Beyond the Classroom: Using Canvas for Interactive Handbooks

Jean DownsDirector of Assessment Del Mar College

Lucy JamesAssociate Professor/Program Director, ASL & Interpreting Faculty Assessment CoordinatorDel Mar College

Guides

Problem: Underutilized and dusty assessment manual

Solution: Interactive assessment guide in Canvas

How we did it: Evidence-based awesomeness

Agenda

Introduction

The Problem

Printed Manuals & Handbooks• Pain in the neck to update

• Distribution issues • Who gets copies/revised copies?• Who is using an out-of-date copy?

• Can be hard to search for specific information

• Explanations limited to text and static pictures

• Color adds to cost of printing

• Can only access if the print copy is in the same location you are• Or the manual/handbook is a pdf document on the web

What’s in a Name?

Because "manual" has connotations of dense, boring text, some manufacturers or technical writers prefer the label "guide" for what would traditionally be called a "manual."

The Solution

An Interactive Guide in Canvas

Supported by Learning Theory Used instructional design and learning theory to build the guide ◦ Microlearning - Chunking - Bite-sized Learning◦ Formative assessment and self-assessment◦ “Bite-sized learning:” chunking and microlearning◦ Visual displays of information

Canvas Features • Easy to modify and update

• Universal access

• Already designed to facilitate learning • Modules • Discussions• Formative Assessments (Quizzes)

• Interactive• Discussions• Videos

• Add unlimited number of pages with no printing cost

• Course analytics

How We Did It

Contact infoJean DownsDirector of Assessment Del Mar College361-698-1137jdowns2@delmar.edu

Lucy JamesAssociate Professor/Program Director, ASL & Interpreting ProgramFaculty Assessment CoordinatorDel Mar College361-698-2813ljames@delmar.edu

References & Resources

References & Resources Choster – What are the differences between “manual”, “guide” and “instruction”? English Language & Usage. Retrieved from http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/59224/what-are-the-differences-between-manual-guide-and-instruction

Vasan, S. (2015). People Skills Matter: Bite-Sized Learning. Retrieved from http://blog.skillstore.com/bite-sized-learning

PowToons.com

Canvas Video Guides: https://guides.instructure.com/m/4210

Picture Credits Caïn by Henri Vidal, Tuileries Garden, Paris, 1896. In Twenty-first-century Perspectives on Nineteenth-century Art: Essays in Honor of Gabriel P. Weisberg p246 Associated University Press, 2008. Retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facepalm

Karate-Kicking Panda - https://coconino.instructure.com/courses/923533