Course Content Migration

Each institution has a timeline for migrating course content and using Canvas for classes for the first time. There is training and support for faculty as the courses content is moved from D2L to Canvas. In person support and training are offered at each institution and faculty have access to 24×7 support from the Canvas Help Desk through chat, phone and email to answer questions on migrating content, creating new courses and running their courses.

 

 

General Content Migration FAQs

Have the tool names changed in Canvas?

Yes, some names have changed, but some are still the same. The Canvas Relationship Diagram will describe the relationship between the Canvas and D2L tools.

Canvas Tool Relationship Diagram pdf

Here is a chart of what the names were in D2L and what they are in Canvas:

D2L Canvas
My Home Dashboard
Course Home Home
Attendance Attendance
Calendar Calendar
Chat Chat
Classlist People
Content Modules
Content Manage Files (Course files) Pages and Files (two separate areas)
Discussions Discussions
Dropbox Assignments
Grades Grades
Groups Groups
HTML Editor Rich Content Editor (RCE)
News Announcements
Quizzes Quizzes (Surveys are here)
Rubrics Rubrics

Note: Some tools that were standalone in D2L will be incorporated within others in Canvas and some tools that were incorporated within others in D2L will be standalone tools in Canvas.  For more information on this please see the FAQs for the individual tools listed below.

Are there any tools or features that don’t import into Canvas?

Yes, there are some tools and features that don’t exist in Canvas – Checklist; Discussion Forums; Glossary; Grades Categories, Weighted Grading System, and non-numeric Grade Items (Selectbox, Pass/Fail, Calculated, etc.); Intelligent Agents; Manage Dates; some Quiz Questions (Ordering, Arithmetic, Multi-Short,  Release Conditions; and Replacement Strings.  If those tools are used in your D2L courses, make sure you don’t include them in the export zipped package.

For more information on possible workarounds, please see the FAQ for that specific tool or feature.  Note: At this time, we may not have a workaround for some of these tools or features in Canvas.

Are there any tools or features that don’t function the same way after the import into Canvas?

Yes, there are some tools and features that don’t function like they did in D2L – Attendance; Chat; Content Manage Files; Discussions; Dropbox; Grades; Groups; News; some Quiz Questions (Multiple Choice, Matching); and Rubrics.  If a Dropbox Folder, Discussions Topic, etc. has a file attachment, the file will be imported but it won’t be attached to that assignment or topic.  The items will need to be attached again after the import.

For more information on those differences and possible workarounds, please see the FAQ for that specific tool or feature.

What happens if I do a partial export from D2L, only taking certain tools?

It depends on how the course was set-up in D2L and what associations were created between the tools.  For example, if the Dropbox or Discussions tools weren’t exported but had a topic in the Content area, that topic will not show up in the Modules area after it’s imported into Canvas.  Another example is if Dropbox Folders are exported that have an “Out of” score, but the Grades area is not exported, Canvas will create grade items based on the Dropbox “Out of” scores.

Were there any general differences in Canvas?

Yes, there were a few general differences that the Migration Work Stream noticed:

  • The Import, Export, and Copy Components options are done slightly different than in D2L.
  • After the import, course materials aren’t kept strictly within the tools like we are used to in D2L. For example, Discussions, Grades, and Quizzes can be found in the Assignments area as well as in those tool areas.
  • Whenever a topic or item is edited in a course, there is usually a checkbox at the bottom of the screen to notify students of the changes.
  • There isn’t a standalone Manage Dates tool in Canvas, but when importing an exported zipped package from D2L, there is an option to “Adjust events and due dates” with the options to shift dates to the current semester beginning and ending dates or to remove them completely.

Announcements

What differences will I see in the Announcements (News in D2L) area in Canvas?

Announcements is listed as a standalone tool in the course navigation bar, but messages will appear in the Dashboard area on the course card, and, depending on how the course is set-up, on the Home pages.  Like in D2L, if a student signs up for notifications, they will receive an email letting them know when something new occurs in the course.

What won’t import well from the News area without adjustments?

