Distributing Course Materials and Readings
You can upload documents in Canvas to the Files tool and have students navigate there to find them. Organize the content logically in folders, as it will display in alphabetical order. You can make things straightforward by creating folders for specific weeks or chapters, and similarly with files.
Use Canvas and tools students - and you - are familiar with.
CTL recommends, however, that you organize your content using using the Modules tool, which allows you to guide students through your content in a specific order. A module can contain and organize content pages, assignments, discussions, quizzes, etc.. All these tools allow you to use the Rich Content Editor to create content or embed files.
Here are two considerations when posting new course materials in Canvas:
- Make sure students know where and when new materials is posted: When you post new materials in Canvas, your students might get a notification that the materials are available, depending on how they set their notification preferences. You might remind that they change their preferences to alert them when new materials are posted. Refer them to this tutorial: How do I set my Canvas notification preferences as a student?
- Keep things phone friendly: Sometimes students may not have access to a computer and only have a phone connected to the internet. Make sure you are using mobile-friendly formats, PDFs being the most common. Consider saving other files, e.g., PowerPoint presentations, to PDFs. They are easier to read on phones and tablets.
- Upload videos to Media Gallery: Videos tend to be large files. It is not a good idea to upload them to Files in Canvas, as they could exceed the limit of 2GB for file storage. Instead, upload them to Media Gallery, where the videos will be streamlined and thus easier for students to watch.
Delivering a Virtual Lecture
You may deliver your lectures either synchronously or asynchronously.
Delivering Synchronous Lectures: We suggest using BlueJeans to deliver synchronous lectures. BlueJeans is a web conferencing tool that allows you and your students to share audio, video, and screen presentation. It also offers such features as question polling, annotation, breakout sessions, and chat. You can also record the lectures, which will be saved and posted to Canvas after the session ends. You may find BlueJeans from the left menu in your Canvas course.
To optimize your synchronous lecture, we recommend:
- Use headphones or earbuds with a microphone to minimize surrounding noise and maximize your voice.
- In your BlueJeans settings, opt to Mute Participants upon entry into the meeting so that participants won't be disturbed by those who are late.
- Use breakout rooms to split students into groups for discussions or group work.
Delivering Asynchronous Lectures: You may use Kaltura Personal Capture to capture presentations recorded on your personal device and upload the recording to Canvas for student viewing. The app can be accessed through your course menu in Canvas, and requires a one-time installation. It is available for both Windows and Mac and includes several recording options. You can record your voice (with or without a webcam), your computer screen (displaying PowerPoint, Keynote, other software program or web browser content),The recording will be uploaded to My Media in Canvas, which is your own personal media repository. Once they are uploaded, you may add quiz questions to the video before publishing them to Media Gallery for student viewing.
To optimize your asynchronous lectures, we recommend:
- Draft a script or an outline of your ideas for your lecture before recording.
- Use headphones or earbuds with a microphone to minimize surrounding noise and maximize your voice.
- Record longer lectures into smaller, separate video lectures, organized by topic, idea, or skill. By watching video lectures of less than 10 minutes each, learners are more likely to maintain focus and retain key information.
- Include quiz questions throughout your lectures to engage learners and allow them to check for understanding as they watch.
Trying to decide between synchronous and asynchronous lectures? Explore this resource to make your decision.
