Canvas Frequent Questions
This page features answers to common questions about the transition from ReggieNet to Canvas. It is designed only as a basic guide. Faculty and staff are encouraged to contact the Center for Integrated Professional Development at ProDev@ilstu.edu or (309) 438-2542 for further assistance.
Updated 03/03/23
Timeline
See the full project timeline on the NextLMS website.
When can I access Canvas?
Instructors and staff can access Canvas now through Canvas.IllinoisState.edu. Full integrations with the My.IllinoisState portal will follow this spring or summer.
When can I start teaching with Canvas?
Instructors with summer course have the choice to use either Canvas or ReggieNet. Canvas will be used for all courses starting in the fall of 2023 and onwards.
When is ReggieNet “going away”?
At the end of the summer term, after summer grade submissions, ReggieNet will still be available in a “read-only” mode, meaning that instructors will be able to view and download content from their course sites but not create anything new. Current plans call for keeping ReggieNet in that state through the end of the Fall 2023 semester, after which, it will be retired.
How will students be supported using Canvas?
Outreach to students will begin in earnest over the summer months, leading up to the start of the new academic year. Students with questions about Canvas can always contact the Technology Support Center.
Preparing to Teach
When can I start learning how to teach with Canvas?
Instructors and academic support staff will have several options:
- A full list of help articles and videos are linked to the Center for Integrated Professional Development’s Canvas Instructional Support page.
- Instructors and staff can self-enroll in the Canvas Fundamentals for Faculty online course at any time.
- The Center for Integrated Professional Development will offer synchronous, online workshops on a variety of topics starting the week of March 20. Registration is required. Workshops will be repeated frequently through the spring and summer, leading to the start of the Fall 2023 semester.
How can I begin work in Canvas if I am not yet assigned as an instructor-of-record?
The blank course sites in ReggieNet or Canvas are commonly called “shells.” As in past years with ReggieNet, instructors won’t see their course shells in Canvas until they are assigned to the course by their academic department. If you expect to teach in summer or fall but don’t have a course shell yet, you can request a temporary sandbox site. This option is open to all instructors, including graduate students who have a teaching assistantship for fall but have not been assigned to specific course sections, yet.
Can I build my Fall 2023 courses in ReggieNet and then request to have them migrated to Canvas?
No. Course “shells,” the blank templates provided before every semester for each assigned course, will only be created in Canvas for the fall of 2023 and onward. All instructors should plan on creating their Fall 2023 courses in Canvas, with the option to use content from previous semesters’ courses, if needed.
Summer 2023
Can I still use ReggieNet for Summer 2023 courses?
Yes. Course shells will be provided for summer instructors in both ReggieNet and Canvas. Students will see whichever version of the course is published by the instructor. As the summer term approaches, we encourage you to communicate with your students and inform them which LMS you intend to use, so students can log into Canvas and become familiar with the system.
For more information about options for summer instructors, please see this communication from February 28, 2023.
Getting Content from ReggieNet into Canvas
How do I get old content from ReggieNet into the new Canvas system?
Instructors have two options: Backup or Migration.
Backup
Backup is the best option for most situations, and it can be done by you right now. You can download documents, gradebook information, quizzes (including question pools), and other types of files from your ReggieNet course sites and save them on your Illinois State OneDrive. You can later upload only what you need into Canvas’s centralized Files system and begin building out your Fall 2023 “course shells” at your leisure, once those become available. Visit the Center for Integrated Professional Development’s Canvas support hub to get started.
Migration
Migration takes a whole ReggieNet course and converts its structure into a format usable by Canvas. This is a complicated solution best suited for courses that use a lot of tools or include a lot of assessments. Once the course is migrated, you will need to make additional changes to align the course content with how various tools work in Canvas. You will then import the data from the migrated course into your Fall 2023 course shell, much in the same way you populate new ReggieNet courses with previous ones.
Which is better, Backup or Migration?
It depends on your teaching needs, which may vary from course to course.
ReggieNet and Canvas are two different systems, and it is impossible to engineer a foolproof 1:1 conversion between the two. Moreover, Canvas has different tools. Some pilot instructors, especially those who wanted to take advantage of Canvas’ advanced features, found it easier to backup items and populate their new Canvas courses themselves.
In addition, migration does not transfer any student data. So, instructors wishing to keep an old course for the purposes of saving grades or student submissions, such as essays or portfolios, will need to back up those items instead. In fact, student data has never lasted forever in ReggieNet. Students and their work are removed from ReggieNet course sites after they leave the University and their accounts are retired.
Despite those caveats, migration may be the best option if you make extensive use of the Assignments, Lessons, Tests & Quizzes, or Discussions tools in your ReggieNet courses.
How do I request to have courses migrated from ReggieNet to Canvas?
The first round of limited migrations occurred in mid-February. There will be additional opportunities to request course migrations after spring break. Instructors will receive an email when new migration opportunities are available.
Textbooks, Videos, and Other Integrations
Will my textbook publisher’s online tools integrate with Canvas?
One reason for moving from ReggieNet to Canvas is to allow better, third-party tool integrations with our learning management system. Canvas is a popular, widely used platform, and many developers target their tools to use it. A complete list of integrations, often called LTIs, is being developed and will be shared with instructors. In addition, a process is being designed to allow instructors to request new integrations, which need to be vetted by University technical and information security staff.
Will apps like Zoom, Respondus, Proctortrack, and other services work with Canvas?
In short, yes. Many of the commonly used tools on campus are being tested now as a part of the Spring 2023 pilot program.
Will Microsoft Stream be used to host videos in Canvas courses?
No. Microsoft is making significant changes to how Stream works. In response, the University has decided to purchase Canvas Studio, a video solution integrated into the learning management system itself. Canvas Studio will provide users with the ability to upload or natively record videos, process them for accessibility, and make them available to students in a way which complies with FERPA and TEACH Act regulations.
The University is the process of purchasing Canvas Studio. Guidance and additional help for instructors on how to make the switch will be forthcoming.
Midterm, Progress Reports, and Final Grade Submission
How will midterm and final grade submission work with Canvas?
From the instructor’s perspective, grade submission will be handled very similarly to how it has happened with ReggieNet. Instructors will access the reporting system (My.IllinoisState for midterm and progress report grades, Campus Solutions/Faculty Center for final grades). Instructors will be given the option to import grades from Canvas into the system.
These are complicated processes behind-the-scenes, and work continues on them. It’s anticipated to be completed in time for summer final grade reporting in early August 2023.
Course Combinations
Will I be able to combine two or more courses in Canvas?
Instructors at Illinois State have often requested to have two or more sections of a course combined, to reduce the need to duplicate work. Canvas includes features which will allow instructors to have more control over this process.
A new process is being developed. Instructors will receive guidance once the process is fully tested, anticipated to happen over the summer of 2023.
Ongoing and Special Project Sites
Will I be able to migrate my special course site from ReggieNet to Canvas?
Some ReggieNet sites are not tied to courses, but rather, were created to support departmental programs, special training programs, or registered student organizations. We are still determining the best ways to handle those migrations.
Owners of those sites will be contacted separately with options later in the spring of 2023. These options would include migrating an existing ReggieNet site into Canvas, creating a new Canvas site they can build themselves, or adopting on a different platform (such as Microsoft Teams) which might better suit their needs. We are developing a menu of choices to outline the advantages and challenges associated with each solution.
Faculty or staff currently managing ongoing or special project sites can expedite this process by going to Site Info > Edit Site Information and making sure their name and email are in the Site Contact fields.