During the Migration Work Stream testing, there was really only one thing that didn’t import well – date and time restrictions.  In D2L, start dates and end dates could be used to post articles at certain times within the semester.  In Canvas, a message can be marked “Delay posting” to a specific date but there isn’t a way to remove it after that date without deleting it.

Note:  All D2L News articles are imported “Open for Comments” so if an instructor doesn’t want their students to be able to reply, they will need to mark all their messages as “Closed for Comments” before students see the course.

What new features will I see in the Announcements (News in D2L) area in Canvas?

There are several new features available in the Announcements area:

  • Announcements can be used as a one way communication, like in D2L, where the instructor posts an article to the students as well as a two way communication by allowing students to reply to the announcements they’ve posted.
  • External (RSS) feeds from specific websites can be added to the Announcements area and be displayed beside instructor created news.Note: Instructors will need to select the “Disable for Comments” option if they don’t want students to reply to an announcement.  An External Feeds can be removed by clicking the “X” for the feed in the column on the right.

Assignments (Dropbox in D2L)

What differences will I see in the Assignments (Dropbox in D2L) area in Canvas?

The Assignments area will show a list of assignments (submissions), discussions, grade items, quizzes, and surveys.  Depending on how they were set-up in D2L, there may be duplicate items listed.  When deleting a category (D2L) or Assignment Group (Canvas), there will be an option to delete the contents or move it to a different Assignment Group.  This is how D2L Grade Categories could be removed after the course was imported.

What won’t import well from the Dropbox area without adjustments?

During the Migration Work Stream testing, these were some of the things that needed adjusting:

  • If Dropbox Folder “Instructions” weren’t included on the Properties tab in D2L, Canvas will have “No Content” listed for that assignment description. We recommend instructors fix this before the course is exported from D2L.
  • The text “Multiple Modules” will appear in the Assignments area if a Dropbox Folder appeared in several Content modules in D2L.
  • There isn’t a way for the system to email instructors when a new submission has been made in Assignments.

What new features will I see in the Assignments area in Canvas?

There are several new features available in the Assignments area:

  • There are more options for the type of submission required – No Submission, Online (text entry, website URL, media recording, file), On Paper, and External Tool.
  • The types of files submitted can be restricted to limit what students can upload – Doc, PDF, PPT, etc.
  • Submissions can include a Peer Review with the option for the reviews to be anonymous.
  • Items can be assigned to everyone or have multiple assignees, “everyone else” + the students who need additional time to complete the assignment.
  • When a submission, discussion post, or quiz is marked as graded and given a point value, Canvas will automatically create a grade item in the Grades area for it.
  • Even though grade categories don’t work in the Grades area, an “Assignment Group” can be used to drop low/high assignment scores as well as tell the system to never drop certain ones.
  • SpeedGrader is available for grading assignments. This will allow instructors to quickly score and add additional comments to graded assignments.

What happens if I import D2L Group Dropbox Folders into Canvas?

If Group Dropbox Folders are included in the zipped package, the group information and restrictions are removed and they will be listed just like other submissions in the Assignments area.  The group restrictions will need to be recreated after the Group Sets feature in the People area has been used to create the groups and add students in Canvas.

Note: It is recommended that Group Dropbox Folders not be included in the D2L course export.

 

Attendance

What differences will I see in the Attendance area in Canvas?

Everything is done a little differently in the Attendance area.  The system uses a calendar system instead of having instructors create events.  The only setup time needed is if the Class (seating chart style) view is used, then the instructor will need to place the students on the seating chart grid.

What won’t import well from the Attendance area without adjustments?

Because of the way the Attendance tool is structured in Canvas, none of the Attendance information will import from D2L.  It is recommended that Attendance not be included in the D2L course export because of that.

What new features will I see in the Attendance area in Canvas?

There are several new features available in the Attendance area:

  • Attendance has two views, List and Class that can be used depending on the instructor’s needs.
    • List view is a list of the students, that once the “More” button is selected, will allow the instructor to select attendance options (present, absent, late, unmarked) and see the attendance report for that student.
    • Class view is a seating chart style grid that allows instructors to drag and drop the student into the “seat” he or she uses in the on-campus course. Selecting a students’ name once they have been placed on the grid will show the same details as the “More” button in the List view.
  • After the Roll call is setup, it will automatically create a “Roll Call Attendance” item in the Assignments and Grades areas. As the instructor fills out the Attendance for a student, their overall attendance percentage will be updated in the Grades area.

