Canvas Information & Resources
MiraCosta College is transitioning from Blackboard and Moodle to Canvas during 2016-17 and 2017-18. Starting in summer 2018, Canvas will be the sole supported course management system for MiraCosta classes. If you are interested, see the details on the spring 2016 process that led to the selection of Canvas.
MiraCosta’s Canvas system may be accessed at http://miracosta.instructure.com – faculty and students log in with their SURF username and password. You’ll also find buttons to log into each of MiraCosta’s course management systems at http://miracosta.edu/online .
One of MiraCosta’s early Canvas adopters, music professor Christy Coobatis, says this about using Canvas in spring 2017:
Has been an extremely successful semester because of it!
Both students and I loved the program.
I have more and clearer communication than ever before!
Another, Adult High School professor Julie Cord, says:
I am in LOVE with Canvas and I truly feel it has helped support my students and my teaching already in very substantial ways.
See below for many great resources to help you learn to use Canvas, and earn MiraCosta Flex credit along the way.
MiraCosta Faculty Workshops
4-week online Introduction to Teaching with Canvas
MiraCosta faculty members from the Canvas Transition Team oversee 4-week online “Introduction to Teaching with Canvas” classes in two versions. The Facilitated class is designed to require about 10 hours per week and includes required discussion board participation, completion of practice work, and optional weekly live online meetings. The Self-Paced class has the same “assignments” but no required interaction, for an estimated 7.5 hours/week. SIGN UP FOR A FALL CLASS HERE.
Participating faculty may claim Flex credit for the time they spend on this class, up to a maximum of 40 hours for Facilitated or 30 hours for Self-Paced. Record your Flex time in MyFlex in the Coursework category under Other Activities. Additionally, those who complete the class requirements satisfactorily will receive a Certificate of Completion.
Planned starting dates will be updated here.
- Facilitated: March 6 – April 7 (concluded)
- Self-paced: April 17 – May 12 (concluded)
- Facilitated: April 17 – May 12 (concluded)
- Self-paced: June-July (concluded)
- Self-paced: Sept. 1-29
- Self-paced: Oct. 2-27
- Facilitated: Nov. 13 – Dec. 8
- Likely we will continue to offer the class in spring 2018
Sign up for a Fall 2017 class.
Independent Study Introduction to Teaching with Canvas
MiraCosta faculty and staff can also join a completely independent version of the class described above. You’d be working on your own through the material without any feedback from instructors nor regular communication with fellow students, but it may be a helpful way to get up to speed on the basics of Canvas on your own.
Fall 2017 Flex Workshops
Online Education staff and the Canvas Transition Team will offer numerous workshops during Fall Flex week. View all of the workshop descriptions in one place and then sign up for the workshops via MyFlex.
Videos of Past MiraCosta Workshops
- Canvas Page Design (video, 82 min.) 1/16/17
In-person workshop presented by Curry Mitchell - Canvas Communication Tools (video, 70 min.) 1/13/17
In-person workshop presented by Robert Kelley - Canvas Course Design (video, 50 min.) 1/13/17
In-person workshop presented by Billy Gunn - Getting Started with Canvas (video, 54 min.) 1/13/17
In-person workshop presented by Gail Meinhold - Transitioning to Canvas (video, 79 min.) 1/13/17
In-person workshop presented by Jim Julius and the Canvas Transition Team (Gail Meinhold, Sean Davis, Robert Kelley, Billy Gunn, and Curry Mitchell) - From Blackboard to Canvas – Preview and Q&A (video, 75 min.) 11/18/16
In-person workshop presented by Robert Kelley, Sean Davis, and MiraCosta students. - Goodbye, Blackboard and Moodle. Hello, Canvas! (video, 77 min.) 8/18/16
Slides (Google presentation) Chat transcript (txt)
Online workshop presented by Curry Mitchell, Billy Gunn, and Jim Julius.
Flex Credit is available for viewing MiraCosta workshop videos. This is a pre-approved activity (in the Other Activities category Conferences and Presentations) – see this PDP presentation for details on how to record pre-approved activities.
Fall 2017 TIC Drop-in Help Sessions
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8/21 9:15-12:15 (R. Kelley) 12:30-2 (c. mitchell) | 8/22 9:30-11:30 (R. Kelley) | 8/23 12:30-2:00 (c. mitchell) | 8/24 9:30-12; 12:30-1:30 (R. Kelley) | 8/25 9:00-11 (B. Gunn) |
| 8/28 9:15-12:15 (R. Kelley) 12:30-2 (c. mitchell) | 8/29 9:15-11:30 (R. Kelley) | 8/30 12:30-2:00 (c. mitchell) | 8/31 9:15-12; 12:30-1:30 (R. Kelley) | 9/1 9:00-11 (S. Davis) |
| Labor Day | 9/5 | 9/6 2:30-3:30 (S. Davis) | 9/7 | 9/8 9:00-11 (B. Gunn) |
| 9/11 12:30-2 (c. mitchell) | 9/12 | 9/13 2:30-3:30 (S. Davis) | 9/14 12:30-2 (c. mitchell) | 9/15 9:00-11 (B. Gunn) |
Tour a MiraCosta Canvas Class!
