Course Information

The main purpose of the Course Information Module is to introduce the course and share key information with students as they enter the course space. This is where you can include orientation and administrative information that is specific to the course as a whole. Separating the administrative information, from the learning materials helps students quickly locate course administrative information when they need to refer to it, and helps students to focus on learning content without distraction as they proceed through the modules. 

A secondary purpose for the Course Information Module is to "prime" students to the learning module structure and design within your course and the Canvas learning environment.  It models the structure and visual cues used in the learning modules. To support all students, the "Getting Started..." pages are designed to be used as they are, with short tutorial videos and instructions included. The Course Information module template contains:

Adapting the Course Information Template Pages

The Course Introduction and the Course Structure template pages are two pages in this module that you should adapt to suit your course and your students.

Click on the tabs below to view how the specific module pages are designed to be used. 

Course Introduction

Pathway

Welcome to [Course Name Here]

You can use this Canvas page to welcome students and introduce them to your course in general terms and describe the learning experiences they can anticipate in the course. Students tend to learn better when they are given information about why they need to learn something and why and how a specific learning activity will help their learning.

You can adapt the template to include information such as:

  • a detailed course description
  • course-level learning objectives or guiding questions
  • a description of the course organization and structure, outlining predictable patterns 
  • what learning activities are in the course and how they relate to learning goals
  • lab or other meeting schedules
  • directions for navigating to key areas in your course
  • outline your communication plan during the course e.g. how you will respond to students, how often you will send announcements, what timeframe can they expect you to respond to their inquiries

Tips for Customizing the Introduction

  • Make it an inviting place to begin. Add an image or video to the Course Introduction page. 
  • Let students know something about the course, and you as the instructor, that will excite them about learning in this course. Try a 60-second promo video such as this one done by Michael Wesch: World Religions Course. Links to an external site.
  • The template design is deliberately kept very simple and basic, so you can customize it for your course and to reflect your presence. Be sure to personalize this template to reflect yourself.

Canvas Navigation

Including the navigation instructions on the first Canvas page (see text at the bottom of this page) of your course helps to guide students through the Canvas interface. Similarly, it's helpful to include Canvas interface instructions on (at least) the first Discussion, Quiz, or Assignment students access. 

Language and Terminology

Keeping the terms, the language of the instructions, and formatting consistent not only makes the course look better, but it helps save your time because you can simply copy and paste that information as required, and reduces the students time in figuring out how to navigate through the interface or use the tools.

Note: Use the navigation buttons (Next and Previous), located below the Canvas pages to move through the module content.

 

This module can include other elements as needed. This is a 'build your own' module example. Other elements that could be included in this module:

  • purpose of the course
  • course-level learning objectives from your course syllabus (this where you can restate them or describe learning goals)
  • format of the course with explanation
  • welcome video from the course instructor
  • accessing publisher resources if these are used in the course
  • other materials or special requirements for the course, such as sign-up sheets for practicums