Working, Teaching, and Learning Remotely

Plan for continuity of learning In the case of absenteeism/sick leave or temporary school closures, support continued access to quality education. This can include: 

• Use of online/e-learning strategies 
• Assigning reading and exercises for home study 
• Radio, podcast or television broadcasts of academic content 
• Assigning teachers to conduct remote daily or weekly follow up with students
• Review/develop accelerated education strategies

To help schools prepare for the possibility of completely remote classes, VidGrid has compiled a list of preparedness tutorials for instructors to start using video in their courses.

Recording or uploading lectures:

• Using the VidGrid recorder
• Uploading an existing video or audio file
• Recording a PowerPoint presentation

Recording an announcement for class:

• Recording webcam only

Ensure accessible content for students:

• Adding closed captions to my video from my course
• Editing closed captions from my video
• Add translated captions to my video

Adding videos into my course content (LMS specific)

• Insert a video into my Canvas course

View student engagement on videos:

• Viewing analytics from a video

Having students record videos:

• Instructor setup for student video assignments with the guest recorder
• Students recording using the guest recorder

Engage students with formative assessments:

• Adding in-video questions to my video

Click here to visit our full library of tutorials

• Our Commitment to you during Coronavirus
• Tools for Online Learning
• Contingency Planning 
• Here is the Checklist for Canvas Success 

Tips for Using Canvas During a School Closure

Canvas was built from the start to support online learning, and the platform is designed to automatically scale to support a large number of concurrent users. In preparation for potential school closures, we’ve pulled together a list of recommendations for educators that may help. Step-by-Step guidance for maintaining connection in the classroom is provided here.

 If your institution is preparing to close or has closed, here are some tips to help transition to an online learning environment:

• Use course discussion and messaging to continue the conversation.
  • Canvas provides an integrated system for class discussions, allowing both instructors and students to start and contribute to as many discussion topics as desired. Discussions can be graded or ungraded, and participants can post text, video and audio, as well as files depending on how the instructor set up each topic. Graded discussions seamlessly integrate with the Canvas Gradebook. Discussions allows for interactive communication between the entire class or group, allowing for a level engagement that closely aligns with the in-classroom experience. 
• Use the mobile apps for push notifications and anytime anywhere access.
  • Students and Instructors can use Canvas’s native iOS and Android apps to accomplish many of the actions available on the full web version. Instructors can edit course settings, email students, view student progress, post announcements that will be sent out via app notifications, create and participate in discussions and easily grade assignments. Students can use the app to view their courses and grades, submit assignments and take quizzes, engage in course discussions, send and receive messages, watch videos and other content, and stay on top of their to-do list and calendars. The Canvas mobile apps are designed to support learning in and beyond the physical classroom. 
• Use Canvas Commons to quickly create and share course content.
  • Canvas Commons is a learning object repository with over 120,000 learning objects, from Quizzes and assignments to full courses. A digital library full of educational content, Commons allows Canvas users to share learning resources with other users as well as import learning resources into a Canvas course. To enable Commons in your Canvas instance, just contact your Customer Success Manager. 
• Leverage Big Blue Button for live video. 
  • UW's ECTL recommends the use of Zoom for live video. Additionally, BigBlueButton is another available tool that enables you to share your audio, slides, chat, video, and desktop with students. BigBlueButton enables you to share your audio, slides, chat, video, and desktop with students, helping you create a fully online experience. Tools like built-in polling make it easy to engage students, and the ability to record your lectures means that you can make them available for later review. There is no limit on the number of webcams you can share in a session, and built in tools give presenters the ability to zoom, highlight, draw and write on presentations making their points clearer to remote students. 

Canvas was built to help improve teaching and learning in all kinds of situations - the classroom, blended learning environments, and for fully online courses all around the world. If you have questions about how to transition to an online learning environment reach out to your CSM or reference some of the additional tips and ideas from our community. 

• Using Zoom at the University of Wyoming
• Scheduling a Zoom Meeting
• Zoom Lecture Capture
• Screen Sharing Settings
• How to Prevent "Zoombombing"
• Enable or Disable Phone Number Masking in Zoom
• Protect Your Zoom Meetings

Zoom Advice and Best Practices

• How to Keep Uninvited Guests Out of Your Zoom Event
• Best Practices for Protecting Your Zoom Meetings
• Best Practices for Hosting a Digital Event
• Best Practices for Securing your Virtual Classroom

Holding a Class Online and Recording It
Zoom provides a robust platform with features that allow you to replicate the classroom experience including screen sharing, whiteboards, breakout rooms, and sharing videos with sound.  Log in to Zoom to automatically create your account. Faculty and staff automatically receive fully licensed accounts. Once logged in, download the Zoom on your home computer to access the full benefits of Zoom. If you would like to have cloud storage of Zoom recordings, please request that storage.

ECTL suggests using Honorlock or Respondus Monitor. View an overview video about these options.  

Honorlock Resources:

• Watch additional Honorlock training information.
• See this onboarding packet for additional information.

Respondus Resouces and Tips:

• Daily Training Webinars with Live Q&A – These 45-minute trainings are the best way for instructors to learn how to use Respondus Monitor for online proctoring. Each session is followed by an extended Q/A period where questions are answered live. Register for Training Webinars
• Rapid Rollout Guide for Instructors - Here is the essential information for using Respondus Monitor with online exams.
• Create a Practice Exam – Have students take a practice exam with Respondus Monitor to ensure their computer, webcam and Internet are working properly. Allow students more than one attempt on the quiz so they can try the practice exam whenever their device or networking environment changes.
• 24/7 Live Chat – Remember that students can access built-in troubleshooting and live chat from within Respondus Monitor if they encounter a technical problem. Find more resources for students, including how to access Live Chat.