 

Calendar

What differences will I see in the Calendar area in Canvas?

The Calendar is easier to use and has more options available.  Each course will be color coded to match the one selected on the Dashboard for each course card.  Additional events can be created from the Calendar tool (listed in the Global navigation bar) and appear in the corresponding course.

What new features will I see in the Calendar area?

There are several new features available in the Calendar area:

  • Instructors can create events, assignments, placeholders, appointments, etc. for various courses from one location and it will update the students’ Calendars.
  • Calendar events can be dragged from one date to another and it will update that event everywhere it is listed in the course. Events can also be dragged across several days if it is a multiple day event.
  • Appointment groups can be setup to allow multiple meetings within a specific time period between individuals or groups of students.
  • The system will place “Coming Up” notices in several places within a course to help students monitor events.
  • Once a student has completed an assignment, the Calendar event will be crossed out on their calendar to show it’s done.

Chat

What differences will I see in the Chat area in Canvas?

  • There are only “General” chats, no private ones can be created.
  • The Chat tool is setup like an instant messenger, the person types the message and clicks the Send button.
  • Messages will display in the order they are posted throughout the semester or term.
  • The chats can’t be limited to who sees/participates in them, everyone in the course will be able to see the chat history.
  • Individual messages can be deleted, but whole conversations can’t be deleted.

 

Discussions

What differences will I see in the Discussions area in Canvas?

There are three areas within the Discussions area – Pinned Discussions, Discussions, and Closed for Comments.  It isn’t possible to reorder the topics, they will be listed with the topic having the most recent activity on top.  Discussions topics will also appear in the Assignments area.

What won’t import well from the Discussions area without adjustments?

In Canvas, Discussions Forums are not supported, if they are included in the imported zipped package, a web document will be created in the Pages area with descriptions and links to the Discussion topics.  Group Discussions are another thing that doesn’t import well into Canvas and will need adjustments.

If Discussions Forums aren’t used in Canvas, what happens to my topics?

After the import, Discussions topics will appear in the Discussions area with the most recently created one on the top and can’t be manually reordered, unless they are pinned or closed for comments.  When messages are posted to a topic, it will automatically bring that topic to the top because it’s ordered by recent activity.

Note:  If the Forum was the only place the instructor had a description and/or instructions for the discussion topics, the topics will be blank in the Discussions area.  For example, if a Group Discussions Forum is the only place that assignment information or instructions are listed, when that forum is imported just the group names will be listed in the Canvas.  The information doesn’t automatically transfer to the topics when the forums are removed.

What happens if I import D2L Group Discussions into Canvas?

If Group Discussions are included in the zipped package, the group information and restrictions are removed and they will be listed just like other topics in the Discussions area.  The group restrictions will need to be recreated after the Group Sets feature in the People area has been used to create the groups and add students in Canvas.

Note: Imported group discussion topics will be listed as Group 1, Group 2, Group 3, Group 4, etc. and will include duplicates if there were multiple forums with similarly named group topics.  It is recommended that Group Discussions not be included in the D2L course export.

What new features will I see in the Discussions area in Canvas?

There are several new features available in the Discussions area:

  • Pinned Discussions topics will appear in a different section from the regular topics.
  • Discussions topics that have closed will appear in a different section from the regular topics to help students keep track of active topics.
  • Discussions topics can be assigned to everyone or have multiple assignees, “everyone else” + the students who need additional time to complete the assignment.
  • When a submission, discussion post, or quiz is marked as graded and given a point value, Canvas will automatically create a grade item in the Grades area for it.
  • Students are able to create Discussions Topics unless this option is turned off in the Course Settings.
  • SpeedGrader is available for grading Discussion messages. This will allow instructors to quickly score and add additional comments to graded topics.

 

Files (Content Manage Files in D2L)

What is the Files area?  What does it do?

In Canvas, Files is one of the storage areas in a course.  Course files are divided between the Pages and Files areas.  Any documents or images uploaded into a course will appear in the Files area.  The Files area will not be visible to students.

