Features

49 tools across Canvas LMS, Ed Discussion, and Gradescope.

Canvas — course content (read)

canvas_list_courses · canvas_get_course · canvas_list_announcements · canvas_list_assignments · canvas_get_grades · canvas_list_files · canvas_get_file_content · canvas_list_pages · canvas_get_page · canvas_list_modules · canvas_list_module_items · canvas_get_unit_outline_url · fetch_unit_outline (USYD unit outline parser) · canvas_list_calendar · canvas_get_syllabus · canvas_download_file

Canvas — student dashboard (read)

canvas_get_todo · canvas_get_upcoming · canvas_get_missing_submissions · canvas_get_submission_status (per-course, grouped by state) · canvas_list_discussions · canvas_get_discussion (full threaded view) · canvas_get_all_grades (all courses, one call) · canvas_get_my_submission (marker feedback + rubric) · canvas_get_peer_reviews

Canvas — write

canvas_submit_assignment (text / URL / file upload) · canvas_post_discussion_entry (post or reply)

Ed Discussion — read

ed_get_user_info · ed_list_courses · ed_list_threads · ed_get_thread · ed_search_threads · ed_list_lessons · ed_get_lesson (slides + content) · ed_list_resources (lecture slides / links / files by category) · ed_download_resource (save resource files locally, up to 50MB)

Ed Discussion — write

ed_post_thread · ed_edit_thread · ed_post_comment (comment or answer) · ed_reply_to_comment · ed_accept_answer · ed_thread_action (star/unstar; staff: pin/lock/endorse)

Ed Workspaces

ed_list_workspaces · ed_create_workspace · ed_update_workspace (rename / sharing) · ed_delete_workspace

Write content is markdown — automatically converted to Ed's XML document format (headings, bold/italic, code spans/blocks, lists, links, math, callouts).

Gradescope (read)

gradescope_list_courses · gradescope_list_assignments (due dates, submission status, grades)

Cross-platform

verify_assessment_coverage (Unit Outline vs Canvas assignments)

Installation

1. Install Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

2. Configure Claude Desktop

Edit the Claude Desktop configuration file:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Add the following configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "canvas-ed-mcp": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": [
        "/your/full/path/canvas_ed_mcp.py"
      ],
      "env": {
        "CANVAS_API_TOKEN": "your_Canvas_API_Token",
        "ED_API_TOKEN": "your_Ed_API_Token",
        "GRADESCOPE_EMAIL": "your_email (optional, for Gradescope tools)",
        "GRADESCOPE_PASSWORD": "your_password (optional)"
      }
    }
  }
}

Not at the University of Sydney? Add "CANVAS_BASE_URL": "https://canvas.yourschool.edu/api/v1"
to the env block above and all Canvas tools will target your school's instance
(the Unit Outline URL allowlist follows it automatically). Without it, the server
defaults to https://canvas.sydney.edu.au/api/v1. The Unit Outline tools
(canvas_get_unit_outline_url, fetch_unit_outline, verify_assessment_coverage)
parse USYD's outline pages and only work at the University of Sydney.

Gradescope has no official API — tools use the maintained
gradescopeapi scraping library.
University SSO accounts must first set a native Gradescope password via
the "forgot password" flow on gradescope.com.

3. Restart Claude Desktop

Usage Examples

Canvas Operations

List all my Canvas courses

Get announcements for course ID 12345

View my assignment list

Ed Discussion Operations

List my Ed Discussion courses

Get the latest discussion threads for Ed course ID 12345

Search for threads about "assignment" in Ed course

Get detailed content and replies for Ed thread ID 67890

Tool Reference

All 49 tools with their input parameters, taken from the Pydantic input models in canvas_ed_mcp.py (same grouping as Features). Enum types:

