Canvas LMS Course Design - Second Edition

Book description

A simple, easy-to-follow guide to learning the advanced features and integrated services of Canvas for creating a transformative and personalized educational experience

Key Features

  • Simplify online and hybrid learning with Canvas with the help of this updated second edition
  • Discover best practices to engage with students as they complete assignments and receive feedback through the Gradebook
  • Follow clear directions to use Canvas tools and features for your educational requirements

Book Description

Canvas is an online learning management system (LMS) and one of the most powerful teaching tools that educational institutions worldwide have adopted thanks to its streamlined functionality, intuitive user interface, and robust features. This revised second edition of Canvas LMS Course Design will show you how to design, create, and teach engaging classes in online, hybrid, or fusion settings using the Canvas LMS.

The book will guide you through the steps of setting up your Canvas account, creating activities and assignments, designing and customizing the course layout, and teaching your course. Whether you're using an institutional or Free-for-Teacher account, you'll be able to use Canvas for grading, feedback, and communication with and between students. As you progress, you'll learn how to integrate external apps and services with Canvas. Finally, the book features an exclusive section detailing how you can use Canvas' built-in resources as well as other resources to tackle challenges while working with the LMS. Throughout, this book will give you the technical knowledge you need to create unique learning experiences for students.

By the end of this Canvas LMS Course Design, you'll be able to successfully teach online with the help of logical descriptions and step-by-step screenshots that clearly explain how to build a phenomenal course.

What you will learn

  • Understand online learning as a powerful and unique tool for student growth
  • Create, access, and personalize your user account and profile settings in Canvas
  • Generate, upload, and import course content for students to engage with as participants in your courses
  • Design and sequence the content of your course to present information and activities with clarity and simplicity
  • Discover expert techniques for designing a curriculum and creating activities
  • Explore Canvas features that meet your educational needs, such as online assessments and content delivery

Who this book is for

This book is for educators who want to use Canvas to deliver instructions in online, hybrid, or fusion teaching models. Whether you're new to online learning or a seasoned expert, you will be able to learn both the primary functions and the advanced features of Canvas with this book. As a minimum, beginner-level experience with online learning is required given the widespread implementation of distance learning due to the pandemic.

