
Preparing for the Move to Canvas
As we get ready to move to Canvas, many of you have asked how to best prepare for this change. This page contains links to training and a couple of tips to help make the transition smoother whilst also supporting our goals for sustainability and accessibility requirements.
Further information, including project timeline, can be viewed on the DLE Project website’s ‘Preparing to Move’ page.
Canvas Training
Online training sessions via Teams.
Canvas 1: Navigation and Basic Functionality
This session focuses on basic navigation of the Canvas interface, including the Dashboard and course-level navigation. It is designed for academic and Professional Services staff who want to learn the basic tools to create content and activities. Assessment and other teaching and learning features will be covered in the Canvas 2 course (coming soon).
Note: This session provides training on the basic features of Canvas. Information and progress reports about the Canvas project will be issued separately.
Topics
- Login and logout
- Orientation
- Dashboard, Course and Modules
- Favouriting Courses
- Student View
- Account and User Profile
- Managing Content
- Adding a Module and a Module Item
- Pages, Files and Activities
- Announcements
For dates and booking, please see the Training Catalogue (opens in new tab).
Canvas 2: Assessment & Feedback (Academic staff only)
PS Staff: Please note that separate sessions will be scheduled soon.
This session is designed for academic staff who want to learn the basic tools for assessment and feedback in Canvas. Further training materials will be available later. Note: this refers to formative and summative assessment.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
- understand how Canvas Assignments, Turnitin and SpeedGrader are used to assess and give feedback to students;
- understand the benefits of Canvas for giving improved forms of feedback, maintaining academic integrity and the implications AI has for assessment design
- reflect on the importance of rubrics and marking schemes that align with course ILOs;
- differentiate between the two main assessment platforms (Canvas and Cadmus) and identify the other tools available e.g. Voicethread, Gradescope and Mobius;
- understand how to set up marking groups (called ‘Group Sets’ in Canvas);
- describe different forms of assessment: Quizzes, Assignments (essays) and graded Discussions);
- demonstrate how to upload a file for an Assignment, deploy a MCQ test, and set up a group Discussion; and
- identify and understand how to use SpeedGrader and Gradebook to retrieve/or provide feedback and grades.
For dates and booking, please see the Training Catalogue (opens in new tab).
Blackboard Spring Clean
Clearing out old and unused content not only simplifies your move to Canvas but also supports our sustainability goals. To address the environmental impact of digital technology, there’s a shift towards “digital sobriety,” which means reducing our digital footprint. This challenges the idea that more technology is always better and that all data can be stored forever in the cloud.
The alternative, “computing within limits,” focuses on sustainable design and mindful use of digital resources, requiring major changes in how systems are built and used, and adopting careful habits similar to those in physical spaces. (Widdicks & Pargman, 2019).
By decluttering your digital content, you help reduce both energy consumption and environmental impact. For more information about digital sustainability at the university, contact Amanda Banks-Gatenby or Susan Brown of the Digital Sustainability Group (MIE).
Spring Clean Guidance
- Keep it Tidy: Although we’re planning on migrating content; no method is perfect. A clear, well-structured Blackboard space will make the transition smoother and easier.
- Delete Old Content: Remove outdated content that is no longer used. This includes old assessments, pandemic-related materials, or information from previous instructors.
- Clear Unused Folders and Menu Items: Delete empty folders and redundant side-menu items to streamline your course structure.
- Handle Video Files: Videos should be uploaded to the Video portal and embedded in Blackboard. Videos directly uploaded to Blackboard won’t migrate and need to be transferred to the video portal or Canvas Studio.
- Review Quizzes and Pools: Standard question formats should migrate well, but complex questions like those using randomisation may need attention. Assess your quizzes now to plan for potential adjustments.
- Non-Deployed Files: Files not linked in the student-facing part of Blackboard won’t migrate. Download any important files you still need and store them on your machine.
- Form a Mental Map: Understand your Blackboard setup to identify the training most relevant to you. Consider what types of assessments you use, the structure of your course, and whether your content is up to date.
This guidance has been adapted (with permission) from the original post made by colleagues in FSE eLearning.
Adding Alt Text to Images
We are coming to rely more and more on the use of images in our teaching, but did you know that about 95% of the visual content on Blackboard is inaccessible to blind or visually impaired users?
Alternative (alt) text, a brief caption describing an image’s content, provides essential context and meaning, ensuring that all users, including those with visual impairments, gain the same value from the image.
Alt text is not only a legal requirement to meet national accessibility standards but also mandatory for adding images in Canvas. By practicing now, you can build a valuable library of descriptions for your teaching materials and enhance your alt text writing skills.
For guidance on writing and adding alt text, visit Alt Text Guidance via the Humanities Training Academy or book a training session through the course catalogue.
For details on the University’s web accessibility efforts, check the Web Accessibility Guidelines on StaffNet.
If you need further assistance, please contact your eLearning team.
Canvas Guides
We have collected some useful guides on our Canvas Hub to familiarise yourself with Canvas.