Tracking Mastery: Adding Outcomes to Canvas

By Todd Stansbury, Jackson Technology Center for Math & Science

People that know me know that I am a strong supporter of the Canvas LMS (probably to an unhealthy level, but here we are) and the tools available in it to make teaching easier and more effective. In the past I’ve practically given lectures about Mastery Paths, New Quizzes, and Annotation assignments. But one of the best tools in Canvas for tracking our students’ mastery is also one of the least used: Outcomes. Outcomes lets teachers connect their students’ learning to specific standards.

So why don’t more teachers use it? Some probably don’t even know it’s there. Others probably think it’s too hard to set up. Well, the first problem’s taken care of. Let’s see what we can do about the second.

The first question most people will ask is, why use Outcomes at all? Just because a tool exists doesn’t automatically make it right for you, right? But Outcomes allows us to tie our Canvas assignments and quizzes directly to state standards. It provides a mastery gradebook to track growth over time. And it ensures that assessments across courses or departments measure the same skills in the same ways.

GIF that says "Don't Panic"

With that out of the way, let’s get into the basics of setting up Outcomes, because this is where people often struggle because it seems like it’s too much. (For the purpose of this micro-blog, I’m going to use my WIN class and the eighth grade U.S. History TEKS.)

Just like it says on the cover of the “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,” Don’t Panic.

First, Navigate to your Canvas page. I’m going through “Staff Apps,” but if you have the link saved it might be different for you.

Next, choose the class you want to activate Outcomes for. Then, find “Outcomes” in your course navigation bar on the left. Click the “Find” button in the upper of your page. This is where you can search for the specific outcomes you need for your course. Click the “Account Standards” drop down menu.

From here, all you need to do is choose the source of your outcomes, “Garland ISD,” and what TEKS you want to use. (Secondary Social Studies, for me.)

Choose the specific course you want, grade level and subject matter, so you don’t have to dig through hundreds of TEKS every time you want to add it to an assignment. Click on the “Add All Outcomes” button. You’ll get a really useful warning here, letting you know just how many outcomes you’re about to add. Click “Import anyway” and be ready to be patient as it adds all those outcomes.

For a simple step-by-step guide, click on this link to check out the Scribe click sheet I made during this process.

So, now that you’ve got those outcomes in, what can you do with them? Let’s take a look at one of the most basic ways, adding outcomes to questions on quizzes or tests in Canvas.

Start by navigating to your course and clicking on “Quizzes” in the course navigation bar. Click “+Quiz” and choose “New Quizzes” as your test engine. Do all the basic things like naming the quiz and assigning access, then click on the build button.

Choose the content you’d like to add. For this example, I’m using a straight multiple choice question.

Enter the question and answer choices. Scroll down, and click on the “Align to Outcomes” drop down. You’ll see a new section that will “Align Institution outcomes to this question.” Click on that.

You can add outcomes in two different ways. You can click on the Outcome Groups (Social Studies (Grade 8) in my example), or search for the TEKS by number in the search bar.

Just remember, if you search (which is a lot easier), only put the grade level and TEKS number, not the letter at the end, because it will not find any outcomes if you do. Click the outcome you want, and then click “Confirm Alignment.” (If you have a second TEKS to add, search for it before clicking “Confirm Alignment.”)

Then all you have to do is save the question and you are done.

Now you’re doing so much more than just grading. You’re telling a story of student growth and mastery. Using it consistently, you’ve got a powerful tool for reflection and a window into your teaching and your students’ learning.

I used AI for brainstorming only and crafted the content myself.