As we continue the transition from Blackboard to Canvas here at The University of Manchester, many of our conversations have understandably focused on functionality: how to move content, where to find features, what works differently. These are necessary conversations - but not sufficient ones.

We also need to ask deeper questions about what it means to teach within a virtual learning environment (VLE), and how our platforms might shape - not just support - our pedagogy.

Having worked for many years in online and blended learning, I’ve come to believe that platforms like Canvas do more than host our materials: they embed assumptions. They favour certain kinds of pedagogical practices - modular, linear, instructor-led, and trackable. For some, these defaults align well with their teaching goals. But for others, especially those interested in student agency, co-creation, and more exploratory or critical approaches, the structure can be constraining.

Drawing on critical pedagogy - particularly the work of Paulo Freire - I’ve been thinking about how we might resist the drift towards standardisation, and instead use the affordances of Canvas to intentionally design for dialogue, ambiguity, and collaboration.

Here are a few strategies I’m exploring or have seen others use:

• Reimagining the module structure to support non-linear learning, giving students pathways and choices rather than sequences.
• Using discussion boards for genuine dialogue, not just Q&A - by giving students moderation roles, or designing prompts that invite exploration rather than recall.
• Incorporating collaborative tools like Hypothes.is or Padlet to enable student-led annotation, peer review, or co-curated knowledge spaces.
• Minimising the use of automated analytics as a form of oversight, and instead using them (where appropriate) as a prompt for conversation and support.

These are not technical challenges so much as pedagogical choices. Canvas gives us a flexible platform - but it’s up to us to use that flexibility in ways that serve our pedagogical values.

So, a question for colleagues across the University:

How are you using (or planning to use) Canvas to teach against the defaults - whether to foster agency, support critical inquiry, or create more meaningful student dialogue?

I’d love to hear ideas, experiments, or even challenges you’ve encountered in this space. The more we share our practice, the more collective creativity we can bring to this transition.

Let’s make sure that in migrating platforms, we don’t unintentionally migrate pedagogy to something smaller, safer, and less alive than it needs to be.