Table of contents

  1. Canvas LMS Course Design
  2. Second Edition
  3. Contributors
  4. About the author
  5. About the reviewer
  6. Preface
    1. Who this book is for
    2. What this book covers
    3. To get the most out of this book
    4. Download the color images
    5. Conventions used
    6. Get in touch
    7. Reviews
  7. Section 1: Designing and Creating Your Course
  8. Chapter 1: Getting Started with Canvas
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Reviewing instances of Canvas
      1. Institution-specific instances of Canvas
      2. Free for Teachers instance of Canvas
    3. Accessing Canvas and creating your account
      1. Accessing your institution's Canvas site
      2. Creating a Free for Teachers account
    4. Navigating Canvas
    5. Adjusting your profile, settings, and notifications
      1. Editing your profile
      2. Adding a profile picture
      3. Adjusting your account settings
    6. Creating your Canvas course
      1. Joining a course created by your institution
      2. Creating a new course with a Free for Teachers account
    7. Summary
  9. Chapter 2: Building Your Canvas Course
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Planning your course – from syllabus to screen
    3. Importing content from another course
    4. Creating assignments
      1. Adding an assignment
      2. Editing an assignment
      3. Using the Rich Content Editor
      4. Publishing an assignment
    5. Creating discussions
      1. Adding a discussion
      2. Pinning or closing discussions
    6. Creating quizzes
      1. Adding a quiz
      2. Adding questions
      3. Managing question banks
    7. Creating assignment groups
      1. Weighting assignment groups
    8. Summary
  10. Chapter 3: Getting Ready to Launch Your Course
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Choosing a Course Home Page layout
      1. The Course Activity Stream layout
      2. The Pages Front Page layout
      3. The Course Modules layout
      4. The Assignment List layout
      5. The Syllabus layout
    3. Selecting navigation links
    4. Adding course calendar events
    5. Testing your course with Student View
    6. Adding participants to the course
      1. Managing users
      2. Creating user groups
    7. Publishing your course
    8. Summary
  11. Section 2: Teaching and Enhancing Your Course
  12. Chapter 4: Teaching Your Canvas Course
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Communicating through the Inbox feature
      1. Learning the layout of the inbox
      2. Composing and sending a message
      3. Organizing your inbox
    3. Posting announcements
    4. Providing feedback and grades
      1. Accessing the Gradebook and entering grades
      2. Accessing and using SpeedGrader
    5. Setting up synchronous meetings using Conferences
      1. Creating a Conference
      2. Starting and facilitating your conference
    6. Summary
  13. Chapter 5: Exploring Special Features
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Creating Collaborations
      1. Editing or deleting collaborations
    3. Setting up Outcomes
      1. Creating outcomes
      2. Creating Outcome Groups
      3. Importing existing outcomes
      4. Finding existing outcomes to use
    4. Creating rubrics
      1. Adding rubrics to assignments
      2. Using rubrics for grading
    5. Using the Learning Mastery Gradebook
    6. Using Course Analytics and Course Statistics
      1. Viewing Course Analytics
      2. Viewing Course Statistics
    7. Summary
  14. Chapter 6: Utilizing and Integrating Apps
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Using Canvas on your mobile devices
      1. Downloading and configuring the mobile app
      2. Using the features of the mobile app
      3. Navigating your course within the mobile app
      4. Using the To Do feature of the mobile app
      5. Viewing and sending messages within the mobile app
      6. Accessing your settings within the mobile app
      7. Finding help within the Canvas mobile app
    3. Integrating external apps into your course
    4. Summary
  15. Section 3: Practical Ideas and Resources
  16. Chapter 7: Where to Go for Help
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Finding help within Canvas
      1. Exploring the Canvas Guides
      2. Exploring other resources
    3. Finding help outside of Canvas
    4. Summary
  17. Chapter 8: Now You're Ready!
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Exporting your course
    3. Connecting Canvas to education in the 21st century
      1. Enacting the Framework for 21st Century Learning
    4. Looking to the future
    5. Summary
  18. Appendix: References and Resources
    1. Teaching and learning in the 21st century
      1. Battelle for Kids: Partnership for 21st Century Skills
      2. Understanding by Design
      3. Timeless Learning: How Imagination, Observation, and Zero-Based Thinking Change Schools
      4. Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses
    2. Designing online learning environments
      1. The Distance Learning Playbook, Grades K-12: Teaching for Engagement and Impact in Any Setting
      2. The Interactive Class: Using Technology to Make Learning More Relevant and Engaging in the Elementary Classroom
      3. How to Design and Teach A Hybrid Course: Achieving Student-Centered Learning Through Blended Classroom, Online and Experiential Activities
      4. Discussion-Based Online Teaching to Enhance Student Learning: Theory, Practice and Assessment
      5. The Gamification of Learning and Instruction: Game-Based Methods and Strategies for Training and Education
    3. Conceptualizing online education
      1. Closing the Gap: Digital Equity Strategies for the K-12 Classroom
      2. Balance with Blended Learning: Partner with Your Students to Reimagine Learning and Reclaim Your Life
      3. Essentials of Online Course Design: A Standards-Based Guide (Second Edition)
      4. Best Practices for Teaching with Emerging Technologies (2nd Edition)
      5. The Complete 15-Volume Jossey-Bass Online Teaching & Learning Library
    4. Other online course design resources
      1. Course Design Academy
      2. The Blended Learning Toolkit
      3. Distance Learning: A Gently Curated Collection of Resources for Teachers
      4. Online Course Development Resources
      5. The 5 Pillars – Sloan-C Quality Framework
      6. Quality Matters: A National Benchmark for Online Course Design
      7. Teaching Online: Design of an Online Course
      8. CanvasLMS YouTube Channel
    5. Why subscribe?
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Product information

  • Title: Canvas LMS Course Design - Second Edition
  • Author(s): Ryan John
  • Release date: May 2021
  • Publisher(s): Packt Publishing
  • ISBN: 9781800568518