Create and Edit “New” Quizzes

Last updated on October 5, 2022

Canvas currently offers two types of quizzes: New and Classic. Each type of quiz has its own benefits and limitations. For example, New Quizzes offers more question types and some extra features, but Classic Quizzes has a more robust Rich Content Editor and allows for third-party integration.

Classic Quizzes will be phased out and replaced with New Quizzes in future versions of Canvas; however, Classic Quizzes will still be available until July 2024. In the meantime, you may choose to use either Classic or New Quizzes in your course.

Note: Question Banks used in Classic Quizzes cannot yet be easily migrated to New Quizzes. Refer to our “Migrate Question Banks to Item Banks” tutorial to learn how to convert a classic quiz question bank into a new quiz item bank.

Directions

Migrate a Classic Quiz to a New Quiz

Use this method to make a copy of a Classic Quiz in the New Quiz format. (Note that a quiz cannot be migrated from the New Quiz format to the Classic Quiz format.)

1. Go to MSU Denver’s Faculty and Staff Hub.
2. Click Canvas in the Teaching & Learning section.
3. Log in to your Canvas Account.
4. Select the Course you’d like to work in.
5. Click Quizzes in the course navigation menu at left.
6. Click the More Options Menu (three vertical dots) to the right of the Classic Quiz you wish to migrate.
   • Note: New Quiz icons are filled in with a solid color (either grey if the item is unpublished or green if it is published). Classic Quiz icons are filled in with white.
7. Select Migrate. At the bottom of the list of quizzes, the status of the migration is indicated by whirring circle. The copied quiz will appear with the same title but a now filled-in quiz icon.

Create a New Quiz

To make a New Quiz for the first time, you will need to reset your quiz engine choice. You can choose to make New Quizzes your default selection or choose the quiz format every time you create a quiz.

1. Click Quizzes in the course navigation menu at left.
2. Click the blue + Quiz button.
3. Select New Quizzes.
   • Select the Box for Remember my choice for this course, if you would like New Quizzes to be your default format.
4. Click Submit.
5. Adjust the Settings, as desired.
   • Refer to Edit New Quiz Settings, below, for details.
6. Click Build.
7. Type a Name for your quiz.
8. Add or Change Settings as desired.
   • Points: This is how many points you want your New Quiz to be worth. You can have as many or few questions as you like, and this point value will stay the same in the gradebook.
   • Assignment Group: If you do not have weighted assignment groups, this is primarily for organization.
   • Display Grade as: Here you can select whether you prefer grades displayed as points, percentage, complete/incomplete, letter grade, or GPA scale.
   • Note: Because New Quizzes are an external tool Canvas interacts with, unlikes Classic Quizzes, which are built in, the submission type for New Quizzes will always be External Tool.
9. Enter a Due Date and Availability Window in the Assign section if you accept late work in your course.
   • Note: Your Available Until date should come after the last due date, if you have added any students with accommodations.
10. Click Build.

Edit New Quiz Settings

1. Click Quizzes in the course navigation menu at left.
2. Click on the Name of the New Quiz you wish to edit.
3. Click Build.
4. Add Instructions, as desired.
5. Click Done.
6. Add Questions as desired by clicking on the blue + Button.See Add Questions to a New Quiz, below, for details.
7. Click Settings at the top of the page to edit additional settings. Settings include:
   • Shuffle questions and answers – This tells Canvas to randomize the order that the questions and/or answers are displayed for each student.
   • One question at a time – This tells Canvas to show the quiz or test one question at a time rather than showing all questions at once.
   • Require a student access code – Requires a passcode for students to access the quiz. This setting is typically turned off so all students enrolled in your course have equal access to the assessment.
   • Add a time limit – This tells Canvas how much time you want to provide to students to complete a quiz. You can extend this time for specific students, as needed for accommodations.
   • Filter IP addresses – This lets you choose specific IP addresses that cannot access the quiz. This setting is typically turned off so all students enrolled in your course have equal access to the assessment.
   • Allow calculator – This will provide students with a calculator to use on the quiz. You can choose whether they have a basic or scientific calculator.
   • Allow multiple attempts – This enables you to tell Canvas how many times you want students to be able to retake a quiz. Make sure your settings for showing correct answers is set appropriately if you choose this option.
   • Restrict student result view – This setting tells Canvas what results to show students. They could potentially see points awarded (overall and per question), pointes possible (overall and per question), items and questions, student responses and whether they were correct or incorrect, the actual correct responses, or item feedback.
8. Click Moderate at the top of the page to provide accommodations, if needed.
   • Note: Refer to our “Use Quiz Accommodations in Canvas” and “Add Time to a Quiz for a Specific Student” tutorials to learn more about providing accommodations.
9. Click Return to go back to Quizzes.

Add Questions to a New Quiz

1. Click Quizzes in the course navigation menu at left.
2. Click the Name of the New Quiz.
3. Click Build.
4. Click the blue + (Plus) button in the center where you would like to add a new question.
   • Note: When you add a new question, it will appear below the blue plus sign you selected. You can choose anywhere in your quiz to add a new question.
5. Select the Question Type you wish to use.
6. Type a Question Title into the text box.
7. Type the Question/Prompt into the larger Rich Content Editor text box.
8. Adjust Options, as desired.
9. Add to Item Bank, if desired.
   • See Use Item Banks, below, for details.
10. Adjust the number of Points the question is worth.
    • Note: This determines the value of the question relative to other questions in the quiz. It does not affect the total points the quiz is worth in the gradebook.
11. Add Feedback, if desired:
    1. Click the Speech Bubble Icon next to the points box on the bottom left.
    2. Add Feedback for correct, incorrect, and/or all answers
    3. Click Done.
12. Click Done.
13. Repeat Steps 3-11 to add additional questions.
14. Click Return when the quiz is complete.