Quercus (Canvas) provides several ways for instructors and course staff to access class lists and communicate with students. Instructors can download student information for administrative purposes, obtain student email addresses, send messages through Inbox, and share course updates using Announcements.
Understanding the differences between these options can help instructors communicate effectively while protecting student privacy and following University of Toronto policies.
Accessing Class Lists and Student Email Addresses
Quercus provides different ways to download information about students enrolled in a course. The information included depends on the tool used.
- Course Analytics: Download a Class Roster report that includes student email addresses.
- UT Advanced Group Tool: Export a course roster containing student email addresses.
- Gradebook: Download a class list containing student names, identifiers, and grades. Email addresses are not included.
Quercus enrolments are synchronized with the University’s student registration systems (ROSI/ACORN). Class lists and email rosters may change as student enrolments are updated.
Enabling Course Analytics and the UT Advanced Group Tool
Course Analytics and the UT Advanced Group Tool may need to be enabled in the course navigation menu before you can access them.
To enable either tool:
- Open your Quercus course and select Settings > Navigation.
- Locate Course Analytics or UT Advanced Group Tool among the disabled navigation items.
- Move the tool into the enabled navigation items.
- Select Save.
These tools are intended for authorized teaching staff. Enabling their navigation links does not necessarily make them accessible to students.
Downloading Student Email Addresses with Course Analytics
Course Analytics provides a Class Roster report containing student email addresses.
To download the report:
- Select Course Analytics from the course navigation menu.
- Open the Reports tab.
- Locate Class Roster and select Run Report.
- In the report window, select Run Report to generate the report.
- Download the completed report.
Downloading Student Email Addresses with the UT Advanced Group Tool
The UT Advanced Group Tool allows authorized course staff to export a roster containing student email addresses.
To download the roster:
- Select UT Advanced Group Tool from the course navigation menu.
- Select Export Group Roster.
- Select Generate course roster report.
- Open Inbox from the Quercus global navigation menu.
- Locate the message from UTAGT Admin User.
- Download the attached CSV file.
For illustrated instructions on both methods, consult the Arts & Science’s Direct Email Communication resource or the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering’s How do I get student email addresses from Quercus? guide.
Downloading a Class List from the Gradebook
The Quercus Gradebook contains a list of students enrolled in your course. You can export this information as a comma-separated values (CSV) file for administrative purposes.
To download a class list:
- Open your Quercus course.
- Select Grades from the course navigation menu.
- Select Export > Export Entire Gradebook.
- Open the downloaded CSV file in a spreadsheet application, such as Microsoft Excel.
- Review and format the information as needed for your records.
The exported file contains student information and Gradebook data, but does not include student email addresses.
The downloaded file is separate from Quercus. Changes made to the spreadsheet do not automatically update the Gradebook.
Because the export may contain grades and other student information, store and handle the file securely.
For detailed instructions, consult Canvas’s How do I export grades in the Gradebook?
Communicating with Students
Quercus provides several options for communicating with students. The most appropriate method depends on the purpose, audience, and urgency of the message.
Choosing a Communication Method
- Announcements: Share course-wide or section-specific updates, reminders, and information that students may need to refer to throughout the course.
- Inbox: Send messages to individual students, groups, or course participants and manage conversations within Quercus.
- Direct email: Communicate with students through their University email addresses when a message needs to be sent outside Quercus or when another communication channel is appropriate.
Using consistent communication methods can help students understand where to find information and how to contact their instructors or teaching assistants.
Notifications and Communication Expectations
Quercus allows students to customize how and when they receive notifications about course activities, including Announcements, Inbox messages, and assignment updates. Students may receive notifications immediately, as summaries, or not at all, depending on their preferences.
Instructors should not assume that posting an Announcement or sending an Inbox message means every student will receive or notice a notification. For important or time-sensitive information, consider using additional communication methods, such as direct email, when appropriate.
Establish clear communication expectations with students, including where to find course updates, how frequently to check Quercus, and how to contact teaching staff.
For information about notification preferences, consult Quercus (Canvas) Notifications.
University Policies and Student Privacy
The University of Toronto’s Policy on Official Correspondence with Students establishes students’ responsibility to maintain current contact information and regularly monitor their University-issued email accounts. Students may forward University email to another provider but remain responsible for ensuring that official correspondence is received and read.
When communicating with students:
- Protect recipient privacy: When emailing multiple students, use the BCC field rather than displaying all recipients’ email addresses.
- Handle student information securely: Download only the information needed for your purpose, store class lists and email rosters securely, and delete exported files when they are no longer required.
- Use appropriate communication channels: Follow University policies when accessing, storing, and sharing student information.
- Provide clear and accessible messages: Use descriptive subject lines, headings where appropriate, meaningful links, and accessible attachments. Make important information available in a consistent course location so students can find it again.
For additional guidance, consult the University’s Appropriate Use of Information and Communication Technology.
Using Quercus Inbox
Quercus Inbox allows instructors and course staff to communicate with individual students, groups, or course participants without needing to download their email addresses.
Inbox messages are stored within Quercus. Depending on individual notification preferences, recipients may also receive email or mobile notifications.
Inbox recipients must have an active enrolment in the course. Messaging may be unavailable after a course has concluded.
To send a message:
- Select Inbox from the Quercus global navigation menu.
- Select the Compose icon.
- Choose the appropriate course.
- Enter recipients in the To field or use the course roster to select individuals or groups.
- Enter a Subject and compose your message.
- Add attachments or media files if needed.
- Select Send.
When sending a message to multiple students, select Send an individual message to each recipient if recipients should not see one another’s names or participate in a shared conversation.
Canvas automatically sends individual messages when the recipient count exceeds 100, including the sender.
Inbox also allows users to reply to messages, review sent conversations, and filter messages by course or message type.
Students should generally sign in to Quercus to respond to Inbox conversations. Although replying through email notifications may be supported, attachments included in email replies are not transferred to the corresponding Inbox conversation.
For detailed instructions, consult Canvas’s guides:
Creating and Managing Announcements
Announcements allow instructors to share information with an entire course or selected course sections. They can be used for updates, reminders, clarifications, and other information relevant to students’ learning.
To create an Announcement:
- Open your Quercus course.
- Select Announcements from the course navigation menu.
- Select + Announcement.
- Enter a title and compose your message using the Rich Content Editor.
- Add any relevant links, files, or supporting materials.
- Under Post to, select all sections or specific sections, as appropriate.
- Review the available options:
- Comments: Choose whether students can reply to the Announcement. Course-level settings may also affect commenting.
- Scheduling: Set an Available from date and time if you want the Announcement to appear later. You can also set an Until date to control when it stops being visible.
- Other options: Depending on your course settings, you may be able to enable liking or adjust how replies are displayed.
- Select Publish. The Announcement will appear immediately unless you have scheduled a future availability date.
Instructors can also display recent Announcements on the Course Home Page and choose how many appear through Quercus (Canvas) Course Settings.
Important: A course must be published for students to receive Announcement notifications. Announcements created before the course is published do not generate new notifications when the course is subsequently published.
Students’ individual notification preferences also affect whether and when they receive alerts. For important updates, consider whether an additional communication method is appropriate.
For detailed instructions, consult Canvas’s How do I add an announcement in a course?