Instructure’s Canvas learning management system (LMS) and Impact data analytics tool for measuring ed-tech tool usage and efficiency will be made available to all 11 institutions in the state’s university system by the fall of 2025. This single-vendor procurement for one unified system will save the state money on licensing costs, bolster remote learning opportunities and include 24/7 technical support. All told, the move affects more than 40,000 students over an area spanning 147,000 square miles, according to a Jan. 17 news release.
According to Instructure’s website, the Canvas LMS for higher education allows users to connect their chosen applications and tools on one platform and build their own online courses to include video and chat functions so students and instructors can communicate.
The Impact data analytics tool provides an overview of how often faculty and students are successfully engaging with the ed-tech tools available to them, according to Instructure’s website. Impact also allows users to customize messaging applications.
Instructure was selected as the single vendor in this procurement in part because of its accessibility on smartphones, its compatibility with “outside tools,” and its capabilities for sharing content across campuses statewide, according to the news release.
Joseph Thiel, MUS interim deputy commissioner of academic research and student affairs, said consistency under one LMS for instructors improves the student learning experience.
“Our vision is to provide Montana students [with] a seamless learning experience of the highest quality, no matter where they reside or which of our institutions they attend,” Thiel said in a public statement.
Instructure Chief Academic Officer Melissa Loble said this type of integration is a good fit for rural states where students, campuses and faculty members are often separated by hundreds of miles.
“Increasing accessibility to education is a pressing need in the United States and throughout the world, and MUS is an excellent example of a coordinated statewide effort to reach students traditionally left behind,” Loble said. “By implementing these solutions at scale, the state is making the transition to higher education smoother for students and providing opportunities for learning, regardless of geographic limitations. The potential impact of providing consistent access to high-quality education is limitless.”
This week’s announcement comes less than five months after the Alabama Community College System finalized a similar contract with Instructure. The Canvas LMS will be rolled out to all 24 public technical and community colleges in that state by the start of the 2024-2025 academic year.