 

Grades

What differences will I see in the Grades area in Canvas?

Unlike in D2L, there is only one Grades screen in Canvas.  Most of the grade creating and editing is done through other tools (Assignments, Discussions, Quizzes, etc.). For example, when a submission, discussion post, or quiz is marked as graded and given a point value in one of those areas, Canvas will automatically create a grade item in the Grades area for it.  Entering grades can be done in the Grades area or the other tools like in D2L.

What won’t import well from the Grades area without adjustments?

During the Migration Work Stream testing, these were some of the things that needed adjusting:

  • Grade Categories don’t function like they did in D2L, they will be imported and placed at the end of the Grades area as well as in the Assignments area.
  • After the import, Bonus (extra credit) items don’t function the same way as in D2L. If a bonus item was worth an extra 5 points in D2L, it imports into Canvas as an assignment worth 5 points.  To create extra credit items in Canvas, the item has to be worth 0 points and “No Submission” selected as the Submission Type, then when the points are given later, it will look like this 5/0 in the Grades area.
  • Calculated Grade Items, like mid-term grades, don’t function the same way as in D2L. They get a default score of 10 points and are treated like a graded assignment instead of a grade summary item.
  • If a Grade Item was associated with another tool in D2L and the names were different, for examples if Grades has “Essay 1” and Dropbox has “Essay on Canvas Migration”, Canvas uses the Dropbox name. It might also create a duplicate item in the Assignments area.Note: It is recommended that Grade Categories, Bonus items, non-numeric grade items not be included in the D2L course export.

What can I use instead of Grades Categories and Weighted Grading System?

In Canvas, most of the Grades set-up has to be created in other tools, so in the Assignments area, you would create Assignment Groups to organize your assignments and quizzes.  The Assignment Groups can include what percentage those assignments will go towards the final grade.

Note: In order to assign weights to each Assignment Group, the Assignment Group Weight option must be selected using the gear icon in the upper right corner next to the +Assignment button. A new window will open and a “Weight final grade based on assignment groups” checkbox must be selected.  Each Assignment Group will be listed and percentages can be assigned to each one.

What new features will I see in the Grades area in Canvas?

Besides only having one screen to work from, there are several new features available in the Grades area:

  • Entering a score in the Grades area can be done two ways, first is by clicking in the grade item text box and typing the score directly into it. Another way is to hover over the grade item text box until an editing icon appears in the upper right corner (like comments added to an Excel spreadsheet cell), then click it to open a grading window.
  • Instructors are able to arrange columns by points or due dates (can toggle between the two).
  • Instructors are able to add a “Notes” column to add information about the students.

Groups

What differences will I see in the Groups area in Canvas?

The main Groups set-up area is within the People tool.  Each Group Set will be listed on a separate tab in there.  Group Sets are like Categories in D2L, they organize the individual groups and you can have as many as needed within that group set.

What won’t import well from the Groups area without adjustments?

All group settings and restrictions are removed from the Group Discussions and Dropbox Folders.  They will still be listed in the Discussions and Assignments area, but they will have limited names (Group 1, Group 2, etc.) and group information listed for them.  The groups themselves will not appear as Group Sets within the People area.  There are several types of Groups that aren’t available in Canvas.

Note: It is recommended that Groups and Group Work Spaces not be included in the D2L course export.

What new features will I see in the Groups area in Canvas?

There are several new features available in the People – Groups area:

  • New Grade Sets can be created within Discussions and Assignments areas, but individual groups and adding students to them must be done in the People area.
  • One of the new options to the Groups area is assigning group leaders.
    • When creating a Group Set, if the option to “Split students into _ groups” is selected, a new set of options will appear to assign “Leadership” to the group. One of the students within the group will become the group leader.
    • If an instructor selects the option “I’ll create groups manually”, after the students have been added to the groups, one of the options will be to “Set as Leader” (gear icon to the right of the student’s name).
  • Each group will have a workspace that include a Home page, Announcements, Pages, People, Discussions, Files, Conferences, and Collaborations for the group members to use for their assignments and projects.

