1Choose a migration option
Review the Migration Options page to decide whether to rebuild from scratch or use an individual or automatic migrated course.
Migration Cleanup
Cleaning Up a Course Migrated from UNM Learn
Content last updated: 9/1/2023
Use this guide to decide whether to use a migrated course and to identify content that needs to be repaired or rebuilt in Canvas.
Important UNM Learn data retirement deadlines
Please note: As part of the final transition away from Blackboard Learn, legacy Learn data and course content will be permanently retired at the end of April 2027. Requests for data or content from Learn must be submitted no later than March 31, 2027, to allow sufficient time for processing.
Start here
2Copy into an editable course
Migrated courses are read-only. Copy the content into a Banner course with student enrollments or a Temp Course.
3Repair migrated content
Use the summary and A–Z reference below to find items that require editing or rebuilding.
4Validate and review
Run the Course Link Validator, publish reviewed items, and use Student View before teaching from the course.
Copy content from a migrated course
Open the destination Banner or Temp course and select Import Existing Content from the Home page. You may:
If you need a Temp Course, use the Temp Course Request Form.
Migration summary
These categories are a starting point. Open each item in the A–Z reference for details and required actions.
Usually requires review only
Migrates but needs editing
Assignments, Content Areas, Discussions, Grade Center, Groups, Learning Modules, Self and Peer Assessments, Tests, and Kaltura Media.
Does not migrate reliably
Adaptive Release, Banner Image, Blogs, Course Menu Links, HTML Pages, Journals, Mashups, Rubrics, Themes, and Wikis.
Recommended migration cleanup workflow
- Review the Learn tools listed below to identify what migrated, what requires editing, and what must be rebuilt.
- Repair or rebuild affected content in the editable Banner or Temp course.
- Run the Course Link Validator. In Canvas, open Settings and select Validate Links in Content. This option may be unavailable in a read-only course.
- Review the course for completeness, including content that may have disappeared without leaving a placeholder.
- Publish each item after reviewing and repairing it.
- Use Student View to check navigation, access, instructions, and links from a student’s perspective.
- If you cleaned up content in a Temp Course, copy it into the Banner course when that course becomes available. Banner courses are generally available in mid-April for Summer/Fall and mid-November for Spring.
UNM Learn tools: A–Z
Select a tool to expand its migration details. Less common Learn tools—such as Glossaries, Contacts, Flickr Mashup, and Retention Center—are not included.
Adaptive Release
Rebuild: Adaptive Release rules do not migrate.Recreate availability rules in Canvas using assignment or quiz availability settings. For advanced rules such as grade requirements, use module prerequisites and requirements.
Announcements
Migrates well: Announcements appear in the Canvas Announcements area.
Review: Internal course links will be broken.Replace links that pointed to content in the Learn course.
Assignments
Review every migrated assignment’s submission attempts, availability dates, assignment type, and rubric.
Rebuild: Availability dates do not migrate.Set availability dates in Canvas.
Reconnect rubrics.Migrated rubrics are no longer attached to their assignments. Open the assignment and use + Rubric → Find a Rubric → Select the Rubric → Use this Rubric.
Restore group settings.Group assignments may migrate as individual assignments.
Correct attempt limits.Assignments allowing multiple attempts may migrate with unlimited attempts.
Blogs
Replace: Blogs do not migrate, and Canvas has no standalone blog tool.
One alternative is to allow students to create discussion topics. In Discussions settings, enable Create discussion topics under Student Settings. Ask each student to create a topic titled “[Name]’s Blog,” enable threaded replies, and save it. Students can post entries as top-level replies and comment using the reply control beneath an entry.
Set up student blogs with Discussions
- Open Discussions from the Course Navigation menu.
- Open the Discussions settings menu and enable Create discussion topics under Student Settings.
- Ask each student to select + Discussion.
- Enter “[Your Name]’s Blog” as the topic title.
- Enable Allow threaded replies and save the discussion.
To publish a new blog entry, the student uses the top-level Reply area. To comment on an entry, select Reply beneath that specific entry.
Calendar
Migrates well: Items with due dates appear in the Canvas Calendar.Manual Learn calendar entries also migrate.
Content Areas, Items, Files, Images, Web Links, Course Links, Folders, and Blank Pages
Most Learn Content Areas and folders migrate into Canvas Modules and require reorganization.
Check every attachment.When several files are attached to one item, only the first file may migrate.
Rebuild internal course links.Links to items inside the Learn course do not migrate.
