Opening remarks and introductions of Chris Giles and Kat Flippen, both significant figures in the Canvas community.
Discussion focus: Helping Canvas admins reduce the stress of managing Canvas.
Opening Arguments
Kat Flippen:
Admins should trust teachers and not withhold tools due to control concerns.
Canvas is fixable, and it's okay to make mistakes.
Chris Giles:
Echoes Kat’s sentiments.
Emphasizes the importance of having classroom experience and listening to teachers.
Where to Start as a Canvas Admin
Kat Flippen:
Start exploring under admin settings.
Use sub-accounts for safe experimentation.
Google everything and trust the Canvas family.
Chris Giles:
Ensure support structures are set up correctly, using test and beta instances to familiarize with changes.
Utilize Canvas facilitators for school-level support.
Live Streaming and Studio
Live streaming through Canvas Studio is not possible.
Alternatives include using Zoom and YouTube for live streaming, both of which integrate well with Canvas.
Notifications and Settings
No mass implementation of notification settings by admins.
Encourage personalized notification settings at individual and course levels.
Simplifying Canvas Usage
Kat Flippen:
Create a welcoming, informative homepage for clear student navigation.
Admins should create templates to help teachers.
Chris Giles:
Use due dates for transparency and agenda clarity.
Organize modules for easy access to materials.
Commons and Community
Commons is a valuable resource where teachers can find and share courses, modules, assignments, and other educational resources.
The Canvas community offers up-to-date troubleshooting and support resources.
Data and Analytics
Kat Flippen:
Uses Google Analytics and GoGuardian for real-time data.
Emphasizes the importance of sub-accounts for detailed analytics.
Chris Giles:
Uses Canvas reports for various metrics.
Challenges with attendance monitoring and considerations of student engagement.
Support Structures
Channel support through hierarchical structures to manage large volumes of queries efficiently.
Top Practices for Admins
Chris Giles & Kat Flippen:
Establish district-wide Canvas agreements and levels of usage.
Provide templates and organize sub-accounts effectively.
Set up school-wide and grade-level courses for effective communication.
Enable important feature options and LTI integrations at the admin level.
Regularly check and manage feature options and app integrations.
Managing Canvas Roles
Create custom roles with specific permissions for faculty advisors, observers, and other non-teaching staff to manage viewing rights efficiently.
Managing Repetitive Assignments
Repeated assignments can be managed by copying the same assignment and adjusting due dates manually or keeping continuous logs like reading logs in the same document.
Closing Remarks
Importance of the Canvas community, Commons, and leveraging analytics and reports.
Encouragement to join CanvasCon for further learning and networking.