UC San Diego Extended Studies Course Templates are designed and built to support instructors in their delivery of high-quality learning experiences using the Canvas LMS.
To use these templates as you develop a new course, please continue reading for instructions on how to import and use the template.
To learn more about using these templates to upgrade/optimize the learning experience in a course you have already developed and delivered in an LMS (Canvas or other), please contact the Instructional Excellence team at ext-instructorexcellence@ucsd.edu for more information.
How to use the templates for New Courses
- Step 1: Choose Your Template
- Step 2: Import the template
- Step 3: Update the Template Pages
- Step 4: Add your Content
How to use the templates for New Courses
Step 1: Choose Your Template
There are 3 templates for you to choose from. Each template has been designed for a different type of class - hybrid, live online, or fully online. Read below for a brief description of each.
- Online: This template was designed to give students a clear learning path through your content and to help build a more "humanized’ course in the absence of in-person meetings.
- Live-Online, Blended, and In Class: This template was designed to support your online class time and online submission of assessments (assignments, discussions, or quizzes), as well as to help organize your review content and expansion materials or activities.
- Hybrid: This template was designed to help organize your review content and expansion materials or activities in a way that logically lines up with your in-class time. It also contains the online templates (assignment, discussion, and quiz) for your at-home assignments or assessments.
Step 2: Import the template
Follow these directions to bring the template into your Practice Course or into your empty Course Shell.
Before you get started, log into Canvas and click "Commons" on the left menu (this will authenticate your session and allow the below links to work correctly).
- Click the link for the template you want to import.
- On the right side of the page, click the blue “Import/Download” button
- The Import/Download menu will open. Select the course(s) that you want to import the template into, and then click the “Import” button. Note: You can import the template into more than 1 course at a time, if desired.
- It may take a few minutes for the import to complete. When it is done, you can navigate to your course, and you should see the template content inside your course.
Step 3: Update the Template Pages
Once the template has been successfully imported into your course, you can begin to use it. First, you will need to edit the standard informational pages. You can edit any of these pages by opening them and clicking the "Edit’ button in the top right corner. Be sure to click "Save’ (in the bottom right corner) before you leave the page.
Home Page
- Update your welcome message
Syllabus
- Add your syllabus
- Delete the instructional text at the bottom of the page
Course Introduction Module
- About the Course
- Add Course Description from your syllabus
- Add Student Learning Outcomes from your syllabus
- About the Instructor
- Update Name, Title, and Photo
- Update Greeting
- Update Official Bio
- Update "About Me’ Survey
- Introduce Yourself Discussion
- Add the prompt
- Edit the instructions/grading, if needed
Step 4: Add your Content
The Module template (in the Modules area of the course) contains "original’ pages for you to copy and use.
How to copy the entire module
- Click the More Options icon (3 dots) on the right side of the module. Then, click “Duplicate”
- Your new copy of the template will appear in the Modules area of the course. You can add your content by opening the copied pages/items and clicking the "Edit’ button in the top right corner.
How to duplicate individual module items
- Click the More Options icon (3 dots) on the right side of the module. Then, click “Duplicate.” (Note: Classic Quizzes cannot be duplicated. You will need to use the "Copy to’ option described above to copy the quiz template.)
- The duplicated item will appear directly below the original. Drag the duplicated item into a new module. You can then rename your content by opening the duplicated pages/items and clicking the "Edit’ button in the top right corner.