Re-add images created with Build Content → Images.These images do not migrate.
Reorganize Modules.Canvas does not support nested folders, so migrated content may be flattened, separated, or disorganized.
Review migrated Items.Items usually become Canvas Pages. An Item with an empty Text field may not migrate.
Review Web Links.Links migrate to the associated Module, but description text may be missing. Update links that should open in a new tab.
Content Collection / Files
Migrates well: Learn Content Collection files migrate to Canvas Files.Review the collection for completeness before relying on it.
Discussions
Learn uses Discussion Board → Forum → Thread → Replies. Canvas uses Discussions → Topics → Replies. Instructors normally create the topic and students reply.
Rebuild Learn threads containing prompts or instructions.Discussion threads do not migrate.
Review Group Discussions.Migrated discussions may appear inside each imported group. Create a normal Canvas discussion and designate it as a group discussion instead of building separate discussions on group pages.
Locate an imported Group Discussion
- Open People from Course Navigation.
- Open the Imported Groups Group Set.
- Open the options menu for the appropriate group and select Visit Group Homepage.
- Select Discussions on the group homepage.
For future use, create the discussion in the course-level Discussions area and enable the group-discussion setting.
Grade Center / Gradebook
Canvas calls this tool the Gradebook. Most column creation, settings, and removal are controlled from Assignments. Assignment Groups organize work and control settings such as weighted totals and dropping the lowest grade.
Graded columns migrate when their associated graded items migrate correctly.
Remove excess columns and Assignment Groups.Text, calculated, and other columns not connected to gradable items may migrate but will not function. Delete obsolete groups such as Blogs, Journals, and Weighted Totals.
Manage migrated Gradebook columns
- Delete a column: Open Assignments, locate the associated assignment or Assignment Group, open its options menu, and delete it. Columns cannot be deleted directly from the Gradebook.
- Hide an item: Unpublish the assignment, then use the Gradebook View options to filter unpublished assignments.
- Set weighted totals: Open Assignments, select the page options menu, choose Assignment Groups Weight, and enter the percentage for each group.
- Drop the lowest grade: Open an Assignment Group’s options menu, select Edit, and configure the group’s grading rules.
Groups / Group Sets
Groups migrate, but their Group Sets do not.All migrated groups are placed in a Group Set named Imported Groups.
The simplest approach is to rebuild Group Sets. To reuse imported groups, clone the Imported Groups set once for each needed Group Set, rename each clone, remove groups that do not belong, and delete the original Imported Groups set after confirming the new sets.
Repair imported Group Sets
- For each Group Set you need, clone the Imported Groups Group Set.
- Rename each cloned Group Set for its intended purpose.
- Delete the excess groups from each cloned Group Set.
- After verifying the new Group Sets, delete the original Imported Groups Group Set.
HTML Pages
Rebuild links to Learn content.HTML pages may contain links that continue to point into Learn.
Recreate HTML files as Canvas Pages.HTML Pages migrate as files rather than pages. Rebuild them with the Canvas Rich Content Editor or an approved UNM Canvas template.
Journals
Replace: Journals do not migrate, and Canvas has no journal tool.
Option 1: Text-entry assignments
Create an assignment with the submission type set to Text Entry. This works well when grading each entry separately; create one assignment for each required entry.
Option 2: One-person group discussions
Create a group discussion and a Group Set that splits students into groups of one. Each student receives a private group discussion that can function as a journal. Rename the groups for easier identification, while following applicable privacy practices.
- Open Discussions from Course Navigation and select + Discussion.
- Enter a title such as “Journal” and add the instructions, points, and availability dates.
- Enable This is a Group Discussion.
- Create or select a Group Set and configure it for one student per group.
- Save the discussion.
Rename one-person journal groups
- Open People and select the journal Group Set.
- Expand each group to identify the assigned student.
- Open the group’s options menu and select Edit.
- Rename the group using the naming convention approved for your course, then save it.
Learning Modules
Learning Modules migrate as Canvas Modules.Nested modules or folders may become separate Modules or Text Headers with content placed beneath them.
Remove duplicates.Items imported from Learning Modules may be duplicated.
Mashups
Rebuild: Items created with Build Content → Mashup do not migrate.No placeholder or warning may remain, so compare the Canvas course with the original course or an inventory.
YouTube Mashups do not migrate.A YouTube Mashup embedded inside a Learn Item may migrate within the resulting Canvas Page; verify it manually.
Kaltura requires additional review.See Kaltura Media.
