Here is a list of Canvas terms that you will find helpful when skipping around in the course. Not comprehensive but very concise, also test questions will be on some of the terms:

Where can I find a list of Canvas terminology?

Document created by Canvas Doc Team on Apr 19, 2017•Last modified by Canvas Doc Team on Feb 15, 2020

Version 48New Canvas users may encounter new terminology throughout Canvas. This lesson is a glossary that identifies the most common terms used in Canvas

Account

An Account represents an administrative organization unit within Canvas. Every instance of Canvas has the potential to contain a hierarchy of accounts but begins with just one account (referred to as the root account). An account can also contain a subaccount. Canvas admins can manage all accounts and subaccounts for their institutions.Account also refers to a user account, which houses a user's profile, notifications, files, settings, and ePortfolios.

Act as User

Act as User refers to viewing Canvas as another user. Unless granted specific permission, only admins can act as other Canvas users.

Activity Stream

An Activity Stream displays all recent activity in Canvas. There are two types of Activity Streams in Canvas: Global and Course. The Global Activity Stream is part of the Dashboard and shows recent activity for all courses. The Course Activity Stream is part of a Course Home Page and shows recent activity for a specific course.

Announcements

Announcements is a communication tool that allows instructors to post announcements for all users in a course. Announcements can be created in courses and groups. Canvas admins can also make announcements for an entire Canvas account. Instructors can allow students to reply to announcements.

Announcements is a link in Course Navigation.

Assignments(-can only be found through Modules)

An assignment is any activity assessment that is created by the instructor. Assignments can include Assignments, Discussions, and Quizzes. Some assignments are submitted for no grade. Other assignments may be submitted offline but tracked in the Canvas Gradebook or be submitted online.

Assignments is a link in Course Navigation. The Assignments page lists all assignment types in a course.

Breadcrumbs

Breadcrumbs are the trail at the top of a page window that helps users see what page they are viewing in the course hierarchy.

Calendar

The Calendar is a communication tool that shows users all events and assignments in their courses and groups. The Calendar is a link in Global Navigation and shows up under your right side navigation and course stream.

Canvas Community

The Canvas Community is an external resource provided by Canvas for all Canvas customers. The Canvas Community includes the Canvas Guides, which provides all Canvas documentation and videos, Canvas Feature Ideas, community groups, and more.

Course Code

The course code is a short name for a course. The course code is displayed at the top of the Course Navigation Menu and as part of course cards in the dashboard.The course code is also known as the reference code or the short name.

Courses

Courses are units of instruction in one subject that typically last one term. Courses can be created by Canvas admins or instructors.

Course Home Page

The Course Home Page is the first page that students see in a course. The Course Home Page can be customized to display content based on an instructor's preference. For our home page, I have embedded the syllabus which includes the calendar with coursework due dates.

The Home Page is a link in Course Navigation.

Course Navigation

Course Navigation is a menu on the left side of a Canvas course. Course Navigation consists of navigation links directed to all the feature areas within a course. Instructors can customize Course Navigation for each course.

Modules:

Modules is a tool that can unify all course content into structural components. Module content can be grouped by week, topic, or day. Modules can be set up to require students to complete materials in a sequential fashion.

Modules is a link in Course Navigation.

New User Tutorial

The New User Tutorial shows new instructors using Canvas for the first time how to become familiar with Canvas using sidebars built into each Canvas feature area.

Some accounts may be configured to use the Course Setup Checklist instead of the New User Tutorial.

Notifications

Notifications allow users to determine where and when they will be notified about activity in Canvas. Each Canvas user can adjust the Notification Preferences in their Profile to contact them via email or SMS on a schedule that fits their individual needs. Some users will want to be notified of course events on a more regular basis than others. Notifications are set for an entire user's account, not on an individual course basis.

People

People displays all users enrolled in a course. Instructors can click a student's name to view a summary of their activity in a course.

People is a link in Course Navigation.

Production

Production is the Canvas environment that contains all live data and where users interact with their Canvas courses. New and updated Canvas features are released into the production environment every three weeks.

Profile

A profile is a description that provides information about a person. Admins can choose to enable the Profile feature, which allows users to create biographies and link to social networks as part of their user account.

Rich Content Editor

The Rich Content Editor (RCE) is a word processor that supports instructors to create and format content within specific Canvas areas.

Role

A role describes the permissions granted to a given user in a given context (course, account, and subaccount). Canvas includes both course-level and account-level roles; the base role types are Student, Teacher Assistant (TA), Teacher, Designer, Observer, and Admin. (In Canvas terminology, teachers are also referred to as instructors.) Customized versions of any of these roles can also be created by an admin.

RSS Feed

Really Simple Syndicate (RSS) is a computer document format that allows electronic content distribution.Audio RSS feeds are also referred to as podcasts. RSS Feeds can be imported into a Canvas course via Announcements.

Rubrics

A Rubric is an assessment tool for communicating expectations of quality. Rubrics are typically comprised of rows and columns. Rows are used to define the various criteria being used to assess an assignment. Columns are used to define levels of performance for each criterion.

Settings

Settings allow admins and instructors to customize the Account or Course Navigation, add users, import content, and link to external tools.

Settings is a link in Account and Course Navigation.

Syllabus

The Syllabus is a piece of content that outlines activities in a course.

The Syllabus is a link in Course Navigation.

Web Services

Web Services are a collection of third-party services that users can use for notifications. Web Services currently support integrations with Google Drive, Skype, Twitter, Delicious, and Diigo.