New Office Hours Section on Canvas Front Page

A dedicated section is now available on your course’s Canvas front page to more clearly display your office hours to students. This ensures students can quickly find when and how they can reach you.

How to Update Your Office Hours

Follow these steps to customize your office hours:

  1. Log into Canvas and navigate to your course.
  2. On the course homepage, click the Edit button (usually found in the top right).
  3. In the new “Office Hours” section, you can add/remove columns and/or rows for:
    • The days and times you’re available.
    • The format (in-person, virtual, or hybrid).
    • Location or link (for virtual office hours).
  4. Save your changes by clicking the Save button at the bottom of the page.

By making your availability clear, we’re hoping that students will feel more confident reaching out for support!

Microsoft Teams Integration with Canvas

To streamline virtual office hours and collaboration, you can now incorporate Microsoft Teams directly into your Canvas course.

How to Add Microsoft Teams to Your Canvas Course

  1. Enable the Microsoft Teams Integration:
    • Go to your Canvas course and navigate to Settings.
    • Click the Apps Integration tab and search for “Microsoft Teams.”
    • Under Feature, you should see Microsoft Sync, which you will need to click to enable the tool for the course.
  2. Set Up a Team for Your Course:
    • Open Microsoft Teams and create a new Team for your course if you haven’t already.
    • Use the generated meeting links for recurring virtual office hours.
  3. Link to Office Hours or Assignments in Canvas:
    • You can add your Teams meeting link to the “Office Hours” section if you prefer to meet that way with students.
    • Embed Teams into announcements and/or modules, too, for seamless student access.

Benefits of Teams Integration

  • Host virtual office hours with video, chat, and screen sharing.
  • Collaborate on documents and projects in real time.
  • Monitor student interactions and work in real time.
  • Record sessions for students who can’t attend live.

Tips for Success

  • Communicate often and open lines of communication early.
  • Keep your contact information regularly updated to reflect changes in availability.
  • Provide clear instructions to ensure students know how to access and use Teams for meetings.

***NOTE: If you need help setting up these features, feel free to reach out to our team for additional support at gvids@psu.edu.