Transitioning from Blackboard Learn to Canvas (banner)

In September 2025, we will transition from Blackboard to Canvas as our Central Learning Environment.

You likely have questions, such as:

  • How will I be trained on Canvas?
  • How can I ensure my content is student-ready?

The FBMH eLearning Team has developed a training plan tailored to your role and current Blackboard use. Learning pathways are designed for Unit Coordinators, Teaching Staff, and PS Staff, offering both scheduled training and “just-in-time” support to meet your needs. You can explore your personal learning pathway below.

You’ll receive details on how to book on courses at the right time.

Use the tabs shown here to choose the type of staff member that best represents you. This will present your personal training pathway.

Information includes details of both advised and optional sessions available to you.

As a unit coordinator, you will have a responsibility to ensure that the content that has been successfully moved into Canvas from Blackboard (via an automatic process managed from IT Services) is properly organised, functional and accessible.

Canvas is designed to be easier for students and staff to navigate than Blackboard; however, this means that re-organising your content will be an essential first step. For this reason your training path is as follows:

  1. Completion of online essential pre-work to ensure that you are familiar with content layout in Canvas AND to check that your content has successfully migrated to a holding area in the Canvas System.
  2. Attendance of the course “Canvas Unit Construction Workshop” where we will familiarise you with the layout of Canvas and start working towards organising your content and designing your new course layout.
  3. Following this workshop, you will have access to an online version to review when needed, as well as in person drop-in support sessions where you can work alongside eLearning staff to complete your content organisation and structure.
  4. During the summer, you will be invited to attend 3 courses which will train you on the wider day-to-day interactive teaching areas of Canvas. These courses are :
    • Canvas Basics (optional):
      How to make new content
      How to navigate the system
      How to communicate with students
      How to use the Calendar.
    • Canvas Assessments (essential):
      How to implement assessments at UoM in Canvas
      How to use the Canvas Quiz system
      How to create, manage and mark work that has been submitted as files (essays, presentations, etc)
      How to provide feedback to students
      How to manage grades.
    • Canvas Studio (optional):
      Learn about a new functionality whereby you can manage and maintain a personal video collection which can be deployed into your courses as either standalone videos, or as a video assignment with questions or discussion.
  5. Later in the summer, you will be asked to attend a “Canvas Unit Deployment Workshop”, where you will work alongside the FBMH eLearning team to bring together all of your work and training to create the final deployed unit for the 25-26 academic year and ensure it meets minimum expectations for teaching.

Throughout this training and transition process, you will have access to face-to-face drop-in support where you can work alongside a member of the eLearning team, and weekly online drop- in for smaller questions.

As there are over 2,500 staff to train in Canvas, you will be invited to one of only a handful of specific slots that cover similar unit types. You will be expected to prioritise this training wherever possible. This is to ensure that the Faculty is prepared to start teaching with Canvas in September 2025. Units that have no activity will be have unit coordinators contacted throughout the Spring and Summer months.

Where unit coordinators work very closely alongside their teaching staff to deliver their teaching together, you can pass along the invitation to the “Canvas Unit Construction Workshops” and “Canvas Unit Deployment Workshops” in order to book and attend together.

Semester 1 units will undertake this pathway starting in early spring and running throughout the summer in preparation for September.

Full year units will undertake this pathway in the late spring and throughout the summer in preparation for September.

Second Semester units: Unit coordinators are encouraged to attend the Canvas Basics and Canvas Assessments Courses in the summer. Dates for the “Canvas Unit Construction Workshop” and “Canvas Deployment Workshop” will become available between late summer and mid winter in preparation for Semester 2 of the 25-26 academic year.

As a lecturer, teacher or supportive academic member of staff assigned to a unit, we anticipate that you will need to know how to use Canvas to upload teaching materials, how to create, edit or mark assessments and how to communicate with students. This training path is based on these assumptions.

Should you have considerable involvement with the structure, layout and overall running of the course unit (perhaps if you are co-coordinating a unit, or take on the bulk of the teaching of a unit), then we advise that you discuss with the Unit-Coordinator whether you can attend the unit coordinator pathway together alongside the Unit Coordinator (aka: book the same training day/time).