 

Home (Course Home in D2L)

What is the Home area?  What does it do?

Home is the course landing page, this is the first page students will see when entering the course.  Depending on the final template version, it may mirror the Modules (Content in D2L) area by default but instructors can create their own Home page with important information for the students.

 

Modules (Content in D2L)

What differences will I see in the Modules (Content in D2L) area in Canvas?

In the Modules area, there are a lot of the same features and functions that were available in the Content area in D2L.  The difference will be how items are created and the relationships between the tools.  The Modules area can still be used to build the course just like in the Content area in D2L.

What won’t import well into Modules from the Content area without adjustments?

During the Migration Work Stream testing, these were some of the things that needed adjusting:

  • If the HTML Editor in D2L used Quicklinks in the Content area, some work fine; some gave a “not authorized” message; and others said Canvas couldn’t find the item. Canvas has a Course Link Validator tool that should be used to check for problems within the course.
  • If an External URL topic was used in the Content area, it was imported as unpublished.
  • Some things that were in “Draft” status in D2L were listed as “Published” in Canvas.
  • If the “Add a description” option is used for a Module it creates a new Pages item with the name of the Module. If the “Add a description” option was used for a topic, it will be removed.
  • Sub-Modules will be imported, but they don’t work like they did in D2L. They won’t automatically indent the materials, they’ll need to be manually indent through the gear icon on the right side of the Module.  Items within the sub-modules are also unpublished when they are imported.

What new features will I see in the Modules area in Canvas?

There are a few new features within the Modules area:

  • When creating new items, the instructor can add links to other tools within the course; files and images that have been uploaded into the course. The available links, files, and images will be listed on the right side of the screen.
  • There are two new features, Prerequisites and Requirements that can be added when creating modules within this area. These options could be used like Release Conditions were in D2L.
    • Prerequisites will allow the instructor to restrict access to that module until students have completed certain activities within the course.
    • Requirements will allow instructors to select activities that, such as submissions or message posts, before allowing students to move onto the next module.

 

Pages (Content Manage Files in D2L)

What is the Pages area?  What does it do?

In Canvas, Pages is one of the storage areas in a course.  Course files are divided between the Pages and Files areas.  All web (HTML) pages imported from the D2L Content area or created from scratch in the Canvas Modules area will appear in the Pages area.  The Pages area will not be visible to students.

 

People (Classlist in D2L)

What is the People area?  What does it do?

The People area is similar to Classlist in D2L, it will show who is enrolled in the course and what role they have as well as reports and analytic information for each student.  Group Sets are created and students added to them through the People area.  Note:  Due to FERPA restrictions, the People area is not visible to students.

 

Quizzes

What differences will I see in the Quizzes area in Canvas?

The Survey tool is not a standalone tool like it was in D2L, quizzes and surveys are both created in the Quizzes area.  When creating a quiz, instead of six tabs to work through like in D2L, there are only two tabs – Details and Questions.  Quizzes and Surveys will also appear in the Assignments area.

In Canvas, Question Banks are similar to the Question Library in D2L, but they are used more heavily by the system to organize the questions.  If Question Banks are not used, it might make it difficult to find questions later if the instructor needs to edit them or add them to a final exam.  If a question needs to be created or edited, it should be done in the Question Bank first and then added to the quiz because Canvas doesn’t give instructors the option to sync question edits in both places like D2L does.

What won’t import well from the Quizzes area without adjustments?

During the Migration Work Stream testing, these were some of the things that needed adjusting:

  • Some Question types are not available – Ordering, Arithmetic, Significant Figure.
  • Some Question types don’t function the same as they did in D2L.
    • The ability to randomize answers for some questions, for example Multiple Choice and Matching, is removed during the import process, but can be restored when creating a quiz on the Details tab.
    • Multi-Short questions become Fill In the Blank but only have a single blank
  • Quiz questions that had images embedded in them in D2L may need to be redone to make sure the connection between the question and the image, which is now stored in the Files area, still exists after the import.
  • Surveys that were “Always Active” in D2L import into Canvas as unpublished.

What new features will I see in the Quizzes area in Canvas?

