Alternative Assessments During a Canvas Outage

During a Canvas outage, alternative assessment methods might be necessary. To remain equitable in your assessments, use tools that students are already familiar with. 

Below you will find:

  • assessment ideas that can be implemented with minimal setup
  • simple submission methods

Important: For most of the online options below, you will email your students from your course roster. For steps, go to How to email students from PeopleSoft.

Quick Triage: Choose the Simplest Alternative Assessment

  • If your exam is mostly multiple choice: convert key questions to short-answer or “explain your reasoning” questions.
  • If students need to show work: use paper, photos/scans, or a file upload.
  • If the assessment is writing-based: use a Google Doc or Word file with a clear time window.
  • If academic integrity is a concern: use open-book prompts that require application, explanation, reflection, or a brief follow-up conversation.

In-Person Assessments

When Canvas is down, and your class is in-person, you'll most likely print your exam and administer it in class. It might need slight modifications such as: 

  • convert multiple choice exams to a short-answer format
  • use scantrons to easily collect student submissions
  • create problem-solving tasks with required steps or explanations
  • create a single case study or scenario-based prompt

In-Person Submission Types

  • Students can complete these assessments on paper or scantron and submit in class.
  • If Canvas is down for a extended period of time, an option is to use Gradescope to create a bubble sheet assignment which is similar to a scantron exam. For more information or assistance, reach out to cfeti@sjsu.edu.
  • Please see below for online submission options which can also be used for in-person classes. 

Online Assessments

Start with the option that is easiest for students to access and closest to the original assessment format.

Simple take-home exam
Create quizzes using Google Forms
Use Google Docs 
  • Process-based short-answer questions that require students to explain their reasoning, show steps, or reflect on how they reached their answer.
  • Note: Google docs version history allows instructors to see a document’s evolution if they have been added as editors.
Record short audio files or videos
  • Students record a short audio or video response explaining a concept, solving a problem, or reflecting on course material using tools such as Zoom, Panopto, or their phone recording app. Be flexible in the creation method as some students will not have any experience creating audio or video recordings. 
  • Video or audio recordings can provide more authentic responses that assess problem solving, analysis and critical thinking.

Online Submission Types

Start with the easiest option that preserves student privacy and submission records. Below are some options.

Google Forms 

Submit the assessment directly through a Google Form. This is good for timestamped submissions and avoiding shared-folder issues.

Email

Email the assessment document using a required subject line.

Google Doc

Share an individual Google Doc with the instructor.

  • This is useful for writing-based exams or process-based responses. Ask students to email the shared link rather than using a shared folder. 
  • Instruct students to give you Viewer, Commenter, or Editor access.
  • Consider requiring students to give you “editor access” if you’d like to see the document's version history.
Upload to Shared Google Folder

Use shared Google Folders with caution as students may be able to view, edit, move, or delete classmates’ submissions.  

  • To set this up, change the share settings of the folder to SJSU and “editor” and email the folder link.
Share Video or Audio Files
  • Upload the video to Panopto or Google Drive. 
  • Email the link directly to the instructor or share the link in a Google Form.
Upload to Google Classroom (if in use)

Because setting up Google Classroom can be time consuming and your students might not be familiar with it, only use this option if Canvas will be down for an extended period.

Please reach out to cfeti@sjsu.edu for assistance creating alternative assessments or with any general questions.