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Office of the Provost

 

November 2, 2018

 

Dear Faculty and Staff,

In our path to becoming the model 21st-century urban research university, we are redefining the standard for transformative educational experiences that are not bound by time, space, or location. As part of this vision, we recently surveyed our faculty to identify areas of opportunity and concerns around the University’s Learning Management System (LMS).

We are pleased to share that your comments, as well as research conducted by a University team, informed our decision to adopt Canvas as the new LMS for The University of Texas at Arlington.

This modern, reliable, and easy-to-use LMS has the potential to transform both the student and faculty experience.

Canvas offers exciting features and functionalities designed to help us promote student-centered learning, greater engagement, and meaningful learning experiences. Based on our current timeline, Canvas will be fully deployed for Fall 2019 courses.

Faculty and Student Benefits

Some of our faculty have used Canvas in other roles and their positive experiences—as well as reviews from other institutions—solidified our commitment to modernize the LMS experience for both students and faculty. Additionally, several school districts in the area use Canvas, so many of our students are already familiar with the platform.

While we acknowledge that switching platforms may present challenges, we are preparing a broad menu of support options for faculty to convert their courses to the new LMS. So, why Canvas? It offers the following:

  • An intuitive, easy-to learn-interface, including a state-of-the-art mobile app experience
  • Enhanced and easy-to-manage syllabus, course calendar, and course schedule that automatically update due dates for course activities
  • Improved workflow for more streamlined grading
  • A dashboard that quickly summarizes all relevant course events and items
  • Simplified student collaboration and group options
  • 24/7 phone and live chat support, along with improved instructions, videos, and guides

Transition Timeline

The transition to Canvas began last month with training for Faculty Champions and early adopters that represent each of the academic schools/colleges. This group—along with the OIT/CDE staff—will ensure we have a smooth University-wide transition with resources, tools, and training workshops starting in the Spring 2019 semester. Select pilot courses will be taught in Canvas during Spring 2019. We expect that all Summer 2019 courses will be taught in Canvas and plan to fully transition to the new LMS by the Fall 2019 semester. Our engagement with Blackboard ends in late 2019.

We will share additional updates early next year. In the meantime, please visit the UTA Canvas website at canvas.uta.edu for more information or contact the transition team at canvasteam@uta.edu.

We look forward to sharing this next-generation learning resource with you and your students.

Thank you for all you do to foster learning and make UTA one of the best universities in the country.

Best regards,

Teik C. Lim, Ph.D.
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

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Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

The University of Texas at Arlington

321 Davis Hall • Box 19118 • Arlington, TX 76019

provost@uta.edu@PraneshAswathLinkedIn

817-272-2103 (voice) • 817-272-3400 (fax)