canvas-vs-google-classroom

Canvas and Google Classroom are both academic learning management systems. They are used across all sizes of educational institutions for course management, including assignment creation and grading. The difference between Canvas and Google Glassroom is that Canvas is primarily used by higher education institutions, while Google Classroom is primarily used by primary education institutions. 

While Canvas does have a K-12 offering, it’s core use is for colleges and universities. It serves primarily as an assignment management and gradebook system, with additional features like discussion forums. In contrast, Google Classroom is more commonly found in earlier education, such as middle schools and high schools. It’s free for schools to use and is included in G Suite for Education, making it a low cost, accessible LMS platform. 

Features

Canvas and Google Classroom both have unique focuses tailored to their target user bases. 

Canvas better serves the more administratively-focused needs of higher education. It excels at document management, including assignment creation and management. The flexibility in assignment creation makes Canvas more appealing to higher ed institutions that encompass a very wide range of course content. It also has robust gradebook management for scalability with large universities. 

In contrast, Google Classroom excels as a more accessible option in terms of price and usability. Its ease of use makes it accessible for younger students in remote or in-person situations, such as independent work in the classroom. Since Google Classroom is free for schools, it makes an attractive offer for schools and institutions that lack the budget for additional administrative or IT overhead. 

Limitations

Canvas and Google Classroom also have some limitations and cases where they would be less ideal options. 

For instance, Canvas is not as user-friendly as Google Classroom. It comes with more of a learning curve, and lacks as intuitive an interface. This difficulty can limit its usability among younger students, or even schools that lack the IT support to administer the platform. Since Canvas is not a free tool, it also comes with more of a financial burden than free options.

In contrast, while Google classroom is easier to use at face value, there are some more complex mechanisms and processes that can cause problems. For instance, integrating and interacting with other applications in the G Suite, such as Docs or Slides, have caused confusion for student users. For instance, managing permissions and sharing documents across the classroom can be less intuitive of a process and take some learning by students and teachers alike, particularly in younger classrooms. Google Classroom’s gradebook capabilities are also relatively limited compared to paid alternatives. 

Pricing

Canvas is priced by quote from the vendor. There is a one-time implementation fee and then an annual subscription cost. 

Google Classroom is free for schools to use, and is included in the G Suite for Education package as well.