Big Questions
Big Data
Leveraging User-Generated Canvas Data
Jing Qi, Ed.D.
Evaluation link: bitl.y/nercomp_canvas15
Pat Coogan, MBA
Big questions
• How does Canvas complement face-to-face
learning at Dartmouth?
• What Canvas data can we harvest?
• How can we leverage user-generated Canvas
data for answers?
Big data
Page views – how they use Canvas
Within the courses
Also
Calendar
Settings, Profile
Groups, Communications
More data…..
Assignment Submission
On time
Late
Also: Score statistics
Score received
Score range
New data, new look
Course content
• Files
• Modules or module items
• Pages
• Quizzes
• Discussions
• Assignments
Still more – course design
Visibility of course navigation items
• Visible/Hidden navigation items
• Navigation items are hidden due to no content
Announcements
Assignments
Pages
Files
Outcomes
Quizzes
Modules
Text Mining
A collaboration with Instructure
• Discussion topics
Graded/ungraded
Focused/threaded
…..and so much more
• Individual discussion threads
So much data and so little
time…
Our smaller questions
(We have many, but here’s where we started)
How does Canvas course design facilitate student access to course content?
Is there a relationship?
How do Dartmouth students use Canvas to prepare for quizzes?
Relationship among page views, activity, quiz performance?
Caveat
Student activity in Canvas is one of many factors that
affect student performance.
• Not generalizable
• Unique to the design of individual courses
• Each institution uses Canvas differently
Online
Blended
F2F
Course designs in relation to files
2 most common file design approaches – file tab visible or hidden
• Organize files in Files, make Files navigation visible. Pages are not used.
• Link files in a page, hide Files and Pages navigation, set the page as Front Page
A few preliminary findings
Courses level
• Popular course design
Embed files in a page
Set the page to Front Page
Hide Files and Pages navigation from students’ view
Students will access course via Front Page
• Files embedded in a course increases page views
Preliminary findings
Student level – final exam performance
• B level students (greater than 87%) benefited from the amount of
page views more than the rest of their peers.
• B- level students (grades less than 88%) benefited marginally from
page views.
Discuss:
1. What are your big questions? What would help
you answer these questions?
2. What data have you harvested from Canvas
and what kind of analysis have you done?
Let’s keep the dialogue going
Jing Qi
Jing.Qi@Dartmouth.edu
Pat Coogan
Patricia.Coogan@Dartmouth.edu
Evaluation link: bitl.y/nercomp_canvas15