Reading Time: 3 minutesWe’ve previously talked about how to use Ensemble for screen capture and webcam recording. We’ve also talked about how to add annotations, edit, and upload your video. But once you’ve uploaded your video, how do you get it into Canvas? Ensemble is integrated with Canvas as an external tool, so it’s a simple process to add media to your course. We’re going to use Ensemble as an example here, but you’ll follow the same initial process to add any external tool to your course. Add an external tool to a module If you want your video or other item from an external tool to be available directly…
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Canvas Transition: Canvas Tips Roundup
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe beginning of the semester is quickly approaching, so we’re all in the thick of learning Canvas and setting up courses. You may be excited to use this new tool and marveling at how some processes are easier to complete. You may be a little nervous to dive in, especially if you weren’t working in Moodle previously. Either way, let’s pause for a second and take a deep breath. Okay? Good. Now that we’re ready, let’s take a quick look at some of the Canvas tips and tricks that we’ve talked about over the summer, all gathered together here for a one-stop primer to get you jump…
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Canvas Transition: Intro to the Canvas Template
Reading Time: 4 minutesIf you’re getting comfortable working on your courses in Canvas and are ready to take a jump and add design and structure elements to your course, you’ll be thrilled to hear about the template the CTL has created in Canvas. Canvas created the base template, then the CTL modified it to fit our needs. We’re currently using it in all our online courses to provide consistent structure and visual design elements (see our post about the template icons for more details!), and you can use it also to accomplish those goals in your course. Of course, there are elements that you can use and trade out to…
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Canvas Transition: How Should I Use the Icons?
Reading Time: 4 minutesYou may remember that when designing a course in Moodle, there were limited options to affect the look and feel of a course. Canvas gives you more options and easier controls to use when designing the visuals in a course. When you use the course template provided by the CTL, you have access to an entire icon system Canvas designed. Why use icons? Icons provide visual interest on a page, and they can grab the reader’s attention. If icons are consistently used by a group, they create a common visual language – the user will recognize that items are tied together because the icon is used in…
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A Midsummer Guide to Canvas Setup
Reading Time: 2 minutesDeep in thought and focused on my very important game of Sudoku, my wife broke my concentration with sudden alarm and proclaimed, “Oh my goodness, it‘s only 6 months until Christmas Eve!” While six months is still a little while, what is drawing closer is the start of the 2019-2020 school year. In less than two months, Cedarville University will welcome students back and embark on a journey of transformation for the Word of God and Testimony of Jesus Christ. Fall 2019 brings a change from Moodle to Canvas for the entire campus, and everyone will be adjusting to the new normal. For faculty, the challenge may…
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How to Get Help with Your Course
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThroughout the semester you’ll most likely discover questions that you need to get answered. They may be about how to tweak the settings on a particular assignment for a student. Or, you may have discovered what appears to be an error in the setup for your online course. Who do you call when those things happen? Hint: Not Ghostbusters. They can’t help. If you’re teaching in Canvas… …and it’s a face-to-face course Contact Canvas support. They’ll be able to help you with any questions you have about system settings, troubleshoot issues, and ensure your course is running smoothly. You can access chat support through the “help”…
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Canvas Transition: Adding Teaching Assistants to Your Course
Reading Time: < 1 minuteAs you’re getting your courses off the ground for the semester, you’re probably going through your standard course prep. For some instructors that means making sure your teaching assistants are added to your sections. Thankfully, Canvas makes it easy for you to accomplish this task yourself. Check out Canvas’ information on how to add users to a course. When assigning a role, you’ll want to give your assistants the “TA” role defined in our system. As you’re working through this process, remember that you have Canvas Support available to answer your questions and help you if you get stuck! You can access chat support through the…
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Canvas Transition: Do All Your Links Work in Your Course?
Reading Time: 2 minutesYou’ve brought your course over to Canvas from Moodle, and you’ve finished preparing it for the upcoming semester. In previous semesters, you’ve either had to check each link in your course manually to ensure it works or wait until a student finds a broken link. But you don’t have to do that anymore with Canvas. Canvas’ built-in link validation feature will search the content in your course for invalid or unreachable links and images. The link validator has some limitations and can turn up results that Canvas can’t view but students still can. For example, in our online courses, we embed each syllabus into the course using…
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Canvas Transition: Top 3 Tips to Prep for the Semester
Reading Time: 2 minutesAs this semester ends, we’re going to start looking toward setting up courses for future terms. You’re probably familiar with past Moodle tasks and idiosyncrasies. Canvas takes these tasks and makes them easier for you to accomplish. Instead of submitting requests to combine sections of your courses, you now have the ability to create a combined section without assistance from IT or the CTL. In addition, we’re also going to review how to add your syllabus and assignments to a Canvas course. 1. Combine multiple Canvas sections into one In previous semesters, the process to combine sections of your course was more complicated. You would submit a…
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Canvas Transition: Top 3 Tips to Overcome the Learning Curve
Reading Time: 2 minutesA faculty member walked into my office this week and proclaimed, “the change to Canvas energizes me — I love the challenge!” Another faculty member admitted concern with the change, but they appreciated how faculty are being empowered and supported. Another said they never used Moodle and were apprehensive about using Canvas. Yet another made a tutorial video for importing Moodle courses into Canvas. While the overall response from faculty, staff, students, and administration is positive, it is proper to recognize that there is a learning curve for everyone. Regardless of where you find yourself on the Canvas learning curve, there are three things that will reduce…