Canvas BasicsMyth #4: "I'll get answers to my last-minute questions immediately."

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Common Myth #4

"I'll get answers to my last-minute questions right away."

Let's Clarify Instructor Availability

In a face-to-face class, you might need to wait until next week to see your instructor. You might think that your online instructor is always online. While your course content is available 24/7, your instructor will not be available 24 hours a day. This is a misconception that we're sure all instructors would like to be cleared up right away.

Read the information on all the tabs to plan how and when to be in contact with your instructor.

Click on each tab to read and watch the provided information.

Instructor Workload

It's important to remember that, like any face-to-face course, your instructor has specific available hours for your course. Be sure you know them to utilize your time more efficiently. Most instructors will include their Office Hours and instructor availability times in the syllabus.

Just like you, your instructor has a workload. They are likely teaching 4 or 5 classes, depending on the subject. Each week, they create future content, grade submitted work, and respond to current questions. And they are doing this for all their classes. So, if they teach four classes with 40 students, they are responsible for around 160 students' work and questions.

For everything you do, multiply that by around 160, which is what your instructor does. They can't respond immediately or grade your work right away. Keep this in mind when waiting for a response or a grade. The delay isn't personal---likely, it's just that your instructor is overwhelmed with grading and emails.

Most of your instructors will provide grading turnaround times. Check the syllabus or the Home page for your course. If you have not received a grade after this turnaround time, you can politely message your instructor again to ask about the delay. Grading from all your instructor's classes might have piled up. A follow-up email will help you and your instructor communicate about possible delays.

Heads Up: If you want your instructors to keep to their grading turnaround times, you should plan to keep to the due dates. Late work often causes a domino effect on how effectively instructors can meet their grading turnaround times. If you're submitting on time, your instructor will likely get the grading done on time as well.

Response Time

Most of your instructors provide an email/message turnaround time, typically around 48 hours (not counting weekends). As a student, you need to plan ahead as much as possible, and be sure to have an alternate solution if you are still waiting to hear back from your instructor before an assignment is due (remember, your assignments are your responsibility, not theirs).

Some instructors include a "Questions About the Course" discussion board that encourages students to answer one another's questions. This could be immensely helpful for you and might be a way for you to help other students in turn. So start by checking the class Q&A discussion to see if the answer to your question is already there. If not, post your question--a classmate might know the answer and get back to you quickly.

Another approach would be to reach out to another class member and exchange private messages using Canvas Inbox to support each other throughout the semester. In a face-to-face class, you might get to know the people sitting near you and exchange contact information in case you need notes or help with an assignment. Because you're not meeting with each other once or more times every week, it's easy to forget that other students might help you. You don't need to feel isolated in an online course. Try connecting with classmates on the discussion board and in your Group space (if available). Doing so will help you feel less isolated while providing peer support.

Building supportive online relationships and friendships require skill and practice. The good news is that students who develop good communication skills, learn to be assertive, and can cooperate and collaborate well in a virtual environment will find these skills highly transferable (and valued) in their personal and professional lives long after their courses are over.

Canvas Chat Support

When seeking support, it is essential to remember that your instructors are there to assist you with content related-questions; they are subject-matter experts. If you require technical assistance with Canvas itself, you can reach out to Canvas:

Click on the Help & More (question mark) icon in the Canvas global navigation menu.
- Click on the Chat with Canvas Support (Student) for live chat assistance.
Access Canvas Student Guides to search for an answer yourself.

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