Why Canvas is Superior to Google Classroom
October 11, 2017
Do you prefer functionality over aesthetic appeal for your school management system? If so, Instructure’s Learning Management System (LMS), Canvas, is for you.
LMS services are not just for teachers to make announcements and remind students of homework, but instead serve to create a personalized, online version of their classes.
Canvas does just that by allowing educators to design a custom page for each class with options to add modules, quizzes and links. Social studies teacher Wind Ralston said Canvas offers a grading system that is unparalleled in its counterpart Google Classroom.
“The grading is more time efficient than Google Classroom…in Google Classroom you click open an assignment and it opens another tab, and you’re constantly clicking open tabs and closing tabs,” Ralston said. “With Canvas, the assignment sits inside the user interface, so I can attach a rubric, I can attach comments, I can type directly on the document, and when I’m done, I can click a button and go to the next document.”
In addition to its extensive customizability, Canvas boasts a robust discussion feature that Google Classroom is severely deficient in. Classroom allows students to post replies that only the teacher can see and does not permit a true exchange of ideas.
Canvas on the other hand allows students to share thoughts and disagree using a wide variety of mediums besides text such as videos, audio recordings and images.
Opponents of Canvas may pose that the site is clunky and not appealing compared to Google Classroom. However, the app offers more functionality than the Classroom app, and the website runs slightly slower due to it loading all the modules and features it offers.
Canvas is the true epitome of a successful LMS, due to its versatile discussions and efficient grading system. If students and teachers value a diverse set of features over a simplistic interface, Canvas is the way to go.
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