Pools / Question Banks
Delete unnecessary Question Banks.Each imported Learn quiz may create a bank even when its questions did not come from a pool.
Rename referenced banks.When individual quizzes with Question Sets or Random Blocks are imported, bank names may be replaced with system reference names. A complete course export/import generally preserves pool names.
Correct points per question.Question Sets and Random Blocks may import with one point per question regardless of the Learn value.
Remove unnecessary Question Groups.Questions linked through Learn’s Reuse Question feature may each appear in their own Canvas Question Group. Move the questions out, remove the empty groups, and verify points.
Manage imported Question Banks
- Open Quizzes.
- Open the page options menu and select Manage Question Banks.
- Delete an unnecessary bank using the remove control beside its name.
- Rename a bank using the edit control beside its name. Individually imported pools may have a system-generated name such as single.qti.export.referenced.canvas.name.prefix.
Correct points and Question Groups
- Edit the affected quiz and open its Questions area.
- For a Question Set or Random Block, edit the corresponding Question Group and enter the correct points per question.
- If reused Learn questions were placed into separate Question Groups, drag each question out of its unnecessary group.
- Delete the empty Question Groups and verify the point value of every moved question.
Rubrics
Review or rebuild migrated rubrics.Formatting and point totals may require correction. Rebuilding from the original rubric or screenshots may be faster and safer.
Reconnect rubrics to assignments.Open the assignment and use + Rubric → Find a Rubric → Select the Rubric → Use this Rubric.
SCORM
SCORM packages migrate but require reinstallation.Content is unpacked into Files. Download the original package and upload it through the Canvas SCORM area instead of rebuilding it from the unpacked files.
Self and Peer Assessments
Assessments migrate as assignments and require editing.Enable Peer Reviews in the assignment settings and remove the migrated View/Complete Assessment link because it points back to Learn.
See Canvas’s peer-review assignment instructions.
Surveys
Surveys migrate as Graded Classic Quizzes.Change the quiz type to a graded or ungraded survey and review questions using the guidance in Tests.
Important: Survey availability depends on the Canvas quiz engine in use. Review current New Quizzes guidance before rebuilding a survey workflow.
Tests / Classic Quizzes
Learn Tests migrate as Canvas Classic Quizzes. Thoroughly review every quiz, question type, answer choice, point value, file, formula, and bank.
Rebuild unsupported questions.Hotspot and Quiz Bowl questions do not migrate. Unsupported placeholders affect the total possible points until removed or replaced.
Review question types changed during migration.
| Question in Learn | Migrates to Canvas as |
|---|---|
| Either/Or | Multiple Choice |
| Jumbled Sentence | Multiple Dropdowns |
| Opinion/Likert | Multiple Choice |
| Ordering | Matching |
| Short Answer | Essay |
Change an imported question type
- Open Quizzes and select the quiz.
- Select Edit, then open the Questions area.
- Locate the question and select its edit control.
- Choose the correct question type, review the answer and point settings, and save the question.
Reset File Upload questions.They may appear as unsupported and must be manually changed to the File Upload question type.
Repair a File Upload question
- Open Quizzes, select the quiz, and choose Edit.
- Open the Questions area and locate the unsupported question.
- Select the question’s edit control and change its type to File Upload.
- Review the prompt and point value, then save the question and quiz.
Repair WIRIS formulas.Calculated-formula definitions may display as URLs. Update the formula definition; the underlying formula and possible solutions may remain valid.
Re-embed non-image files.PDFs and similar files embedded as images in question text or answers migrate as broken links.
Rewrite answers that refer to letters or numbers.Canvas does not display sequential labels such as A, B, C, D beside multiple-choice answers. Revise choices such as “Both A and B.”
Themes
Replace: Learn themes do not exist in Canvas and do not migrate.
Wikis
Rebuild: Wikis do not migrate reliably.A page may appear under Canvas Pages, but the wiki content will be missing.
Third-party tools
Kaltura Media
My Media remains available.Media stored in My Media is available through Canvas, but course content may need to be relinked.
Rebuild Media Mashups.Media added through Learn’s Build Content → Mashup does not migrate and may leave no placeholder. Create a Canvas Page and relink the media from My Media. See Fix Imported Content from Blackboard Learn.
Relink Rich Content Editor videos.Embedded videos migrate as broken links. Find and re-embed each video from My Media.
Republish Media Gallery content.Media Gallery contents do not migrate. Republish the videos in the Canvas Media Gallery. For future courses, use Import Media Gallery.