What does a Canvas class look like? Well, there are a number of approaches to designing a class in Canvas. Check out some short videos by MiraCosta faculty. And then go behind the scenes – in Canvas – to learn more!
Gail Meinhold – Nutrition & Aging (4:45)
Explore some of Gail’s course and get tips from her – in Canvas!
Robert Kelley – Behavioral Stats (4:13)
Explore some of Robert’s course and get tips from him – in Canvas!
Canvas Student Orientation – this open Canvas course can also be a good way for faculty to introduce themselves to Canvas from the student perspective. Faculty are also welcome to link directly to this resource within their own Canvas classes to help their students learn key features of Canvas.
Curry Mitchell – English 100 (6:02)
Explore some of Curry’s course and get tips from him – in Canvas!
Explore Curry’s tips and code for Tabs, Accordions, Buttons, and Grids – in Canvas!
Billy Gunn – Film 111 (6:48)
Explore some of Billy’s course and get tips from him – in Canvas!
Leola McClure – Group Communication (5:01)
Flex Credit is available for time spent engaging with any of the above resources. This is a pre-approved activity (in the Other Activities category Conferences and Presentations) – see this PDP presentation for details on how to record pre-approved activities.
Faculty Training Resources
- Getting Started guide and full instructor guide from Canvas.
- Want a personal consultation with an experienced MiraCosta faculty member? Contact a member of the MiraCosta Canvas Transition Team: Gail Meinhold (Nutrition), Robert Kelley (Psychology), Billy Gunn (Film), Curry Mitchell (English), Sean Davis (Sociology). Sean is available at the San Elijo campus (SE 513) on Tuesday/Thursday afternoons between 1:20-2:20 (except April 6).
- See Robert Kelley’s Top 11 Tips for Rebuilding Your Course in Canvas
- Instructor Orientation – self-paced, free course from Canvas.
- FastTrack Video Series – series of 2 1/2 minute videos on different Canvas features.
- Lynda.com Canvas training videos – Brief topical introductory videos about Canvas. These may be accessed for free through the CCC Professional Learning Network – sign up at https://prolearningnetwork.cccco.edu/login/
- @One archives of 1-hour webinars
- @One Introduction to Teaching with Canvas – self-paced, free course from @One
- @One Introduction to Teaching with Canvas – moderated, time-bound course from @One – normally there is a fee but MiraCosta faculty may sign up for free using the code OEIfree4U
- Join the California Community College Canvas Community to participate in CCC-oriented discussions, sharing of ideas, and support for Canvas improvements
- CanvasLIVE – Webinars and live chats about Canvas, and archives of past live online training.
- Canvas Community Resources – Resources, examples, and strategies for learning and exploring Canvas.
- Canvas at MCC – A collection of MiraCosta specific tutorials & articles
- And often starting with a Google search is the quickest path to finding something really useful!
Again, Flex Credit is available for time spent engaging with any of the above resources.
Blackboard to Canvas Transition Resources
- Rebuilding a Blackboard Course in Canvas: What to Expect – notes from MiraCosta faculty member Robert Kelley
- Guide from @One that shows the relationship between Canvas tools and Blackboard tools, and provides links to tutorials on the Canvas tools.
- In many cases, it may be easier to re-create classes in Canvas rather than exporting a class from Blackboard and importing it into Canvas. However, you may wish to try exporting portions of Blackboard classes, or entire classes, and importing into Canvas. These resources may help:
- Guide from Oregon State on which Blackboard tools/content import well to Canvas and which do not (currently unavailable).
- Very detailed narrative with challenges and guidance when moving classes from Blackboard to Canvas.
Moodle to Canvas Transition Resources
- Guide from @One that shows the relationship between Canvas tools and Moodle tools, and provides links to tutorials on the Canvas tools.
Canvas Faculty and Student Support
MiraCosta’s Online Education department provides support for faculty using Canvas, and MiraCosta’s Student Help Desk provides support for students in Canvas classes. When local support is unavailable, including evenings and weekends, Canvas provides technical support for faculty and students at 1-877-884-1673.
Canvas has excellent “Getting Started” guides for faculty and for students. See above for more faculty training resources.
Faculty and students can also create a helpdesk ticket for support from within Canvas by clicking on the Help icon and then selecting Report a Problem.
You may also review recent and upcoming updates to the Canvas system, as well as submitting or voting on feature additions and changes you’d like.
Canvas Status Updates
Click the link below if you are experiencing Canvas errors – these may be due to temporary issues with the entire Canvas LMS service and not something we control locally.
LTI Tools Available in Canvas
- Turnitin – originality checking, online grading and peer review
- ConferNow – Live web conferencing using Zoom
- Google Drive – enabling tighter integration between Google apps and Canvas
- Various publisher tools
- Many other LTI tools (“Apps”) are available – some have been made available institutionally and you can see those in the Navigation tab of Course Settings; others can be enabled by faculty individually; you can see those in the Apps tab of Course Settings. See the Canvas Guide on the App Center to learn more.
Workarounds
Canvas does not have a dedicated journaling tool like the one in Blackboard. However, it is possible to use Canvas tools to provide students with a place to submit their writings or reflections at various points throughout the semester. This is done by creating a series of assignments within the same assignment group.