Use Quiz Accommodations in Canvas

Last updated on June 9, 2026

During your time as an instructor, you have likely had students ask for extra time or multiple attempts to complete a quiz. Some students may provide an official letter from the Access Center stating their legally required accommodations. Some students may also ask for accommodations for a single test due to unforeseen circumstances, such as technical issues or medical emergencies.

If you decide that a student’s situation warrants accommodations, both New and Classic Canvas’ quiz types include tools to make it easier for you to automatically apply accommodations to a given quiz to meet individual student needs. You can provide extra time or additional attempts for students.

However, these tools function differently, so you want to consider which quiz tool meets your needs. For example, New Quizzes enables you to assign extra time to a student for just one quiz or for all quizzes in the course at once, whereas you add student accommodations to each individual quiz in the Classic Quizzes tool.

Best Practices

• In your syllabus or course information, describe the circumstances and forms of verification you will accept to provide accommodations.
  • Can you verify the circumstances? If your student described technical issues, do they have a screenshot of the technical issue with a timestamp? If there is a medical reason, do they have a letter from their doctor?
  • Who is responsible for the student’s inability to complete their quiz? Was it a situation that could have been avoided? And, if so, would providing the student with extra time or attempts create an unfair advantage over other students who were able to complete their quiz within the required limits?
• Consider using New Quizzes if you would like to assign extra time accommodations to a student for all quizzes in the course.
• You may need to extend the Availability window if it ends before the accommodation due date. The Availability settings override any extra time accommodations.

Let’s walk through it together

Add Accommodations to a Classic Quiz

1. Log in to your Canvas Account.
2. Select the Course you’d like to work in.
3. Click Modules on the course navigation menu to the left.
4. Scroll to the Module where your Quiz is located.
5. Click the Name of the classic quiz you wish to provide accommodations for.
   • Note: Classic Quizzes have an outline of a rocket ship, while New Quizzes have a solid rocket ship.
6. Click Moderate This Quiz in the menu to the right of the screen.
7. Locate the Name of the student who requires accommodations.
8. Click the Pencil Icon next to the student’s name.
   • Note: To provide the same accommodations for multiple students at once:
     • Click the Checkboxes next to each of the students’ names.
     • Click Change Extensions for [#] Selected Students.
9. Type the Number of Extra Attempts the student will receive (if any) in the first box.
10. Type the Number of Extra Minutes the student will receive (if any) in the second box (for timed quizzes only).
11. Check the box next to Manually unlock the quiz for the next attempt if you would like to view the student’s previous submission before allowing them to start their next attempt.
    • If this is not checked, students will be able to start their next attempt immediately after their first.
    • Note: If you set Availability Dates for the quiz, they will take precedence over any accommodations. This can result in a student’s quiz being auto-submitted before their extended time accommodation has expired. See the section, Create Separate Availability Windows For Students with Extended Time for steps on how to prevent this.
12. Click Save.

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Add Accommodations to a New Quiz

1. Log in to your Canvas Account.
2. Select the Course you’d like to work in.
3. Click Modules on the course navigation menu to the left.
4. Scroll to the Module where your Quiz is located.
5. Click the Name of the new quiz you wish to provide accommodations for.
   • Note: Classic Quizzes have an outline of a rocket ship, while New Quizzes have a solid rocket ship.
6. Scroll to the Bottom of the page.
7. Click Build.
8. Click Moderate from the menu at the top of the window.

Adjust Current Quiz Accommodations or Reopen Quiz Attempt

These accommodations will only impact the current quiz you are working in.

Note: If you set Availability Dates for the quiz, they will take precedence over any accommodations. This can result in a student’s quiz being auto-submitted before their extended time accommodation has expired. See the section, Create Separate Availability Windows For Students with Extended Time for steps on how to prevent this.

1. Click the pencil icon to the right of the Student’s name you wish to add accommodations for.
2. Click the toggle next to Reduced answer choices to remove one incorrect answer choice from all multiple choice questions for that student.
3. Click the Time Limit tab from the Current Quiz Accommodation panel to adjust the Time Limit accommodations for the quiz.
   • Click the Time adjustments dropdown menu to select a Time Adjustment option.
     • Give additional time: Enter the number of addition hours and minutes the student will receive past the original time limit for each New Quiz.
     • Remove time limit (unlimited): This will take away the time limit for that student for all New Quizzes in the course.
4. Click the Attempts tab rom the Current Quiz Accommodation panel to provide the student with additional attempts for the quiz.
   • Enter the number of additional attempts the student will receive for the current quiz in the Additional Attempts field.
5. Click the blue button at the bottom right of the accommodations panel to save your changes. The Blue button will differ depending on the students submission status and adjustments made.
   • Apply & Reopen: This will save time changes and reopen the latest quiz attempt for the student. The student will be allowed to resume their assessment with the additional time granted, and all previously recorded responses will be retained.
     • This appears if the students quiz attempt has been graded, and the time settings were changed.
   • Reopen: This will reopen the students previous attempt without changing time settings. The student will be allowed to resume their assessment with any remaining time they had on the time before it was submitted, and all previously recorded responses will be retained.
     • This will appear if you did not make any accommodation changes but the student has time remaining on the time.
     • Use this if a student accidentally submitted early or were prevented from finishing due to the Availability Window.
   • Apply: This will save any time or additional attempt settings for the quiz without reopening an attempt.
     • This appears when adjusting the number of attempts or adjusting the time limit before a student has submitted their final attempt.

Adjust Course Level Accommodations

Course level accommodations will apply for all New Quizzes in the course. You can only add additional time and reduce answer choices at the course level. Additional attempts must be done on an individual quiz basis.

1. Click the Name of the student you wish to set course level accommodations for.
2. Click the Time adjustments dropdown menu to select a Time Adjustment option.
   • Give additional time: Enter the number of addition hours and minutes the student will receive past the original time limit for each New Quiz.
   • Remove time limit (unlimited): This will take away the time limit for that student for all New Quizzes in the course.
   • Time limit multiplier: Enter a multiplier number that will multiply the time limit for each New Quiz by that amount.
     • Ex. If a student’s accommodations state that they receive time-and-a-half for all quizzes, enter 1.5 in the Time limit multiplier field.
3. Click the toggle next to Reduced answer choices to remove one incorrect answer choice from all multiple choice questions for that student.
4. Check the box next to Apply these changes to the in-progress attempts as well if the student has already begun a quiz attempt and needs these accommodations.
5. Click Save.

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Create Separate Availability Windows for Students with Extended Time

1. Click the Name of the quiz to open it.
2. Click Edit.
3. Scroll down to the quiz’s Assign setting.
4. Click + Assign To.
5. Click the Assign To box in the new section that appears.
6. Enter or Select the Name(s) of the student(s) who require an extended Availability Window.
7. Click the Calendar Icon in the Date fields to set a new Due Date, Available from, and Until Date for the selected student/s.
8. Select a Time for each date.
9. Click Save.

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Have questions?

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