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  6.  — Get started with Canvas

Get started with Canvas

How to access Canvas and edit your user profile and notifications. Navigate the menus and learn the basics of formatting using the Canvas rich text editor.

Canvas Essentials video

Video: Our in-house expert, Karl McGuirk, steps us through the Canvas must know’s. This video is presented in Panopto. Sign in to watch the video with your University of Auckland credentials.

Video: Our in-house digital learning specialist, Karl McGuirk, steps us through the Canvas must know’s. This video is presented in Panopto. Sign in to watch the video with your University of Auckland credentials.

Using Canvas

Accessing the Canvas website on a desktop or laptop with a compatible browser will give you the best overall experience, especially for more complex tasks like course building and creating quizzes. Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari are preferred browsers for Canvas.

Canvas is integrated with the University’s single-sign-on system. To log in to Canvas, enter your University username and password.

Video: Canvas tutorial – overview

Canvas profile and user settings

Canvas Profile displays a user’s information such as name, email, bio, personal pronouns, and profile picture. Users can edit it anytime and it’s visible to other users in their courses. Canvas User Settings allows users to customise their Canvas experience by adjusting settings such as notifications, language preferences, time zone, and privacy settings.

Canvas Teacher App for mobile devices

Canvas Teacher allows teachers to facilitate their courses on the go, both inside and outside the classroom. Canvas Teacher is available for both Android and iOS devices:

Canvas navigation menus

Canvas’ rich content editor

The rich content editor is a condensed toolbar used for editing Canvas page content.

The menu is grouped by common icons and interactions. It is used to add text and image content, as well as embed other items such audio, video or math formulae.

Video: Canvas tutorial – rich text editor

Support

Support options are available through the Staff Service Centre or the 24-hour hotline. Please visit the learning technology support page for details.

Page updated 25/06/2024 (Updated canvas pronoun info)

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