Create a Microsoft Course Group
To get a course group created, you need to sync your Canvas course with the Microsoft Education integration. This is a one-time setup process, and only takes a minute or two. Once initiated, Canvas will automatically maintain the course group roster as students enroll or drop from your course, with an option to manually push a sync.
Setup Microsoft Education to Create a Course Group
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Course Group?A course group is a Microsoft 365 group that automatically syncs with your Canvas course roster through the Microsoft Education integration. When Canvas is connected to Microsoft, the system automatically creates this group containing all enrolled students and instructors, making it seamless to share content and collaborate using Microsoft apps like OneDrive, Stream, SharePoint, and Teams.
Not every instructor takes advantage of these groups, but many use them to share materials in bulk or to facilitate Teams or spaces outside of Canvas within the Microsoft ecosystem.
How Course Groups are CreatedCourse groups are generated automatically through Canvas's Microsoft Education integration. Once your Canvas course is synced with Microsoft Education, the integration creates and maintains a corresponding Microsoft group that mirrors your course enrollment. This happens behind the scenes, you don't need to manually create or manage group membership, as Canvas handles the synchronization automatically.