Instructors who have been approved for the Wave 1 transition or who wish to get started early can begin exploring the Canvas content creation processes in their sandbox courses.

This article lists the available training tools and support resources for Canvas. Please note that all of the vendor-supplied support materials, available as a part of the LMS transition, cover all of Canvas’ products and different use cases so are not limited to the U of A nor will they necessarily reflect the customizations made for our institution.

Instructors should ensure they check into the Key Changes in Canvas that we have identified as a part of the transition.

New User Tutorial

For any initial questions that users run into, a good first resource is the in-system New User Tutorial which appears any time a new page is launched. These overlays contain context-sensitive details on the page where they are found and links to more detailed guides on the Canvas support portal. If the tutorial on a page is not visible, it can be launched via the icon at the top right of the page:

If you permanently remove the tutorial, you can re-enable it within your account settings.

Canvas Video Guides

The entire library of Canvas video guides for instructors is available at https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Video-Guide/tkb-p/videos#instructor-videos.

For a quick introduction to the features in Canvas, we recommend that instructors view a short series of videos that describes how to Set Up a Canvas Course in 30 Minutes or Less. 

Canvas Self-Paced Training Courses

Users can access the custom Canvas Training Courses from within the system Resources for more in-depth training, including self-paced courses and webinars. To access, these training courses, users must first sign in to Canvas and then click on Resources, then Canvas Training Courses:

Next, search for the particular title you are interested in. Choose the Higher Education tab to get the most out of the Training Portal.

Scroll down to find the recommended courses in the Building Block Basics section of the portal page. The following courses are highly recommended, but it is well worth exploring the entire set of offerings:

• Canvas Field Guide (34 minutes) - Quick navigation and facilitation guide
• Creating Canvas Courses (18 minutes) - covers the main options
• Canvas Mobile App (24 minutes) - describes the separate apps for students and instructors available via Google Play Store and the Apple Store
• Getting Started with Assignments and Assessments (17 minutes) - creating, configuring, and weighting assignments
• Best Practices for Course Design
• New Quizzes Essentials (90 minutes)
• Grading and Feedback (42 minutes) - using Rubrics, Gradebook, and the SpeedGrader
• Opening Canvas (20 minutes) - covers account notifications, the Dashboard, Calendar, Inbox, and Announcements
  Creating a Canvas Course (70 minutes)- covers home pages, navigation, the Rich Content Editor (RCE), Modules, and the student view
• Canvas Commons (36 Minutes) - content and courses shared by Canvas users
• Canvas Studio Training (90 minutes) - an alternative similar to YuJa

Other Canvas Training Resources for Instructors

In addition to the Canvas Training Courses, instructors can also find answers in the public Canvas Resources for Instructors course. In the default Canvas course template (provided in every Sandbox), click on Modules, then Canvas Resources for Instructors:

Then click on the image below:

If the Canvas Resources for Instructors, is not in the your course (for example if you have reset the template or requested a blank course), you can access it at https://design.instructure.com/courses/221. This Instructor Resource Course provides instructors with the resources they need to use Canvas successfully. The course includes videos, help articles, guides, and detailed instructions, including:

 Getting Started

• Canvas system overview
• Canvas Calendar overview - add content and allow students to set office appointments
• Course Navigation
• The Canvas Teacher App
• The Canvas Student App
• Files - adding, storing, and using files in a course
• Modules - structuring your course content delivery
• Pages - setting up a course home page
• The Rich Content Editor - for adding and formatting instructions and content to quizzes and assignments
• Creating Announcements
• Getting Notifications of class communications and course changes
• User Settings – an overview

Assignments, Discussions, and Quizzes

• Assignments overview
• Discussions overview
• Quizzes overview

Gradebook, Rubrics, and SpeedGrader

• Gradebook overview
• Rubrics overview
• SpeedGrader - the manual grading interface