Mastering Canvas: A Comprehensive Guide for Bergen Community College

Canvas is Bergen Community College's web-based Learning Management System (LMS), designed to create and deliver engaging online and blended learning environments. It offers a wide array of tools for instructors to design, share content, assess, and track student progress, fostering a dynamic and effective learning experience. This article serves as a comprehensive guide to navigating and utilizing Canvas effectively at Bergen Community College.

Accessing Canvas

Students registered in online or hybrid courses are automatically enrolled in a Canvas course. Your online course begins the first day of the academic semester, and access may be restricted until that time. To access Canvas, simply log in to the Bergen Portal site (my.bergen.edu) and click on the "Online Classes/Canvas" item.

Initial Course Setup

If you are assigned a course by your department, it is automatically created on Canvas. For instructors creating a Canvas course from scratch, it is recommended to first import the Bergen template from the Commons area. The Bergen template uses the core style to provide a consistent experience to all students.

For courses utilizing publisher-provided content, link the external site/resources within your Canvas course. This ensures students can find all course content from a central location.

If you are teaching a course you have previously taught, copy the course from a previous semester to save time and effort.

Read also: Mastering Canvas at IC

Learning Canvas: Resources and Support

Bergen Community College provides multiple resources to help instructors and students learn how to use Canvas effectively:

Self-Paced Training Course: The "Bergen Canvas Training Course" is available on the Canvas Dashboard, offering a self-guided learning experience.
CITL Workshops: Attend training sessions by registering for a workshop from the CITL workshop calendar.
Canvas Instructor Guide: This guide provides step-by-step instructions on how to use Canvas tools.
Canvas Video Tutorials: Watch video tutorials to learn about specific Canvas tools or features.
Quick Start Guide: Download a quick start guide at the beginning of a semester for setting up your course.
Canvas Support: Connect with a Canvas support representative through several options.

Essential Tools and Features

Canvas offers a comprehensive suite of tools to facilitate online learning:

Assignments: Create and manage assignments for students to submit.
Discussions: Foster interaction and collaboration through discussion forums.
Modules: Organize course content into logical modules for easy navigation.
Quizzes: Create and administer quizzes and tests to assess student learning.
Pages: Create and share static content, such as course information or lecture notes.

Student Engagement and Attendance

Instructors track attendance based on student engagement via synchronous sessions, asynchronous sessions, and on-campus activities. If you are enrolled in an online asynchronous course, you can log into your course at your convenience. However, keep in mind that many instructors require specific online course requirements throughout each week. If you are enrolled in an online synchronous course, you are required to join your class online at specific time. If you are enrolled in an online mix course, check with your instructor when you are scheduled for real time meetings.

Assessment and Grading

Student performance in online courses is assessed the same way as face-to-face courses. You may have term papers, projects, discussions, essays or other assignments, as well as quizzes or tests. The method depends on your instructor, so be sure to read your syllabus carefully as it will explain this in detail.

Browser and Computer Requirements

To take an online course, you will need a computer (PC or MAC) with internet access. You are responsible for your own ISP (Internet Service Provider). Javascript is enabled by default on all supported browsers. Third party cookies are allowed by default on all supported browsers. In case your instructor is using Respondus Monitor, you will need Respondus LockDown Browser installed on a laptop or desktop computer to attempt an exam.

Read also: Accessing Merrimack Canvas

New and Enhanced Features

Canvas is continuously updated with new features and enhancements to improve the learning experience:

AI Alt Text Assistant: The AI Alt Text Assistant can help with alternative descriptions for images using the Ally instructor interface in a Canvas course.
Dyslexia Friendly Font: Users can now enable a Dyslexia-friendly font from their profile settings.
Bulk Discussion Forum Update: A bulk update feature is available to set up all Discussion Forums as threaded or not threaded from the course navigation Discussion option.
Online Attendance Dashboard: An online attendance dashboard is available from the New Analytics option in all Canvas courses. Instructors can view and customize criteria to collect information on the last date of attendance for each student.
Khan Academy Integration: Khan Academy’s AI-powered teaching assistant can now be accessed from within a Canvas course to create course activities and resources.
Lucid Tools Integration: Lucid tools are now available in Canvas to support Visual learning. Lucidchart is a diagramming tool for detailed, structured diagrams such as flowcharts and org charts. Lucidspark is a whiteboarding tool for freeform brainstorming, ideation, and collaboration.
Discussion and Announcement Thread Labels: Discussion and announcement threads display a label for users with TA roles and Teacher (Instructor) roles.
Reply Indicators: When a reply includes additional replies, the number of replies is displayed, as well as the number of unread replies (specific to the user viewing the reply).
Discussion Reply Reporting: Within individual discussions, replies can be reported by students to teachers.
Anonymous Discussions: Discussions allow teachers to create anonymous discussions. This option displays when creating a new discussion for a course.

Transition to Canvas

Bergen Community College transitioned to Canvas as its primary LMS, recognizing the need to provide a robust learning environment for all students. In Spring 2022, faculty and students reviewed Blackboard Ultra, OpenLMS, and Canvas learning management systems (LMS). Canvas was selected as the next LMS for Bergen. The work to transition from Moodle to Canvas started in Spring 2022 and was successfully completed with end of life for Moodle in June 2023. Training and support were available to faculty for teaching their course on Canvas starting Summer I 2023 semester.

Textbook Orders

For orders placed by Monday afternoon, books will ship out on Wednesday. For orders placed by Wednesday afternoon, they will ship out the following Monday.

Read also: Canvas: Deleting Quiz Attempts

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