Overview
If you have multiple sections of the same course that you would like to control via one Canvas course shell, please follow the directions below about how to cross-list a section.
Important Points
Keep in mind these important points before merging:
- Determine which course section will be the main course or "parent" course, and which course(s) will be merged into that main course. Typically, if an instructor teaches G01, G02, and G03; they will use G01 as the main course, and G02 and G03 will be merged into G01.
- We recommend you merge your courses right after courses are created in Canvas before you add content.
- Do NOT merge sections after the semester has begun AND students have completed work in the course. All student work in the merged (child) course will be lost.
- If you do not want students to be able to see which sections their classmates are enrolled in from the People page, you can hide the sections on that page. To do this, go to Settings > Course Details, click "more options," check the box that says "Hide sections on the People page from students," then click Update Course Details at the bottom.
- We strongly recommend you rename your merged course to encompass all sections.
Video Instructions - Merging Two Sections or Courses
Written Instructions - Merging Two Sections or Courses
From your Dashboard, open the course that you want to move into the main section.
Go to Settings in your course menu.
Go to the Sections tab along the top navigation.
You will see your section linked. Click on the name of the Course section. Do NOT add a new section.
Click on the Cross-List this Section button.
In the Search for Course box, start to type the Course Name or Course ID of the main course. It will auto-fill. Select the desired course.
Click on the Cross-List this Section button.
If you want to see all the students in the class, you can click on People in the course menu. You will notice there are students from both sections. You, as the instructor, are enrolled in both sections.
Change the name of the merged course to reflect all sections of the course. Go to Settings in the course menu, under Course Details, and type the new course name and course code.
Scroll down to the bottom, and click Update Course Details.
To see the newly re-named merged course, go to the Dashboard.
Merging More than Two Sections or Courses
- Complete the same steps above to merge the first merged section into the main course.
- Repeat the same steps again to merge additional sections into the main course.
Additional Reading