📘 TLC Guide Available
This topic includes a full-length TLC asynchronous course for deeper exploration.
► Let’s Get This Canvas Started!
Canvas as Your Course Hub
Canvas is UC Santa Cruz’s learning management system and the platform students are already familiar with for their courses. It centralizes materials, communication, assignments, and grading, while also supporting activities that promote engagement. Thoughtful use of Canvas tools can streamline course management, increase accessibility, and create consistent structures that help students stay engaged and succeed.
How Canvas Supports Teaching and Learning
Canvas helps instructors:
- Manage course content efficiently in one system
- Ensure students always know where to find what they need
- Support student engagement anytime, anywhere
- Streamline assignment submission and grading workflows
- Offer timely, private feedback that promotes learning
- Incorporate e-textbooks and other digital resources
- Gain insights into student activity and participation
Common Faculty Questions
I’ve never used Canvas, how do I get started?
If you’re completely new to Canvas, we recommend this Canvas Visual Guide to get more familiar with the layout, terminology, and icons you’ll see in Canvas. We also have a self-paced course, “Let’s Get This Canvas Started!” that will guide you through building your first Canvas course. Canvas also has Instructor Guides listed here.
When will I get access to my Canvas course for an upcoming quarter?
Courses for future terms start populating around advising and enrollment dates, though this can vary. Once you’re officially listed as the instructor of record in the Registrar’s system, you’ll be automatically added as a Teacher in the Canvas course within 24 hours (if you are not seeing your course, check with your department manager or college academic advisor).
If you’d like to start building your course before then, you can request a development course (also called a “shell” or “sandbox”, meaning any course where students are not enrolled). It’s easy to import content from one Canvas course to another.
What do I need to know about setting up assignments and Gradebook?
Setting up your Gradebook to reflect your syllabus early in the term helps students understand how they’ll be assessed and keeps their grades accurate throughout the quarter. This might include creating assignment groups with weighted percentages or applying a grading scheme to your course. Always make sure each student receives a grade for each assignment – leaving dashes will falsely inflate grades.
👉 This is one of the most common topics during Instructional Technology Office Hours — feel free to drop by for help!
TLC Resources
- Enroll in Let’s Get This Canvas Started!: self-paced, asynchronous course covering the basics of using Canvas. You can use it as a reference guide or complete it as a full course by submitting the “homework” assignments at the end of each module that our resident Canvas experts can review and provide feedback
- Canvas Visual Language: explains the layout of Canvas and most common icons used in Canvas and what they mean
- How to Import Course Content: 2 minute video demonstrating how to copy course content, complements the Canvas Guide on importing content
- How to Use the Redirect Tool in Canvas: 2 minute video about adding an external link to your course navigation menu
- Course Readiness Checklist: quick Canvas tips to prep your course before the quarter starts
- How to Configure Your Canvas Gradebook to Align With Your Syllabus: guide to setting up your Canvas Gradebook so course grading aligns with your syllabus and supports student clarity.
- End of Term Wrap-Up: key Canvas reminders for wrapping up your course at the end of the term
Templates
- Introduction Module: a fully customizable module to insert into your course; includes campus resources, tips on succeeding in courses, guidelines on communication and academic integrity and more (also available on Common
- Summer Introduction Module: same as the Introduction module, with a page detailing info about Summer Session
- Course Design Template: includes the Introduction module above as well as 10 built modules to easily customize with weekly content
Support
UCSC Support: For support with this tool, visit Instructional Technology Office Hours, or contact ITS (UCSC ITS Canvas page).
Instructure Canvas Support: Click the Help icon on the left hand vertical menu in Canvas. Click on “Chat with Canvas Support (Faculty)” or call by phone. These methods of support are available 24/7 for all your burning 2am Canvas questions.
Note: Instructure is the developer of Canvas; they cannot help with integrated tools such as Zoom or YuJa.