How do I publish or unpublish a module as an instructor?
As an instructor, you can publish or unpublish a module in a course. Unpublished modules are invisible to students.
Modules control the entire flow of your course and its content. When you add items to a Module, please be aware that an unpublished module overrides the state of individual module items.
For instance, if you add a published Discussion to an unpublished Module, students cannot view the Discussion on the Modules page. However, they will still be able to see the Discussion in other areas of Canvas, such as the Syllabus and the Calendar, but they will not be able to open or participate in the Discussion. Please be aware of these potential scenarios when adding course content to a Module.
Modules also supports publishing or unpublishing files, in addition to setting a file as restricted. The restricted status applies to files only and can hide files from students. However, please be aware that restricted files may still be visible to students when they are added to modules. Learn more about restricting files in Canvas.
Note: If you are unable to publish or unpublish a module, you may not have the 'Course Content - Edit' permission. To request this permission, please contact your institution's Canvas administrator.
1. Open Modules
In Course Navigation, click the Modules link.
2. View Status of All Modules
On the Index page, you can view the state of each module. Green icons indicate the module is published [1]. Gray icons indicate unpublished modules [2]. You can change the status of a module by using the module's publishing drop-down menu.
2.1. Publish a Module
To publish a module, click the module's publishing drop-down menu [1]. To bulk publish the entire module and all its items, click the Publish module and all items option [2]. To only publish the module and not the module items, click the Publish module only option [3].
Note: Bulk publishing files in a module is only available when File Copyright is enabled and usage rights are set or disabled in a course.
2.2. Unpublish a Module
To unpublish a module and all its items, click the module's publishing drop-down menu [1] and click the Unpublish module and all items option [2]. To only unpublish the module and not the module items, click the Unpublish module only option [3].
Note: Bulk unpublish is not available for any files within a module.
2.3. Change Status of Module Content Items
You can view and change the status of individual module content items as well. Although publishing a module will also publish all module items, you can manually unpublish individual module items later. Students cannot view unpublished module items as part of a published module. Learn more about managing assignments, quizzes, discussions, pages, and files.
If you add a restricted file as a module content item, restricted files appear with a lock icon. Restricted files act as published files and can be viewed by students (depending on the restriction setting). Learn more about restricting files in Canvas.
Note: Please be aware that an unpublished module overrides the state of individual module items. If an item is published within an unpublished module, students cannot view the item on the Modules page but they can still view the published items in other areas of Canvas. However, they will not be able to interact with the item until the module is published.
3. Modules Student View
Students cannot see any of the actions involved with published status, such as published and unpublished icons and setting icons. Students will only see published modules and available module content items, which are displayed in gray text.