Lunch and Learn: Apps

Post date: Sep 17, 2020 4:46:52 PM

Reflect on the times that you used the Canvas teacher app. in your GaVS course.

• Choose one time during the semester that the teacher app. came in handy.

I like to use the Teacher app to respond to student messages. Students frequently send me simple questions or concerns via the Canvas message feature and I can easily respond to these questions using the app. They get quick feedback and I don't have to be tied to my computer.

I also like to use the Teacher app to reply to student discussion posts because that's another thing I can easily do while not sitting at my computer.

• Create an artifact to demonstrate how you used the app. (Please keep this FERPA compliant. Blur out names and personal information.)

This is a discussion reply from me to a student. You can see that I can see their post and I can write my reply based on what they posted. I can attach files if I want. This seems to work best for simple replies without video or images. I have one discussion in my course that I like to make replies with videos I've found that relate to the specific topics of that discussion. That discussion wouldn't be best for the app, but this discussion about their water footprint is a great option for using the app.

These are two series of messages between myself a a student in the course. You can see the student asked simple questions and I was able to quickly reply, which minimized the disruption they had to their workflow. For the one on the left, we were messaging back and forth, so it was almost like chatting with the student synchronously, which, I hope, added a personalized layer to their GAVS course.

• Provide a reflection on the pros and cons you faced while using the Canvas teacher app. Discuss the benefits of using the Canvas teacher app. at GaVS.

So far, the teacher app has proven excellent for responding to students and checking my to do list so I can plan my time for when I get back to my computer. I've also made simple announcements for students using the app.

The app does provide an excellent way to annotate student assignments. However, you cannot upload video feedback using the app. So, I rarely use it to grade, since I like to provide extension videos as feedback. And it's clunky to make annotations on the app and then switch to the computer to add my comments and feedback. It's also not as easy to copy and paste canned comments using the app.

Based upon your use of the Canvas teacher app this semester, along with your learning from this course:

• Develop a plan or idea for future use of the Canvas teacher app.

My plan is to continue to use the app to answer student questions, respond to discussions, and create simple off-the-cuff announcements that I need based on how the semester is going, but I haven't pre-scheduled.

• Include a detailed explanation of your plan/idea that relates back to your previous experience, pros/cons, benefits, etc.

I look forward to spending more time working with the app. I do think the annotation features are useful, but they aren't very practical for me and how I like to grade. For me, personally, if I'm at all near my computer, I much prefer working with the desktop version of Canvas.

I do very much like responding to quick student questions via the app, as they cannot tell I'm not at my computer (unlike with the Outlook app). The same goes with discussion responses. I can use those pockets of wasted time throughout the day to respond to discussions or answer student questions, so when I'm at my desk, I can use that time for focusing on grading or other tasks that cannot be done when I'm not at the computer.

I plan to continue using the app in this way to increase efficiency and provide a better experience for my students.