Enhancing the student experience through Canvas course design

Canvas Baseline Practices establishes a foundation for quality and addresses a long-standing tension that students want consistency across their courses.

The work to bring Stage 1 and most Stage 2 Canvas courses up to the agreed baseline standard has progressed ahead of schedule and will move out of project mode by the end of the year.

The project team have been working with faculties to help them prepare to bring their remaining Canvas courses up to standard by the end of 2025 and self-help resources are available through the Canvas Baseline Practices section.

The Canvas Baseline Framework consists of five minimum standards:

1. Structure and navigation
2. Orientation to the course
3. Syllabus information
4. Assessment
5. Accessibility and copyright

All Canvas courses must meet the minimum requirements by the end of 2025.

A checklist, ‘how to’ guides outline the agreed standards and associated benefits. A collation of FAQs is also available for your reference. 

Templates developed in collaboration with faculties, schools and departments provide a unified design that adheres to core standards and accessibility guidelines. The templates allow you to copy the fundamental course structure, content pages, syllabus, assessments, and navigation. Teachers are encouraged to customise and build on this foundation for their specific needs.