How To: Setup Simple Syllabus in Canvas

Simple Syllabus is a dynamic tool adopted by Florida SouthWestern State College (FSW) to streamline the creation and distribution of course syllabi. By integrating directly within Canvas, it allows faculty members to design, update, and share their syllabi in a more efficient manner, aligning with FSW's commitment to enhancing educational resources. With user-friendly features and compliance with institutional standards, Simple Syllabus offers a modern approach to a vital component of the academic experience at FSW.

 

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Locating Simple SyllabusInstructor InformationCourse InformationCourse LocationRequirements for the StudentsAttendance PolicyGrading PolicyRequired and Recommended Course MaterialsClass Schedule and Canvas ScheduleAny other information or class procedures or policies and SubmittingYour Simple Dashboard & FAQ

 

Locating Simple Syllabus

To access your Simple Syllabus, navigate to your Canvas course, and then click on the "Simple Syllabus" link within the Course Navigation Menu on the left-hand side of your Canvas course.

Simple Syllabus link in Canvas.

 

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Instructor Information

This section is where you will supply your information for the semester. Suggested items to share are below. 
 

Remember! You can always click the help arrow icon for guided assistance.

Red arows and selection box pointing to the clickable icon to reveal help if it's not displayed.

To Edit any of the areas, click the Pencil Icon
  • Name
  • Office Location
  • Office Hours
  • Email
  • Phone Number

Sample instructor information completed

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Additional Course Information

This section is optional. You should add any information specific to the section to this box, such as theme, field trips, additional equipment, community engagement, co-curricular learning, etc. 

Sample course information

 

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Course Location

The location and modality of your course. Include the campus and room location and/or the remote meeting location (Class / Zoom). If fully asynchronous, please include a statement indicating this class does not meet in person.

This is a required section which you can identify by the border of the section when being edited, and the Required statement, highlighted below.

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Requirements for the Students

  • This section must remain public.
  • Include a table with assignment categories and weights.
  • List specific course assessments such as class participation, tests, homework assignments, make-up procedures, late work, technology requirements, etc.

Sample Requirements for Students and highlighted arrows pointing to the requirement that this section must remain public

 

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Attendance Policy

FSW defers to the instructor to set their own attendance policy. You should include your specific policy regarding attendance.

Example pictured below:

Picture of a sample attendance policy

 

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Grading Policy

  • This section must remain public.
  • This section has been pre-populated with the standard grading chart by your department chair.
  • You may change it to reflect your grading policy.

Sample Grading policy image showing the default FSW grading ranges.

 

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Required and Recommended Course Materials

Required Course Materials

  • This section must remain public. 
  • The required course materials should be the materials adopted by you and/or your department and available to the students in the FSW Bookstore. If you have questions about the adoption, please contact your Department Chair.
  • The “Title” portion of the Required Course Materials section must be filled out. If you do not have a textbook, you may enter “This course uses open educational resources” as the title. 
  • You may enter hyperlinks in the “Additional Information” section.

Sample required Text book image

Recommended/Reserved Course Materials

  • Include any learning resources or materials on physical or eReserves at FSW Libraries.
  • Include any additional recommended resources, materials, or equipment.

Sample image showing a completed reserved material

 

 

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Class Schedule and Canvas Schedule

Class Schedule

  • Include a breakdown of major assignments in the course and a schedule of topics or modules.
  • Include scheduled Library activities and/or other scheduled support activities.
  • If you are using the Canvas Schedule feature, make a note of that in this box.

Sample image showing a class schedule filled out

Canvas Schedule

  • This section imports your assignment schedule directly from Canvas. Please make changes in Canvas, and they will be reflected here.
  • Your Canvas course must be published for assignments to appear in this section.

Image of a Statment informing faculty that to use this field, they will not enter in Simple syllabus, alternatively, the information will be pulled from canvas once the course is published and the dates are pulled from assignment due dates.

Sample blank canvas schedule

 

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Any other information or class procedures, or policies & Submitting

Any other information or class procedures

  • Add any other course-specific information for your students.
  • Examples include email policy, statements on the use of generative AI, expectations for receiving feedback, etc.

sample other information of an AI statement

Submitting

If you have completed all the required areas above, you will be able to click the Submit button. If the Submit button can not be clicked, you might have some required areas to complete. Each time you make a change to the syllabus, you will need to resubmit it for approval. It might be a good idea to leave a comment on what you have updated and changed if you are re-submitting it after making changes. 

Sample submit button

 

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FAQ & Your Simple Dashboard

FAQ

  • Your syllabus will save automatically as you are working on it.
  • Please review the help text available for each section of the syllabus.
  • Boxes with an orange border must be filled out to enable the “Submit” button for your syllabus.
  • Clicking the “Submit” button will send your syllabus to your department chair for approval. It will be unavailable to you for editing during that time. Once your syllabus is approved by your Chair and your Canvas course is published, your syllabus will become available to your students in your Canvas course.
  • To share a link directly to your completed (approved) syllabus, or get a PDF, you can go to your Simple Syllabus dashboard by clicking the link in any of your syllabi in Canvas or at fsw.simplesyllabus.com.
  • The “Visible” button toggles the visibility of sections of your syllabi on and off for the students in your section. The “Public” button toggles the visibility of sections of your syllabi on and off for anyone viewing the FSW Simple Syllabus Library. Sections that must remain public are noted below and in the help text on Simple Syllabus. Please remember that we are subject to broad open records laws, so any syllabus can be made publicly available through a records request.
  • When you are in “Student View” in Canvas, you will still see the Edit button on the Simple Syllabus link.
  • If you reset your Canvas course, your Simple Syllabus will be de-linked for about 24 hours. To restore the syllabus more quickly, email syllabus@fsw.edu with your CRN. Updating assignments in Canvas will update them on the Canvas Schedule portion of Simple Syllabus, but there may be a delay of up to 24 hours in Simple Syllabus.
  • If you want to include Zoom links for Office Hours or your Live Online/Flex sections, we recommend you do so in the “Course Location” section of the syllabus, which can be toggled to “Private.” This will ensure that only students in your section will see the Zoom link.

Your Simple Dashboard

You can always revisit your completed syllabus and view your "To Do" list by clicking the link at the top titled "View your Simple dashboard."

Picture of a red box highlighting the View your Simple dashboard link

You will see two columns, (1) will be the syllabi you need to complete and submit, (2) the other side will be the syllabi that have been completed. 

Two red selection boxes showing the simple dashbaord To do list and the completed list.

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