As we work toward ADA Title II compliance, it is important to understand how course materials are evaluated within Canvas.
Canvas is designed to deliver active instructional content to students. It is not intended to function as a long-term file storage system. When courses are copied forward each semester, unused files, outdated materials, and duplicate documents often accumulate. Over time, this creates clutter that impacts both course management and accessibility review.
Understanding how this affects compliance can help you take a more strategic approach.
ADA Title II and Digital Course Materials
Under ADA Title II, public institutions are required to ensure that digital instructional materials are accessible.
All materials stored in Canvas are considered part of your digital instructional environment. Files, pages, assignments, and other course content are subject to accessibility review.
The greater the volume of materials in your course, the greater the potential remediation workload. More content means more items to evaluate, more issues to address, and more documentation to maintain.
Reducing unnecessary content is a practical way to make compliance more manageable.
How Extra Files Create Extra Work
UDOIT scans the content within your Canvas course to identify accessibility issues.
Even if a file is unpublished or not actively assigned, its presence in Canvas contributes to your course accessibility score. This means:
- Unpublished files also generate accessibility flags.
- More files result in more potential issues identified.
- Larger UDOIT reports require more time to review and remediate.
Reducing unused files lowers the number of items evaluated and simplifies your remediation workload. Fewer files result in fewer flags and less remediation
Canvas Delivers Content. It Does Not Archive It.
Canvas functions as a course delivery platform. Files stored in your course are treated as part of your active instructional environment.
When courses are copied forward, it is common for the following to accumulate:
- Old syllabus versions
- Duplicate PDFs
- Retired readings
- Draft assignments
- Test uploads and experimental files
These materials remain in the course even if they are no longer linked or assigned.
If a file is not part of your current course design, it does not need to remain in Canvas.
What should I do with older materials?
If you would like to retain older syllabi, readings, or course materials for reference, move them to OneDrive, Google Drive, or preferred external storage.
OneDrive is designed for secure file storage and long-term archiving. Moving unused materials there allows you to:
- Preserve important documents
- Keep Canvas focused on active instructional content
- Reduce unnecessary accessibility flags
- Improve clarity and organization within your course
- Reduces confusion and cognitive load for both faculty and students.
Archive externally. Deliver intentionally.
A Strategic First Step
Using TidyUp to remove unused content before running UDOIT is a strategic first step. Reducing volume upfront makes accessibility work more manageable.
A streamlined approach consists of:
- TidyUp reduces volume.
- UDOIT identifies accessibility issues in the remaining content.
- Fix-It sessions and A.I.D. consultations support faculty learning and accessibility skill-building.
Strategic cleanup supports remediation by:
- Reducing the number of items that require accessibility evaluation
- Creating smaller, more manageable remediation plans
- Allowing you to focus on content students actively use
When fewer materials exist in your course, there are fewer items to review, fix, and document. Accessibility work becomes more targeted, efficient, and sustainable.
Reducing clutter today reduces remediation tomorrow.
If you would like assistance using TidyUp or reviewing your UDOIT accessibility report, please attend an upcoming Fix-It session or schedule a consultation.
