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Canvas Templates
A large part of course development is the way in which activities will be organized and presented to students. This document describes how instructors access and utilize Canvas Templates that have been created by the Center for Teaching, Learning & Mentoring (CTLM) for use in online, blended, or face-to-face courses. You can download and import the template course directly into any Canvas course and select the specific content you want or import all the content and delete what you do not want once it is in your course.
A version of the module is published and publicly available for preview. See the CTLM Canvas Course Template. UW-Madison instructors are welcome to use all or part of this module in their own courses.
Template Content
Course shells in Canvas do not come with any templates or structures. CTLM has created various templated pages for instructors to utilize in their courses if they wish. This is not the creation of a course exemplar. Instead, it is the creation of a package of course assets from which faculty or instructional designers can pick and choose elements to use within their course.
The following templates are provided.
- Homepage Options
- Course Orientation Module
- Module Concepts
- Assignments with rubrics with different levels of criteria and points
- Discussion examples
- Mid-Semester Feedback Survey
Import the template
Through Canvas Commons, you can import the module into your course. Please follow the steps below.
- Log in to Canvas.
- Click the Commons icon in the red global navigation. See these instructions for logging in and using Canvas Commons.
- Search for "CTLM Canvas Course Template" and click to access the module.
- Click the Import Button. Each Canvas Commons page has an import button to prompt an import process.
- Select the Canvas course(s) to receive the import. A list of all your Canvas Courses will appear. Select one or many courses for the import.
More advanced Canvas users can also download a .zip file to import into their course. See how to import from a .zip file in the Canvas Community.
Download a Zip File. (Double click on the file to unzip and then upload the imscc file to Canvas)
How to use the template in your course
After importing the templates into your Canvas course, go to Modules. Find the module titled, "Using the templates."
This module contains two documents:
- How do I edit the templates?
- How do I duplicate the module structure?
These two documents will get you started on how to incorporate the templates into your course.
Using this template requires you to customize it. Please review the content carefully. Text and other items that must be updated are prefaced with highlighted and italicized text. The amount of customization you choose is up to you and can include:
- Update all personal and contact information for course instructor(s).
- Update all scheduling and location details for your course.
- Update content to have only technologies your course will use.
- Proofread and update all other information as needed to be accurate for your course.
- Update, keep un-published, or delete any activities you will not use.
For general instructions on how to use Canvas, refer to Canvas Guides offered by Instructure.
Also, you can reference the Learn@UW Training Canvas course for a collection of additional Canvas resources on campus.
Providing feedback on the Canvas course templates
If you have feedback on the templates, please contact CTLM.