Overview

Canvas, like many learning management systems, allows for many different content delivery types. The most common needs tend to be the ability to provide assignments, deliver quizzes, host discussions, provide links to digital content or upload content.

Canvas allows for document inline preview, a feature that allows for documents to be expanded into a preview window in your course site so students can view it without the need to download it first (downloading and opening the file in a new window are also available to students looking at preview files).

Adding content to your course is easy with the Content Selector tool. The tool is available in most of the places where you can input or edit content. It is a quick-reference tool on the right panel of the page that gives you the ability to quickly insert links to course content, files, and images from other parts of your Canvas site.

Syllabus

While most learning management systems allow an instructor to upload a file copy of a syllabus or input the syllabus to the course in some way, Canvas has a built-in Syllabus feature area. The Syllabus is called out in the left hand navigation of the course. The Syllabus in Canvas makes it easy to communicate to your students exactly what will be required of them by either inputting content or uploading a file. Additionally the syllabus feature includes a Course Summary that aggregates items due throughout the course in chronological order. This is automatically populated and cannot be edited by the instructor.

Assignments

Canvas offers various assignment types and settings like allowing students the ability to upload, type, or import their submissions from places like Google Drive (activated in the course settings). When assignments are created they are automatically added to the gradebook, Course Summary within the syllabus page, and the course calendar so students can see details and reminders about their assignments throughout the course site.

Quizzes

Canvas offers various types of quiz questions including multiple choice, fill in the blank, essay, and more. Canvas also allows you to create question banks that can be used in your course or “bookmarked” to be used in another Canvas course, making it easy to transfer questions without needing to re-create them. Often question banks from other learning management systems, like Moodle, can be imported into Canvas although Canvas question banks do not have sub-categories and are imported into a “flat”, single-level (non-hierarchical) Canvas bank.

Discussions

Canvas Discussions are asynchronous online spaces were students (and instructors) can discuss topics. Users have the ability to use whatever format they are most comfortable with to communicate. Users can type text, or use the multimedia feature to record and upload video or audio.

Unique to Canvas, the system integrates with many third party tools. Those tools you may be used to seeing within course sites such as Kaltura, Voicethread and Turnitin, will continue to be supported by the University and will be seemlessly integrated once again. Additionally, Canvas utilizes the EduAppCenter. This repository of Apps can be sorted by category and grade level and may expand the abilities of your classroom. If you are interested in a particular app in the EduAppCenter, please contact DEI.

Explore these Canvas Features

The Content Selector

The Syllabus

Assignments

Quizzes

Discussions

Video

Files

Apps