Canvas Essentials Series:

Over the course of the summer, teaching staff or those academic staff who need to use Canvas in a non-teaching lead capacity will be offered the following courses in the following order:

Canvas Basics (essential):

An introduction to the Canvas system and how it is deployed at UoM.

  • How to navigate the system and courses
  • How to create and publish content for students
  • How to add video content for students
  • How to add links
  • How to communicate with students( including direct messaging, discussion boards and calendar entries for important events).

Canvas Assessments (essential):

How to deliver assessment via Canvas including:

  • Creating Quizzes
  • File submission assignments (including plagiarism checking)
  • Marking
  • Feedback.

Note: a basic understanding of Canvas is essential before attending this course.

Canvas Studio (optional):

Learn about a new functionality whereby you can manage and maintain a personal video collection which can be deployed into your courses as either standalone videos, or as a video assignment with questions or discussion.

Note: a basic understanding of Canvas is essential before attending this course.

Throughout this training and transition process, you will have access to face-to-face drop in support where you can work alongside a member of the eLearning team, as well as a weekly online drop-in for smaller questions.

As there are over 2,500 staff to train in Canvas, we expect courses to fill quickly. You will be expected to prioritise this training wherever possible. Last minute cancellations will effectively block other staff from booking the slots, which we would like to discourage. The Faculty will need to be prepared to start teaching with Canvas in September 2025 so leaving training until the last minute is strongly discouraged and may result in you receiving limited/no support. Units that have no activity will have unit coordinators contacted throughout the Spring and Summer months.

As a member of PS Staff, we have identified that there is a high likelihood that you will be approached by staff or students for help with the Canvas system. Our training pathway for you is designed to help you undertake day-to-day tasks in the Canvas system and to help staff and students throughout the change, pointing to appropriate support where necessary.

Your training pathway is split into two timeframes based on wider faculty needs:

Early Spring:

Orientation to Canvas – Empowering PS to Support Schools:

This course will give you an orientation to the Canvas system at UoM, including:

  • Navigation
  • How content is structured
  • How to add basic content
  • How the University intends to deploy the Canvas system to encourage excellent student outcomes.

The second part of this course will have you practice organising content that has already been moved into Canvas from Blackboard; this will emulate activities that our unit coordinators will undertake in the Spring, and enable you to better understand any questions you are asked.

Summer:

Our summer training is designed to empower you to deal with not just student and staff queries in September 25, but also to ensure that you have the skills you need to support academics with their assessments and marking processes.

Canvas Basics:

This course has some similarities to your orientation course , so may not be necessary if you feel experienced enough with Canvas already. If, however, you need a reminder, missed the orientation or are not feeling confident with the system, we recommend you attend.

The course covers:

  • An introduction to the Canvas system and how it is deployed at UoM
  • How to navigate the system and courses
  • How to create and publish content for students
  • How to add video content for students
  • How to add links
  • How to communicate with students (including direct messaging, discussion boards and calendar entries for important events).

Supporting Assessment in Canvas:

This course is essential for any PS staff member who may support staff or students with assessment in Canvas. You will need to have taken either the “Orientation to Canvas” course or the “Canvas Basics” course before attending.

This course covers:

  • Finding assessments within the system and the deployment settings (whether quiz or file upload)
  • How staff access submissions for marking purposes
  • How marked assessment and feedback is collected
  • How to access similarity reports
  • How to deal with grades
  • How to provide DASS extensions and group work.

Canvas Studio:

This is an optional course for any member of PS staff that has a need to manage and maintain video collections, or would need to use video assessment in courses.

Throughout the training and transition process, you will have access to face-to-face drop-in support where you can work alongside a member of the the eLearning team, as well as a weekly online drop-in for smaller questions.

As there are over 2,500 staff to train in Canvas, we expect courses to fill quickly. You will be expected to prioritise this training wherever possible. Last minute cancellations will effectively block other staff from booking the slots, which we would like to discourage.

The Faculty will need to be prepared to start teaching with Canvas in September 2025 so leaving training until the last minute is strongly discouraged and may result in you receiving limited/no support. Units that have no activity will have unit coordinators contacted throughout the Spring and Summer months.

Further information