Roll Call in Canvas
Canvas Guides
What is Attendance/Roll Call?
Roll Call is an integrated LTI in Canvas for taking attendance in face-to-face classes. The tool is called
Attendance and will display in the left navigation of a course
How Do I Take Attendance?
In the left navigation of a course click Attendance. Note: The first time you click attendance you may see a
message from Roll Call requesting access to your Canvas account. This is normal. After you grant access, the
Roll call page will display. On the Roll Call page a list of students in the course will appear. Review the
numbered items below.
1. List/Class – Default display. From the list view students can be marked at present or not present.
2. Gear Settings – Click to set the desired late percentage allowed or to create an attendance report.
3. Current Day/Set a Date – Use the arrows to navigate to a different day or click the calendar icon to
select a date.
4. Mark All Present/Unmark All – Click Mark All Present to mark all students present or click
Unmark All to unmark students.
5. More – Click More to set individual settings for each student. (a) Click the green checkmark for present.
(b) Click the X for a student who is absent. (c) Click the filled in checkmark for a student who is late. (d) By
default students are set at not marked.
Note: When the attendance tool is activated, an assignment is automatically created. DO NOT rename or
delete this assignment. The attendance assignment is worth 100 points and you can make adjustments to the
score.
Page 1
Last update 7/31/17
Roll Call in Canvas
Canvas Guides
How Do I Make Attendance Ungraded?
When the attendance tool is turned on a roll call assignment is created using 100% as a grade. Each time you
take attendance the grade is updated. If you do not wish to grade attendance, the assignment can be changed to
ungraded. Do NOT remove or rename the assignment!
Display the assignment page for Roll Call Attendance assignment. Click Edit.
1. The assignment will display in edit mode. Next to Grading Type click the drop down.
2. Choose Not Graded from the drop down menu. This will leave the attendance in the assignment list but not
in gradebook.
3. Click Update Assignment.
Page 2
Last update 7/31/17
Roll Call in Canvas
Canvas Guides
How Do I Create a Seating Chart?
In Roll Call you can create a seating chart to help you identify students quicker. Review the numbered items
below.
1. Click the Class tab in the upper right corner of the Roll Call screen.
2. Below the date click Edit Seating Chart.
3. A list of students will appear on the left. Click and drag a student’s name on the seating chart grid. Continue
this process until all students are on the grid.
4. A student can be moved on the grid by clicking and dragging the profile icon to a new location on the grid.
5. The seating chart can be made larger or smaller by using the slider above the list of student names.
Taking Attendance from the Seating Chart View
Attendance can be taking from the seating chart view. Click the student’s profile image to toggle through the
choices until you find the correct option for each student.
Page 3
Last update 7/31/17
Roll Call in Canvas
Canvas Guides
What Are Badges?
The badges in Roll Call are primary designed for K-12 market but you may find this useful to give students
badges to associate them with their names or notes visually. To create a badge, complete the following. (1)
Display the list of students. (2) Click More next to the first student in the list. (3) Click Add badge.
A dialog box will appear. (4) Create a name for the badge. (5) Select an icon for the badge. (6) Select a color for
the badge. (7) Click Save Badge. The badge will appear under the attendance options. Click the badge to
activate the badge for the student.
Important
Students do not see the badges.
Page 4
Last update 7/31/17
Roll Call in Canvas
Canvas Guides
How Do I Create a Report?
On the Roll Call screen click the gear icon in upper right and select Attendance Report.
In the next screen the (1) data can be filtered by date by clicking the date icons for start and end dates. (2) Data
can also be filtered by students by typing in the NCTC student ID. (3) By default the email address will be your
NCTC email address. If desired the report can be sent to your department chair or any other person by typing
in their email address. (4) Click Run Report. The report will be sent to you via email. Click on the link in the
email to download the data in CSV format.
Adapted with permission from Lakeland College and Canvas Guides.
Page 5
Last update 7/31/17