The Canvas Paradigm

Canvas can be used as a traditional learning management system: simply hosting documents or files, or automating online quizzes. While such basic functions are useful, a course which includes nothing but these does little to promote student autonomy and interaction. Canvas is designed to go beyond these limited functions.

A common view of the Canvas paradigm is that the focus is on interactions, whether those are learner-instructor, learner-learner, or learner-content.

Learner-Instructor Interactions

We expect a lot of learner-instructor interaction to occur in any course, and there are standard tools in Canvas for messaging (mail), asynchronous discussions, and even live, synchronous presentations. But Canvas also provides users with the ability to determine not only the means but also the frequency of notifications from the system, ensuring that instructor actions in the course are heard by the students, and thus become interactions.

Canvas also embeds new and convenient means of learner-instructor interaction throughout the course. Announcements can include external RSS feeds (from the instructor's blog, for instance); Assignment feedback is no longer merely one-way, but supports learner-instructor dialogue. Instructors are no longer limited to simple text for communicating with their class: quick and easy video recording is available from web cams or other sources.

Learner-Learner Interactions

Canvas supports learner-learner interactions with the same tools that are available for learner-instructor interaction. It also provides a built-in means for peer-review of assignments, using the same assessment criteria and tools that the instructor would use. It allows students to link their own digital identities with course notifications. It supports use of real-world, learner-owned spaces such as blogs as a place to host assignments, and Google Docs to host collaborative work spaces. It supports groups and live online conferences that any member of the course can set up. All of these can lead students to learn and work beyond the boundaries of the traditional classroom, creating bridges to continuing relationships with their classmates, and habits and tools for lifelong learning.

Learner-Content

Learner-content interaction, traditionally speaking, may not seem like interaction, but new web technologies can amplify the potential of content for learning.

One of the cool things that Canvas offers is the opportunity for learners to edit any of the course content pages. The Canvas Pages tool is essentially a wiki, with permissions set by the instructor. This allows learners to invest in the maintenance and currency of course materials.

The Canvas Interface

The Canvas interface is fairly simple and usable, though at the cost of a certain degree of instructor control. Instructors and designers are able to determine the layout of the course homepage, choosing from several perhaps unfamiliar options:

The Communication Stream shows all recent activity by users in the course.
The Assignments view simply lists groups of assignments and their due dates.
The Modules view shows a complete linear sequence of all course materials, activities, and assessments.
The Page I'll Design Myself gives designers great liberty to compose a portal into important course work. It can be adjusted at any time.

Content

Pages

Canvas course Pages are created using a graphical user interface or HTML. These are wiki-like web pages that can also be edited by students, if desired. Multiple pages can easily be linked together, and can include links to other Canvas tools such as Assignments, Quizzes, Discussions, etc. All course Pages are listed in the Pages tool found in the left-hand navigation bar. You can create "Pages" on the fly, using the Pages tool. This generates a simple HTML page that can be edited by the instructor or can be configured to be edited by the student.

Files

Often you'll want to simply upload files that you've created on your own computer into Canvas. This is done through the Files tool. Such files can be linked to from virtually any place in Canvas: from an Assignment, Discussion, or Page (see above), or as an item in a Module.

Retrieved and adapted from "http://canvaswiki.uen.org/wiki/Design_overview"CC By-NC, Utah System of Higher Education Consortium: canvaswiki.uen.org