• ResponseFormat: markdown (default) or json
• EnrollmentState: active (default), completed, or all
• SubmissionType: online_text_entry, online_url, or online_upload
• ThreadFilter: all (default), unread, unanswered, or starred
• ThreadSort: new (default), old, top, or hot
• EdThreadType: post, question (default), or announcement
• EdCommentType: comment (default) or answer
• EdThreadAction: star, unstar, pin, unpin, lock, unlock, endorse, or unendorse

Canvas — course content (read)

Canvas — student dashboard (read)

Canvas — write

Ed Discussion — read

Ed Discussion — write

Ed Workspaces

Gradescope (read)

Cross-platform

API Token Information

Canvas API Token

• Source: Canvas → Account → Settings → Approved Integrations → + New Access Token

Ed Discussion API Token

• Source: Ed Discussion → Settings → API
• Note: Ed API is an unofficial beta version, endpoints may change

Workflow Examples

View All Course Discussions

1. First get Ed course list: ed_list_courses
2. Note the Ed course ID of the course you're interested in
3. Get threads for that course: ed_list_threads (using course ID)
4. View specific thread details: ed_get_thread (using thread ID)

Check Assignment Due Dates

1. Get Canvas course list: canvas_list_courses
2. Get course assignments: canvas_list_assignments (using Canvas course ID)

Troubleshooting

Ed API Errors

401 Authentication Failed

• Check if Ed API token is correct
• Confirm token hasn't expired

404 Resource Not Found

• Ed course ID and Canvas course ID are different
• Use ed_list_courses to get the correct Ed course ID

Canvas API Errors

404 Resource Not Found

• Check if Canvas course ID is correct
• Confirm you have permission to access the course

Technical Notes

Ed API Endpoints

Ed Discussion API is unofficial and based on reverse engineering. Main endpoints:

• GET /api/user - Get user information and course list
• GET /api/courses/{id}/threads - Get course threads
• GET /api/threads/{id} - Get thread details

Data Format

Ed Discussion uses a special XML format to store thread content. The MCP server automatically parses this into plain text.

Project Structure

canvas-ed-mcp/
├── canvas_ed_mcp.py           # Full MCP server (Canvas + Ed + Gradescope)
├── requirements.txt           # Python dependencies
├── claude_desktop_config_example.json  # Configuration example
└── README.md                  # This document

Security Reminder

• DO NOT commit API tokens to version control systems
• DO NOT share your tokens with others
• Tokens are equivalent to your account password

中文

功能特性

共 49 个工具，覆盖 Canvas、Ed Discussion、Gradescope 三个平台：

• Canvas 读取：课程 / 公告 / 作业 / 成绩（单课明细 + 全部课程一次拉取）/ 文件 / 页面 / 模块 / 日历 / syllabus / USYD unit outline 解析
• Canvas 学生仪表盘：待办、即将截止、缺交清单、按提交状态分组、我的提交与批改反馈（评语 + rubric）、peer review、讨论区
• Canvas 写入：交作业（文本 / URL / 文件上传）、讨论区发帖回帖
• Ed 读取：课程 / 帖子 / 搜索 / Lessons（含 slides）/ Resources（讲义、链接、文件清单，文件可下载到本地）
• Ed 写入：发帖、编辑、评论 / 回答、回复、采纳答案、star 收藏（markdown 自动转 Ed XML 格式）
• Ed Workspaces：列表、创建、改名 / 共享设置、删除
• Gradescope 读取：课程、作业（截止时间 / 提交状态 / 分数）
• 跨平台：Unit Outline 与 Canvas 作业对账

安装步骤

1. 安装依赖

pip install -r requirements.txt

2. 配置 Claude Desktop

编辑 Claude Desktop 配置文件：

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

3. 重启 Claude Desktop

安全提醒

• 不要 将 API 令牌提交到版本控制系统
• 不要 与他人分享你的令牌
• 令牌相当于你的账户密码

License

For educational purposes only. Ed API is an unofficial beta version, use at your own risk.

Author

Ricky - CS Student @ University of Sydney

Interested in Cloud Engineering & DevOps