Use Canvas as a one-stop assignment shop

Canvas provides a one-stop platform to create and administer writing assignments. My students submit their work and do peer reviews on Canvas. Not having to email back and forth to share Word attachments saves precious time. Rubrics are super easy to create and manage, and we know that readily available rubrics improve transparency and help students understand our expectations for any given assignment.

Grading is also greatly simplified. The Canvas Speedgrader has fantastic features: it lets the instructor see their progress in terms of how many assignments remain to be graded, keep track of the average grade, and, most importantly, offer feedback in a very organic way. I like to share specific questions or remarks by commenting directly on my student's papers, and I reserve the Comment feature in the assignment tool for a general appreciation of the strengths and weaknesses of the work being assessed.

I also make extensive use of the Discussion tool. Discussions allow students to share their work not only with me but also with their peers. This has great pedagogical value because it enables students to learn from one another and continue the conversation outside of the classroom. Discussions can also be graded if that’s what the assignment calls for: it’s really the perfect combination of horizontal learning and instructor feedback.”

Mariana Bono, Senior Lecturer in Spanish and Portuguese, Associate Director of Spanish Language Program