How to Import & Copy Course Content

Introduction

Starting a course from scratch every semester is time-consuming; that's why Canvas makes it easy to import course content and copy courses.

The Course Import Tool allows for easy importing from another LMS, from a Canvas export, or for copying from one course to another. You can also import QTI files here, which are used to import quiz question banks. 

As an instructor, you can copy a module in a course directly into another course in which you are enrolled. You can also send a module to other instructors at your institution (though if you want to gift a full course to another instructor, you will need to contact the Center for Teaching & Learning for assistance) as well as copy individual module items to other courses. When you copy a module, any assets within that module (images, files, etc.) will be included in your module copy.

Notes:  

  • To share course content, you must have the Course Content - add / edit permission enabled.
  • Shared content does not count against course or user quotas.
  • If you copy the same module to the same course more than once, the module you previously copied will be overwritten with the newly copied module.

If you run into difficulty copying a Canvas course or module(s), contact the Center for Teaching & Learning for assistance. 

⚠️ Warning: Course Resets

At Cal Poly Humboldt, instructors DO NOT have permission to reset course content. If you need to reset your course (i.e. remove all content) for some reason, such as accidentally importing the wrong course content, please contact the Center for Teaching & Learning for assistance.

Tutorial

327 - Course Content Import (Instructors) from the Instructure Canvas Community

The Course Import tool has a number of very useful features, including:

  • Adjust Due Dates: The ability to adjust the due dates upon import
  • Select Content: Choose specific areas of of your course to import
  • Issue reporting: Receive notification if there were any problems with your import