SIS integration with Canvas

[lsimpkins]

What is working extremely well with your SIS integration with Canvas?  (Specifically interested in high school level responses.)

[BradMoser]

We have had good success with Tyler SIS to Clever and then to Canvas. We sync nightly and check for updates hourly.

[lsimpkins]

Thank you, Bradley.  Do you use the Canvas grading or do you use the grading within Tyler?

[BradMoser]

No problem  @lsimpkins ​, the first year of integration we didn't do a grade passback. But right now Tyler created an API that allows for grades to be imported from Canvas to Tyler. So we use Canvas to create assignments, quizzes, etc and score them in Canvas and then import them into Tyler. We are still in the testing phase working out some bugs, but its been pretty good so far. Of course, my teachers love the time they are saving and the powerful interface and speed of speedgrader.

How are you planning to use it?

[lsimpkins]

The Roncalli teachers also enjoy both the time saving and the annotative

grading features within Canvas. Last year was our first year using Canvas

and we jumped right in! The teachers entered every assignment into Canvas

in order to keep the quarter's percentage and to communicate student

progress by encouraging parents to become observers. It worked well until

we realized that Canvas was not ready to support the computation of the

semester grade. At least, we couldn't come up with a way to do it. The

solution became and still is that teachers manually enter the quarter

grades and semester exam grades into our SIS gradebook which then computes

the semester average.

I look forward to Canvas providing a method of calculating based on date

range and groups.

Linda Simpkins

Director of Technology Integration

Roncalli High School

317-787-8277 Ext. 229

@LsimpkinsA4

On Mon, Sep 12, 2016 at 3:16 PM, bmoser@bsd124.org <instructure@jiveon.com>

[BradMoser]

Doesn't it have multiple grading periods? We don't have a need for that right now, so I don't know tons about it, but I know it exists and is for handling quarters and grades.

[john_williamson]

Canvas does have the ability to setup multiple grading periods.  I believe it is listed under grading.  Below are several links that might help.

How do I create grading periods in an account?

How do I manage grading periods for an account?

How do I use grading periods in a course?

[bbelew]

We are using PowerSchool for our SIS.   For the most part the integration for grade pass back works, but it tends to have weird bugs that plague us at the worst of times.   This year the bugs that have started to pop up are the "Post to SIS" button magically coming unchecked.  

[BradMoser]

I know with any of our tech software bugs arise and usually at inconvenient time, I guess that is the definition of a bug.  I just hope these occurrences happen infrequently and our SIS and/or Canvas can resolve them quickly, which has been my experience. I am holding to the glass is half-full hope.  

[ctarbet]

We have seen the Post to SIS option unchecked automatically as well.  Some teachers think it is tied to the "Available Until" course setting.  The idea may be that if the assignment is no longer available then there won't be any new grades and therefore not need to post that assignment anymore.  I haven't verified, but it's something to look at.

[lalesi]

We just started with our Canvas integration this year and our teachers are experiencing the uncheck to post to SIS after they post an assignment.   They are becoming frustrated over this.

Linda

[lalesi]

Our teacher love the speed grader, especially with rubics.   The problem they are experiencing is that when they post grades to PowerSchool they are showing me that they are not going into the correct categories in the PowerSchool gradebook.

This is a problem for teachers whose labs are worth 25% and test worth 50% and their lab assignments are showing up in PowerSchool as tests.   I've sat with them and checked and double checked that they have the identical categories in PowerSchool with the identical percentages.   With our PowerSchool Parent Portal open this sync is now displaying incorrect quarter grades.

Is anyone else experiencing this?

[ctarbet]

The weighting system goes haywire if you use both Canvas weighting and PowerTeacher weighting at the same time.  There should be NO weighting in Canvas at all.  Have the teacher use PowerTeacher for weighting only.

Also, if you have lab 25% and test 50% then there must be an assignment in PowerTeacher for the third category.  Otherwise, you only have 75% total and PowerSchool has to do some math to make it work out to 100%.

[BradMoser]

We have them do the weighting of assignments only in our SIS. They can use the Canvas weighting but for our best practice we encourage to use the power of Canvas and Speedgrader and then import into SIS where the weighting take place.