This file exists within the teacher’s Office 365 (OneDrive) account. With this option, students receive their own copy of the file to edit much like they would if they received an attachment from an email.  However, with these steps, the students do not need to download the file to the computer and then re-upload it for submission.  Follow the steps below for this type of setup:

TIP: As mentioned with the Student Create file features, for this to work, students need to connect their Office 365 (OneDrive) accounts to their Canvas course.  This can be done the exact same way as mentioned in the Connect Office 365 to Canvas section of the O365 + Canvas: Part I post.

Teacher View

1. Once you’re in your Module section, click on the  Add  button to add a new Module item.
2. From the drop-down box in the popup window, choose Assignment.
   • Click on [New Assignment] from the new list in the larger box.
   • Create a Name for the Assignment in the provided box.
   • (Optional) Select an indent option.
   • Then click on Add Item.
3. Once returned to the Module, click on the new assignment you just created.
4. In the upper right, click on the Edit button.
5. Add instructions in the Rich Text Editor box.
6. Scroll to the different settings of the Assignment. In the Submission Type box be sure External Tool has been selected.
7. New options will populate below it.  Click on the Find button. 
8. Scroll through the popup list and choose Office 365 Cloud Assignment.
9. Once that is selected, it will open your Office 365 (OneDrive) files and folders.  Choose the file you want to share with your students and click on Attach File. It may take you back to the External Tool list.  Click on the Select button to move on.

TIP: You will have the option for students to open the file in new tab.  This is highly recommended if students may need to reference the instructions in the assignment as they work on the shared file.

10. Complete the remainder of your settings with the assignment and publish it to your students.

Student View

1. After students have opened your assignment, they will see a button that will represent the link to your file.
2. Once they click on it, it will open an online version of the file you shared with them.  They will need to click on the Edit in Browser or Edit Online option, so they can add their work.
   NOTE: In the background, this will also create a Canvas folder in their OneDrive account.  Within that folder, there will be another folder labeled as your course name and will place this file in that folder.  They shouldn’t have an excuse that they lost the file in the process.
3. Once they’ve completed the work, they can click on the Submit button that exists inside the online file.
4. It will then take them to a Summary page of when the assignment was submitted.  They can click on the Finish and return to Canvas.

Once submitted, the teacher should now have the file to be viewed in the SpeedGrader of the Assignment.

Grading Office 365 (OneDrive) Files in Canvas

Grading an Office 365 document works similar to when students upload Office files from a computer.  Once you open the assignment, you should see the SpeedGrader button on the right side of the screen.  As well as the number of submissions.  You even have the option to download the submissions as one giant .zip file where each student submission is their own separate file named after the student.
After you click on the SpeedGrader, you will notice the standard SpeedGrader format but be able to add additional feedback because of the SpeedGrader file feedback tools.

Students will then be able to see your responses.  This is a great way to collect Office 365 based files from students and grade them.

For more information on SpeedGrader, see the How Do I Use SpeedGrader? Canvas guide.