In Canvas, a good move is to provide a context to all your weekly module content in a consistent fashion. It helps students find stuff easily. It also means fewer emails from students asking, 'Where's this week's reading or assignment?'
To do this in your Canvas course, create a first page in each weekly module. The page should lay out and link all the content and tasks for the week in an orderly way.
Our UCSB Canvas Templates follow this practice and include three pages:
- Weekly Lecture Page
- Readings & Resources Page
The pages create a consistent pattern, making things predictable for the quarter. UCSB students love it; as one said in an anonymous survey, 'week overview is epic. i wish all my classes had it.'
These pages are a starting point. Depending on your course, you might only need some of the three or want to tweak them to suit your style.
The Weekly Lecture Page works well for in-person classes, guiding students on tasks due before class and containing lecture-related content. You can also add information about the session in the title.
Note that in the example below, the page’s title includes not only the day (for courses that meet more than once a week) but also the Book Chapter being addressed in that session.
The Readings & Resources Page is like a folder, handy for courses with lots of readings and material, like upper-division or grad courses.
We also included a Best Practices Module with resources just for faculty. Be sure to keep it unpublished.
Ready to dive in? Here are some steps:
- Import the UCSB Deluxe template from Canvas Commons. Every module has these two pages.
- Edit your pages. Use headings and horizontal lines for organization.
- Link everything! Whether it's a file, an external link, or a course item like an assignment, always link it on the page. It helps students find what needs to be done and reduces emails.
- Consider adding these pages to the students' to-do list. It's a nifty reminder for students because it will populate the student’s calendar and the Canvas Syllabus’ Course Summary.
- Publish the pages you're using and remove the ones you're not from your modules.