Overview

The following checklist is an easy tool for creating a basic set of simple guidelines to organize your online course so that students can understand more easily what it is you want them to do to be successful. This Beginning-of-Semester Checklist is a starting point for ensuring your course is ready to go for student access at the start of a new course term. It is customizable for you and your department, as desired.

Why Complete this Checklist for My Online Courses?

The Digital Learning Team's commitment to excellence is ongoing and we strive to always support the most effective practices in online learning. We have been listening to faculty and students about the pros and cons of their experiences with instruction, particularly in online classes. Faculty and students have weighed in on their experiences and identified their challenges. Faculty and students have told us what helps and which classes are easiest to navigate. The Digital Learning office has distilled this information into a checklist for ease of use. We have based this checklist on the collective experiences of the team members and our deep knowledge of Canvas. Although we intend this to be used in online courses, the checklist principles and practices can be applied to any course.

The goal of this document is to create greater consistency and predictability for students. Faculty who use the checklist in their courses can share their choices with their students to create a sense of mutual understanding and shared commitment. Use of the checklist recommendations can augment end of course student teaching evaluations by demonstrating the adoption of best practices. The Beginning of Semester Checklist is a starting point for ensuring your course is ready to go for student access at the start of a new course term.

Potential Uses of the Canvas Beginning of Semester Checklist

Review the Canvas Beginning-of-Semester checklist to ensure your course is ready to publish for students
Share with your colleagues so they can also benefit from the checklists

How to Customize & Use This Checklist

1. Open the Google Docs version.

2. Go to the "File" menu and select "Make a Copy".

3. Edit your copy as needed.

Canvas Beginning of Semester Checklist

Click on image below to download a PDF or follow directions above for an editable copy.