Online@JSU this Week | 10.27.25

⚠️ Service Interruption Update: Canvas, Studio, and Mastery Connect


On Monday, October 20, 2025, Instructure experienced a temporary service interruption due to an outage within Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the us-east-1 region.

Because Instructure’s products are hosted through AWS, this incident resulted in degraded performance and intermittent unavailability for several platforms, including Canvas, Canvas Studio, and Mastery Connect, for institutions hosted in that region, which includes Jacksonville State University.

Service has since been fully restored, and Instructure continues to monitor system performance to ensure ongoing stability.

🆕 What’s New & What’s Next in Canvas


Stay informed with Instructure’s New & Next / Release Blog, where the Canvas product team shares upcoming features, enhancements, and change timelines. This is your window into what’s evolving behind the scenes so you can plan ahead.


🔍 Why It Matters for Faculty


  • Get ahead of last-minute surprisesRead what’s coming (and when) so you can test in a sandbox before updates hit your live courses.
  • Strategic planning for fall/next term Decide when to activate new tools or workflows so you don’t disrupt student experiences.
  • Optimize your course design Use insight into interface changes or new features to refresh modules, pages, or assessments.
  • Support smoother transitionsWhen big changes (e.g. new quizzes, redesigns) roll out, you’ll be ready with resources, training, and student guidance.


💡 Tip: Bookmark the Instructure Release Blog to stay in the loop with upcoming changes before they go live!


"Did You Know?"


You can reuse quiz questions across multiple Studio videos!


If you’ve created interactive quizzes in Studio to check student understanding, you don’t have to start from scratch each time. Studio allows you to duplicate or copy existing quiz questions and apply them to other videos. This is especially helpful if you use similar comprehension checks or reflection prompts throughout your course.


✅ Why it’s useful:

  • Keeps question phrasing consistent across modules.
  • Saves time when designing weekly or topic-based video quizzes.
  • Ensures that learning outcomes are reinforced in multiple contexts.


💡 Pro Tip: Try reusing your core questions in a new video to track improvement or retention over time. It’s an easy way to assess learning progress through Studio’s built-in analytics!


🛠️ How to Reuse Questions in Studio

  1. Open your original Studio video quiz.
  2. Click the three dots (⋮) next to the quiz name and select Duplicate.
  3. Open the duplicated version and edit or remove any questions as needed.
  4. Upload or select your new video, then attach the copied quiz to it.


Now you have a fresh video quiz with your favorite questions. No need to rebuild from scratch!

❓ Canvas FAQ Corner


Quick answers to common Canvas questions from faculty like you!


📌 Q1: Can I compare multiple student submissions against each other within the same class?

A: Yes. Turnitin’s “Submitted Works” repository automatically checks each new submission against others in your course, helping you spot peer-to-peer similarities without extra setup.


📌 Q2: Can I customize which behaviors Honorlock flags during an exam?

A: Absolutely. Instructors can adjust proctoring settings before activation by choosing whether to monitor secondary devices, disable copy/paste, or flag specific activities like new browser tabs or background voices.


📌 Q3: Can I integrate Teams chat discussions into my course grading?

A: You can! Export chat transcripts or meeting participation data and upload participation grades to Canvas manually, or use Teams Class Notebook for trackable student engagement.


📌 Q4: How can I automatically remind students about upcoming assignments?

A: Canvas can send automatic assignment reminders via the “Notifications” settings. You can customize the timing so students receive alerts days or hours before due dates.


📌 Q5: Can I track which students have downloaded course files?

A: Yes! Canvas provides file analytics that let instructors see who has accessed or downloaded specific files, helping you monitor engagement and ensure students are reviewing required materials.

Questions or Comments?

Visit our website, email us at online@jsu.edu, or call us at 256-782-8172.


We look forward to hearing from you!


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