There are several new features in the Quizzes area:

  • One of the options when creating a quiz is to select the Quiz Type, which will allow the instructor to select Practice Quiz, Graded Quiz, Graded Survey, or Ungraded Survey.
  • When a submission, discussion post, or quiz is marked as graded and given a point value, Canvas will automatically create a grade item in the Grades area for it.
  • When creating quiz questions, there is an identifier text box in the upper left corner of the screen that will allow instructors to “tag” the question making it easier to find later. For example, an instructor could use the Identifier to locate questions they’d like to use in a specific quiz by typing an abbreviation for that quiz (Sample Quiz question 1 = SQ1; Sample Quiz question 2 = SQ2) in the Identifier text box.
  • SpeedGrader is available for grading quizzes. This will allow instructors to quickly score and add additional comments to graded quizzes.
  • Items can be assigned to everyone or have multiple assignees, “everyone else” + the students who need additional time to complete the assignment.

Release Conditions

What can I use instead of Release Conditions?

In Canvas, Prerequisites and Requirements could be used as a substitute for Release Conditions in the Modules (Content in D2L) area.   A module can be selected as a prerequisite, causing the others to open only after the students have reviewed everything within it.  Modules can also have requirements, like making a submission or posting a message, before they will become available.  Unfortunately, the other tools don’t have the Prerequisite and Requirement options.

 

Rich Content Editor (HTML Editor in D2L)

What is the Rich Content Editor?  What does it do?

The Rich Content Editor (RCE) is similar to the HTML Editor found in D2L tools, but with additional tools and features.  The RCE had two lines of icons, the first row has the basic formatting options like bold, text color, alignment, lists, etc.  The second line of icons has multimedia options and a few more advanced tools.  One of the new features in the second row is the Check Accessibility icon (silhouette of a person in a circle).  This will allow instructors to make sure that the information they’ve added to the RCE meets accessibility standards.

 

Rubrics

What differences will I see in the Rubrics area in Canvas?

The Rubrics tool is not a standalone tool in Canvas.  It can be used through the Outcomes area using the “…” button in the upper right corner and selecting Manage Rubrics.  The creation process is different, rubrics can created through the Outcomes tool as well as through the Assignments area.   After an assignment has been created, the option to create or add a rubric will appear.

What won’t import well in terms of rubrics from the Content area without adjustments?

Rubrics will import into Canvas and can be found through the Outcomes Manage Rubrics area, but the point values for each criterion and ratings (levels in D2L) will need to be replaced.  If a Discussions topic, Dropbox Folder, Quiz, or Grade Item has a rubric attached to it, it will be removed during the import process.

What new features will I see when creating Rubrics in Canvas?

There are a few new features when using Rubrics:

  • Instructors can create or attach a rubric right after they have created an assignment. It will be an option after the Save button has been clicked for the assignment.7
  • The system will automatically create a 5 point Full Marks and 0 points ratings (levels in D2L). Instructors just need to click the + (plus) sign to add additional ratings as needed.
  • If the highest point rating gets changed, like from 5 points to 10 points, the system will automatically increase the other ratings proportionally.
  • When creating a new rubric after creating an assignment, if the total number of points for rubric doesn’t match what the assignment is worth, the system will ask if the instructor wants to update the totals or leave it as it is when it’s saved.
  • When creating a rubric, if the instructor selects “I’ll write free-form comments when assessing students” the system may expect that there will always be a written comment for each criteria or rating selected that this rubric is used for. It is recommended to leave that option unselected and that any comments be added to the grading feedback areas instead.

 

Syllabus

What is the Syllabus tool?  What does it do?

The Syllabus tool can be used as a summary for the course, giving students an “at-a-glance” view of the course requirements.  There is a Rich Content Editor (HTML Editor in D2L) box that can be used to highlight the usual syllabus information (instructor contact information, textbook information, course expectations, etc.).  Instructors are able to edit this as needed.  The Course Summary area is an alphabetical list of Grade items, Assignments (submissions, quizzes, and discussion topics), etc.  If items have due dates, they will be listed in chronological order and then alphabetically.  At the time the Migration Work Stream was testing this, there wasn’t a way to reorder or make changes to the Course Summary list.