Open boaters interested in moving the boat forward (racers, lake paddlers) tend to sit, with foot braces and a bent shaft paddle.
Open boaters interested in maneuvering the boat around (river/whitewater paddlers, freestylers) tend to kneel with a straight blade.
Proponents of kneeling would say that you have a lower center of gravity, better torso rotation and better contact with the boat when kneeling, so it is easier to execute turns. Sea kayakers (and whitewater kayakers) do all those things while sitting, so I am not sure it is necessarily true. I’m a kneeler in my canoe, but I’m beginning to realize that there is more than one way to skin the cat.
I think you are bothered more by terminology than performing (different) techniques.
A terminology difference between open boaters and kayakers is “lean” vs. “edge”.
Edging is the more British kayaking term for heeling a boat without leaning your body outboard. Leaning then is heeling a canoe with your body outboard.
Although some leaning with your body outboard may be inevitable in some kind of boats and situations, staying inboard while heeling limits the need for a paddle brace to prevent you from tipping over, and you can therefore continue making paddle strokes to move forward or maneuver. Heeling without leaning your body outboard is thus the preferred action, unless performance is more important than stability (say Whitewater Slalom or Flatwater FreeStyle).
Heeling for maneuvering is thus secondary for most paddlers.
Unfortunately this often gets mixed up, which is also a reason many paddlers think it works different in canoeing or kayaking or whitewater and touring, while this is not the case.
I do have a whole webpage dedicated to this subject, but Google Translate still makes a mess of it (even with AI so only the illustrations may perhaps be helpfull.
Kneeling certainly gives more control over your stability (and maneuverability – reason why a Slaom C1 is more maneuverable than a Slalom K1) but hampers torso rotation. Therefore I am a canoeist who prefers to sit when I can and kneel when I must. But kneeling is one of the things I miss with kayaking, as I do have to rely on bracing much more than with canoeing.
I went the other direction. I taught canoeing for 15 years before buying my first kayak. I found that some skills were transferable, but they’re two different watercraft. When I got the kayak, I took the Paddle Canada Sea Kayak Level 1 training. As for a new ‘canoeist’, I would recommend training too. There are several accredited organizations with qualified instructors, depending on where you live.
Have fun, be safe, and ALWAYS WEAR YOUR PFD!
so only the illustrations may perhaps be helpfull.