[Account Settings] Change dashboard default setting to "Card View" for students
In my experience working one-on-one with students, their Canvas dashboard is set to "List View" as a default. This is great if the goal is to focus on upcoming assignments and recent announcements. But if students use this page as the primarily way they access their course content, they are likely to miss content pages, overview pages, and lecture videos each week. Many faculty design their courses around modules and use a homepage as a "landing page" for students to access the weekly content as well as key class resources. And we know students miss a lot of course content in the modules so many instructors, myself included, will use all kinds of hacks to get students to see this additional content (adding more info to announcements, adding things to the to-do list, etc.). I've also included "Set Canvas to Card View" in my Week 1 set up instructions and provide a video on how and why this might be a good way to navigate online courses. Even still, just this week (we're in week 8 of my full term course) I met with a student who had no idea there were lecture videos and additional content that she had been missing all semester. So, I've been exploring the "List view" and the calendar, and it just strikes me as such an overwhelming way to learn. Traditionally students would focus on one class for 1-2 hours at a time while they were in the class and make choices/ strategize on which assignments to tackle in which order. Approaching courses just by trying to focus on whatever pops up next on the "List" could help you get every assignment turned in, but I'm not sure it helps students focus on making strategic choices and maintaining an awareness/ attention to all their courses. It seems like a much more chaotic and reactionary way to learn.
I think that the default Dashboard view for students needs to be switched to "Card View". This can help for numerous reasons: (1) The student and faculty experience will be similar (Many instructors don't even realize the students access their courses in such a different way.) (2) This will add a tiny bit of good friction. Students will have the chance to pause, see all their classes/ enrollments, and make a choice about what to prioritize. (3) List view overly emphasizes the importance of assignments and might be reinforcing a product vs. process approach to education. (4) And the "Coming Up" side bar that is visible from the "Card View" will still allow students to easily view and assess their upcoming deadlines and assignments. (And having both in the same window might even help students make better decisions about how to organize their learning/ studying sessions)
admin,instructor,student,designer
