.. _Add Course Updates and Handouts:

#########################################
Add Course Updates and Handouts
#########################################

.. tags:: educator, how-to

.. youtube:: 3rPeuFR6UDI

Course updates are communications, especially a welcome message, that learners
see at the top of the **Course** page when they enter the course.

Handouts are links to files that you upload in Studio, for example, a PDF
version of the course syllabus, or an article that you want learners to read.

.. _Add a Course Update:

********************
Add a Course Update
********************

On the **Updates** page in Studio, you see the list of updates sorted in the
order that they were created (most recent at the top of the list). You can
edit or delete a previous update using the pencil and trash icons. If you
create a new update, learners do not see the update on the **Course** page
unless it has the latest chronological date of all existing updates.

.. image:: /_images/educator_how_tos/course_updates_page.png
 :alt: an image of the Updates page. From this page you can add a new update
  by clicking on the button located at the top right hand corner of the page.
  Additionally, you can edit a previous update by selecting the pencil icon
  or delete an update by clicking on the trash icon. You can also add a course
  handout by clicking on the pencil icon on the right side of the page.

To add a course update, follow these steps.

#. In Studio, select **Updates** from the **Content** menu in the header bar.
#. Create your update in the text editor that opens.

     .. note::
        To make sure that your announcements are accessible, if you use
        headings inside an announcement, make sure that you use only level 6
        headings. The structure of the course **Course** page uses
        heading levels 1-5.

   * Specify a date for this update. By default, today's date is already
     entered. You can change the date using the calendar tool, or by entering
     some other valid date.

#. Select **Post**.

   Your new update becomes available to learners immediately. If the update
   has the latest chronological date, it is shown to learners on the
   **Course** page, otherwise the update appears on the **Updates** page.

   .. image:: /_images/educator_how_tos/course_updates_page_editor.png
    :alt: If you select “+ New update”, you see an editor that has many options
     for styling in the toolbar.


#. Optionally, choose whether to send a notification about your update to the Open edX mobile app.

      * Learners can choose to turn off notifications for individual courses or
        for all courses. The **Course** page continues to show updates.
      * Updates appear on the **Course** page, even if you do not send
        notifications.


.. _Add Course Handouts:

********************
Add a Course Handout
********************

To add a course handout, you first must :ref:`upload a file in Studio<Add Course Files>`, then add an entry to a list of handouts,
specifying the URL to your uploaded file and providing a handout title.

You can open the Studio **Files** page in another browser window to make
this process easier.

To add a course handout, follow these steps.

#. In Studio, select **Updates** from the **Content** menu.

   On the **Updates** page, you see a **Course Updates** panel and a **Course
   Handouts** panel.

   .. image:: /_images/educator_how_tos/studio_course_handouts.png
    :width: 500
    :alt: The **Course Updates** page in Studio, showing the Course Handouts
       panel.

#. In the **Course Handouts** panel, select the pencil icon in the top right.

#. In the text editor that opens, add the link to your new course handout. Use the link editor to provide
   human-readable text to the link.

   .. image:: /_images/educator_how_tos/link_editor.png
    :width: 500
    :alt: The **Course Updates** page in Studio, showing the Course Handouts
       panel.


#. Select **Save**.

.. seealso::

 :ref:`About Course Updates and Handouts` (concept)


**Maintenance chart**

+--------------+-------------------------------+----------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
| Review Date  | Working Group Reviewer        |   Release      |Test situation                                               |
+--------------+-------------------------------+----------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
| 2025-04-13   | sarina                        | Sumac          | Pass                                                        |
+--------------+-------------------------------+----------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
| 2025-03-17   | Leira (Curricu.me)            |   Sumac        |Fail (https://github.com/openedx/docs.openedx.org/issues/939)|
+--------------+-------------------------------+----------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+