1. OLAC Course Development Review in Canvas
Webinar By: Dawn M. Miller

2. Importance of Course Design and OLAC
When designing a course in Canvas, it is important to make sure that the course has all the necessary elements and it needs to be user friendly. Students tend to do a better job in the course when they can focus on the materials and not focus on trying to locate the materials. OLAC reviews the courses to ensure that they meet the approved standards and that the courses are in an organized and easy to use format.

3. SHU Online Teaching and Learning Standards OLAC 5 AREAS OF Review
1. Organization
4. Content Delivery
Syllabus elements
Academic integrity
Learning objectives
Clarity
Content structure
Educational resources
Instructions
Learning styles
2. Interactivity
5. Usability
Communications/Feedback
Navigation
Discussion boards
Links & plug-ins
Social rapport
Course tools
Interactive learning
Web design
3. Evaluation
Accessibility
Multiple methods
Instructor feedback
Active learning opportunities
Continued
Next
Page

4. SHU Online Teaching and Learning Standards OLAC Five Areas Of Review, cont.
The five areas are broken down more specifically and are used to review all aspects related to the design of the course. Information is also given on “best practices” in each area, while providing a range of how the course did overall in each of the areas and a development plan (if needed). The ranges used to determine how well the course was designed are as follows:   
BEST PRACTICES
Needs Improvement D
Satisfactory
Above Average
Exemplary
Development Plan

5. OLAC FEEDBACK
The best part of the review is the results, feedback, and the ideas that are recommended by OLAC. I was happy to get the feedback and made some changes to my course that I feel will allow for the course to run more smoothly.

6. Easy TO USE quick Starter tips
The more organized your course is, the more time you will have to focus on teaching and interacting with students.
The most important information should be on the main page where it is easily accessible and hard to miss. I use the Modules page as my main page.
Post Netiquette guidelines so students are aware of online etiquette in their interactions.
Be clear and precise with your course policies, including on your syllabus, to avoid any unnecessary issues with students.
Set up an introduction board where students can introduce themselves. This helps to “break the ice” in the first few days of class. I usually ask them to share something that makes them unique to try and personalize the interaction early in the course.
Consistently posting announcements in the course, at least weekly, is an excellent way to reinforce important information that can easily be found as soon as the student log into the course.

7. CANVAS TABS Home/Modules Announcements Syllabus Discussions Grades
Assignments

8. https://sienaheights.instructure.com/courses/980

9. Home Page/Modules Tab
When a student logs into the Canvas course, the Home Page is what students will see first. In order to customize your home page, click the Home Tab. Once on the Home Page, click Choose Home Page (on the right). When the options come up, you can choose which page you would like to set as your home page. I chose to use the Modules Page as my Home Page. At the top of my Home/Modules Page, there is a Module labeled “Start”. Within this section I included the syllabus with a calendar, a course overview, a virtual office, and Netiquette guidelines. This gives the students a place to start or post questions or concerns very easily. I also set up a Module for each week that includes the weekly content overview, a lecture, and a Powerpoint presentation. All assignments and problem presentations are found under the Module listed McGraw Hill.

10. ANNOUNCEMENTS AND SYLLABUS TABS
Post “Welcome” Announcement
Post “Getting Started” Announcement
Post “Registration Info” Announcement
Post Weekly Announcements
** Great way to keep in touch with students and post quick reminders
Include Contact Information and specific time availability
Include detailed policies
Include grade determination
Include approved grading scale
Include tentative schedule
**Post on Home Page and Syllabus Tab

11. https://sienaheights.instructure.com/courses/980/announcements

12. Discussions tab
Under the Discussions tab you will find all the weekly discussions for the course. Here are some tips about the Discussion Boards:
Post questions that are open ended and allow for research and student interaction. In an online course, this is where the most interaction occurs between the students.
Post additional questions and change the direction of the discussion if the topic is dry or you notice repeat responses from students.
When setting up the discussion, click “+” discussion, label the discussion, and write the question in the open text box. This will allow for the information to import properly from term to term. Also, be sure to choose “allow threaded replies”. Students will be able to reply right below other posts to avoid confusion.
When grading the discussions, click on the down arrow next to the wheel and choose “speed Grader”. This will allow for you to see each students posts for the entire week, the dates are included, and it avoids scrolling through the discussion trying to find how many times a student posted for the week.

13. SETTINGS TAB Click on the Settings tab
Under Course Details, scroll down and set the start and end dates for the course. I always add a week before the actual start date and a week after the end date of the course. This allows for students to see the course before it starts (once it is published) and gives the instructor a little extra time for grading after the course ends.
Still under Course Details, check mark “Users can only participate in the course between these dates”
Next scroll down and check mark “Restrict students from viewing this course after the end date and Restrict students from viewing this course before the start date.
Scroll to the bottom of the page and click “Update Course Details”

14. ADDING A LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM TO A CANVAS Shell
If your textbook comes with a LMS that includes options for homework, exams, cases, practice materials, and sometimes additional videos for problems….set it up and utilize it. Canvas is excellent to set up a learning management system that will link grades back to the grade book. It also has options to safeguard the assignments from students sharing or working together. **McGraw Hill, Cengage, Pearson MyLab, Zoom, and Turnitin are all choices in Canvas.

15. Steps to set up McGraw-Hill Connect IN Canvas
Click the Modules Tab or HomeTab (if that is your homepage)
Click Add Module
Name the Module (ex McGraw Hill)
Scroll Down Until You See the McGraw-Hill link listed under Modules and click the “+”sign
At the top click the down arrow and choose “External Tool” to add
Scroll down and choose McGraw-Hill Connect.
Once here you will begin set up and choose
the textbook.

16. Importing a course into a blank shell
When course shells are available for a new term, they are normally blank. If you have taught the course in the past or created a Development Course Shell, you can import that information into the blank shell following these easy steps:
Click on the blank shell.
Once on the Home Page of the shell, click on the Settings tab. You will see choices on the right side of the screen, choose “Import Course Content”.
Click on the drop down arrow by Content Type and choose “Copy a Canvas Course”
Next you must choose the Canvas course that you would like to copy the content from and choose all content or specific content and click import.
Click Next at the bottom of the next screen and the import will start to take place.
Be sure to double check that the import was successful and copied accurately.