The Canvas Network is run by Instructure, a Utah-based company that was founded in 2008. The company launched its MOOC provider in November 2012 and is currently conducting research to improve the quality of the instruction available through its online course environments.
A large number of Canvas Network’s class offerings come from professors at community colleges. This greatly differentiates this MOOC provider from platforms like Coursera and edX, which mainly provide courses from prestige universities like Stanford, Harvard, and MIT. As a result, the Canvas Network may be better equipped to provide learning materials to students who are not prepared for college because the professors themselves are more likely to encounter such a demographic.
Course Format:
Students who use the Canvas Network will be able to take either “live” or self-paced courses. In a live course, the instructor produces announcements and feedback in online discussions and makes an effort to ensure students are interacting. Furthermore, a “live” instructor may also be tasked with offering feedback on assignments and typically offers peer-review rubrics to help students receive the help they need to succeed in the Massive Open Online Course.
Canvas Network offers its instructors a list of “Course Best Practices” to ensure the proper, effective design of Massive Open Online Courses. These guidelines cover the development of the course overview, intended to help students decide whether to enroll in the course, and the actual content of the MOOC. As a result, although the Canvas Network employs a variety of teachers from different backgrounds, the provider does its best to ensure that certain standards are maintained across the board.
Course Offerings:
The Canvas Network offers a variety of courses across different areas of study. The MOOC provider’s courses are often cross-disciplinary and contain intended learning objectives, like gaining the basic academic skills necessary to succeed in college in College Foundations: Reading, Writing, and Math. The website also features a variety marketing and technology courses to its students in addition to its breadth of humanities and science offerings.
Fans of the popular Minecraft video game will be excited to know that The Canvas Network offers courses that utilize the video game, such as “Minecraft for Educators” from Joel Mills of the University of Hull and “Getting Start with MinecraftEDU” from Jason Schmidt of the Canvas Network.
Institutions:
In an effort to provide Massive Open Online Courses to its students, the Canvas Network has partnered with several academic institutions who are currently providing courses on their platform. Many of the Canvas Network’s partners are community colleges, like the following:
- Seattle Central Community College
- Colorado Community College System
- Kirkwood Community College
- Sauk Valley Community College
The Canvas Network is also working in conjunction with several four year universities to provide MOOCs on its platform:
- University of Delaware
- Florida State University
- University of California – Irvine
- Creighton University
- University of Colorado
- Kansas State University
Additionally, the platform has also joined with institutions that teach students at the high school level:
- Northwest Career and Technical High School
- Northwest Colorado BOCES
- My Tech High
- Noblesville Schools
Finally, the Canvas Network is also working alongside non-profit organizations to provide its Massive Open Online Courses:
- Teachers Without Borders
- Space Center Houston
- San Diego County Office of Education
- National Science Learning Centre
- Shaping Tomorrow
- European Journalism Centre