Instructure Debuts Data Optimization Service

Instructure, the company behind the Canvas learning management system (LMS), has launched Canvas Data, a hosted data service for K-12 and higher education that enables them to analyze online teaching and learning activity.

Canvas Data is a native cloud service delivered on Amazon Web Services through Redshift. According to information from Instructure, the service will help educational institutions assess and analyze their data, "including course design features, course activity, assessment and evaluation, user and device characteristics and more." The company claims that Canvas Data is different from other analytics reporting engines because it "enables institutions to discover insights without sacrificing the thoroughness of the results." Data extracted from Canvas is optimized for integration with any ODBC-compliant analytics tool, so institutions can generate custom queries and reports using their preferred tools.

The basic version of Canvas Data will be available to Canvas customers at no additional cost, and premium versions will be available for purchase. Civitas Learning and Intellify partnered with Instructure provide Canvas Data's education analytics and learning intelligence services.

More than 30 client institutions, including the University of Central Florida and Utah State University, had early access to Canvas Data and used it to develop strategies to improve their programs. "For example, Unizin, a consortium of progress-minded higher education institutions, has been developing custom services for its members by leveraging Canvas Data's premium features, including real-time data stream capability based on the IMS Caliper RAM standard," stated a news release from Instructure.

Further information about about Canvas Data can be found on the Canvas LMS site.

About the Author

Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Training the Next Generation of Space Cybersecurity Experts

    CT asked Scott Shackelford, Indiana University professor of law and director of the Ostrom Workshop Program on Cybersecurity and Internet Governance, about the possible emergence of space cybersecurity as a separate field that would support changing practices and foster future space cybersecurity leaders.

  • modern college building with circuit and brain motifs

    Anthropic Launches Claude for Education

    Anthropic has announced a version of its Claude AI assistant tailored for higher education institutions. Claude for Education "gives academic institutions secure, reliable AI access for their entire community," the company said, to enable colleges and universities to develop and implement AI-enabled approaches across teaching, learning, and administration.

  • AI microchip, a cybersecurity shield with a lock, a dollar coin, and a laptop with financial graphs connected by dotted lines

    Survey: Generative AI Surpasses Cybersecurity in 2025 Tech Budgets

    Global IT leaders are placing bigger bets on generative artificial intelligence than cybersecurity in 2025, according to new research by Amazon Web Services (AWS).

  • university building surrounded by icons for AI, checklists, and data governance

    Improving AI Governance for Stronger University Compliance and Innovation

    AI can generate valuable insights for higher education institutions and it can be used to enhance the teaching process itself. The caveat is that this can only be achieved when universities adopt a strategic and proactive set of data and process management policies for their use of AI.