By Thomas Dies

Starting off the 2018-2019 school year, the Beaver student body was shocked to discover that Google Classroom had been replaced by a newer, more streamlined service. Canvas was the talk of the halls, and for the majority of its early days, that talk seemed exclusively negative. It’s been over a year since Canvas made its debut and the Beaver community has (for the most part) gotten past the loss of Google Classroom. How does Beaver review Canvas now? I interviewed a few students to get their take on the matter. 

When talking to my peers recently, it was instantly clear that the hatred for Canvas has dissipated. I first inquired about whether the interviewees have experienced other online organizational tools. Most students stated that they’ve used Google Classroom, but Maximus Thomson (‘21) who joined Beaver the year Canvas was implemented, discussed his previous experience with a system called Schoology which he thought was sufficient. “Looking back, Canvas is much more efficient and easier to navigate than Schoology,” Thomson stated. Besides that outlier, all of the students who previously used Google Classroom seem indifferent to Canvas. When asked about their favorite Canvas feature, most students shrugged off the question. “Nobody really enjoys Canvas,” one student said. “It’s just kind of there.” The only enthusiastic answer was that the calendar page in Canvas was extremely useful compared to previous systems. In terms of negative features, the submission process was a popular complaint. The students I interviewed seemed happy to complain about submitting documents on Canvas, but it should be noted that when asked for an alternative, nobody could suggest a better system. 

Overall, students don’t really seem bothered by Canvas anymore. Nobody enjoys it, but then again it’s a platform for distributing schoolwork; it would be pretty difficult to enjoy. It does, however, serve its purpose for students. The initial hatred for Canvas has died down and now, it just seems like a normal part of our school experience.