What is the difference between Announcements and Discussion?

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Open Announcements

In Course Navigation, click the Announcements link.

Add Announcement

Click the Add Announcement button.

Create Announcement

Type a title for the announcement in the topic title field [1] and add content in the Rich Content Editor [2]. You can also add links, files, and images to the announcement using the content selector [3].

Note: The Rich Content Editor includes a word count display below the bottom right corner of the text box.

Select Sections

By default, Canvas will send your announcement to all sections within your course. To select specific sections for your announcement, click the Post to drop-down menu and select sections from the list provided.

Note: If your course does not have sections, Canvas will still show the All Sections option, and all course users can view the announcement.

Select Options

You can add an attachment to your announcement by clicking the Choose File button [1].

In the Options section, you can select various options for your announcement. You can delay the posting of your announcement [2], which allows you to schedule the announcement for a future date.

Additionally, you can allow users to comment on the announcement [3] and require students to reply to a post before seeing other replies [4].

You can also enable an announcement podcast feed [5] and allow students to like announcement replies [6].

Notes:

By default, comments are not allowed in announcements unless the Allow users to comment checkbox is selected.
The Allow users to comment option is persistent, meaning the option you select when creating or editing an announcement will carry over when you create a new announcement in the course. However, the Users must post before seeing replies option is not persistent.
Comment options may not be available to you if announcement comments are disabled in your course. Check your Course Settings if you cannot view these checkboxes.

Save Announcement

Click the Save button.

Note: Unless you are using the delay posting option in Announcements, once you click Save, your announcement will immediately be posted in your course.

View Announcement

View the announcement in the Announcements Index Page.