Kaltura by Kari Emineth

This past summer I taught ESS 281: Prevention and Care of Athletic Injuries online. The course has a lab component in which students need to demonstrate various hands-on skills. I was able to evaluate the lab skills of students in the online course through student video demonstrations, using Kaltura for storing and submitting video through D2L.

I created and included in the course several instructional videos that demonstrated the hands-on skills. Students were asked to view the videos and practice the skills prior to assessment. Students were aware that only 4 skills would be randomly assigned for each assessment but all skills introduced were possible options. Prior to assessment, students were instructed on how to create the video demonstration using either a webcam or mobile phone. An area was provided in D2L to practice the process of recording and uploading, simulating what would be required during the actual timed assessments. 

During the day of the lab skill assessment, a quiz was activated which randomly assigned four skills that needed to be demonstrated as well as randomly assigning the student a "code word" that needed to be said in their video delivery to verify the video is a new recording during the assessment period. Once the student entered the quiz they had 2 hours to create the videos and upload the videos to the appropriate D2L Dropbox. In the Dropbox students were instructed to upload a provided file for submission but more importantly to add a comment to their submission and either (1) Insert Stuff > WebCam recording or (2) Insert Stuff > Upload Video (adding a video taken from their phone or other recording device), which attached their video to the Dropbox submission. This option was used because it allowed me to view and grade videos inline from one screen, quickly navigating from one student to the next while grading and providing feedback immediately after watching the video.

The directions given spelled out step-by-step instructions in the syllabus and a practice submission process (quiz and dropbox) were available prior to the assessments; students could complete the practice as many times as desired. Those that practiced were given greater flexibility should technical issues occur during an assessment. I also provided those students feedback on the submissions to aid in their studying.

Overall, this worked very well. I worked hard to make sure I outlined the directions clearly and explained my expectations step-by-step. I provided information about the video recorded lab assessments to students upon registration to the course so students could self-select if the course would be conducive to their level of comfort with technology. I also partnered with CATL and ATS colleagues to ensure I was using the tools and technologies appropriate to meet my learning outcomes. I had very few issues happen during the assessment submission periods. Thank you to the CATL and ATS staff for your assistance on this project. I would do this again.

Submitted by Kari Emineth, Exercise and Sport Science

FlipGrid by Virginie Cassidy

FlipGrid is a technology that allows me to create a question prompt and then students reply with video responses. According to the FlipGrid website, "teachers create grids of short discussion-style questions that students respond to through recorded videos."

I use FlipGrid in my Business French online course. My goal is to allow students to have a voice and to practice using the French language in a professional yet conversational tone. The online students first respond to discussion prompts about course content in a D2L discussion. Then I pose a FlipGrid question involving a more personal take on the course content, asking students to explain (in French) a past or present example of work experience as related to the content of the week. I do not want the FlipGrid responses to be read so the video component helps create a conversational tone as I can see if they are reading a response. The unscripted video also creates for a more natural conversational tone because the video has pauses, stalls, fillers, etc. similar to what would happen in a face-to-face conversation, and helps students become more comfortable with these.

In this class my goal was to have a tool that would allow students to have a voice to practice and use language. FlipGrid is providing a chance for students to practice their language as well as a way to help create a better community in my online course. Hearing and seeing a response to a question helps students get to know each other better and be more comfortable in their own language development. In addition, I get to know the students better and can evaluate their speaking skills on a regular basis while watching their skills improve throughout the course.

I am considering using FlipGrid in future classes to complete quick assessments such as 5 minute essay or muddiest point. The video response with assessment on class progress may prove especially useful because I may hear more of the language issues in the video than I might see in a written response to such a question prompt.

An instructor instance of FlipGrid is $60/year (21 day free trial) which allows for five different grids. I use one grid for each of my classes. FlipGrid does allow me to copy questions from one grid to another. My students do not create accounts but rather I send them a link to the grid, and they simply click to record.

For more information, visit http://flipgrid.com/info/

Submitted by Virginie Cassidy, Modern Languages 

CLEAR at MSU by Hongying Xu

CLEAR at MSU is a language resource center through Michigan State University that offers various free resources, materials, and products. I use two products offered through CLEAR at MSU. First, I use Conversations which is a web-based program that allows teachers to record video prompts or questions and ask students to record video responses. The teacher can set-up the system to allow students to practice their recordings or to spontaneously create their recorded response. Second, I have used Video Dropbox which is a virtual dropbox for video files which can be added to any webpage including D2L.

These tools work well when teaching Chinese because I am able to listen to their responses as well as watch a student and see a student's mouth when speaking the language, possibly alerting me to an issue and give more accurate feedback. The integration of CLEAR at MSU into my classes has allowed me to ensure that all students are able to practice their language skills since in class it is not possible for all students to orally response to all prompts. With CLEAR at MSU, each student has the opportunity to answer the question or do the language practice activity. In addition, students can work in groups to develop and record role plays in Chinese. Students report being more comfortable creating and recording role plays in CLEAR at MSU versus performing in a live class without the ability to practice. I will often pull up the recorded videos in a face-to-face class to use for examples and students report no issues with this playback.

The CLEAR at MSU website has helpful information and tutorials about the various resources available. More information about the resources available through CLEAR at MSU can be found here: http://clear.msu.edu/clear/

Submitted by Hongying Xu, Modern Languages

iMovie Lab Prep Videos by Eugenia Turov, Tanya Cordes, and Kate Friesen

Every lab for Chemistry 103 and 104 has a long description about lab procedure in the manual that students were not always reading prior to attending class. To combat this issue, we filmed instructional demonstration videos of each lab experiment as well as how to set it up, and give students access to the 2-5 minute video before attending lab. The videos do not contain much theory as that is completed in lab book, textbook, and lecture, but the video does film the whole experiment, outlining what to do, what to look for, and how to set it up. 

These videos are used in all sections of CHM 103 and 104 and we are finding several benefits:

• the videos help streamline retention for what to do with each experiment
• students know what to expect to see in the lab
• students ask fewer but more in-depth questions about what is happening in the experiment, rather than as many questions about the process and set-up
• help students progress through the experiment at a sufficient pace as they recognize material from watching the video

We use a camcorder to record the video in the lab space. We then use iMovie to edit the video and dub voice over the video. We find the sound quality in the lab is not great and dubbing sound after allows to create voice for only the final edited video. The editing in iMovie also allows us to highlight things in the procedure that are good or bad, or make recommendations within the video. The final videos are hosted on an unlisted YouTube channel but embedded in each instructor's D2L course site.

We work as a team to create these videos with each member having an assigned role. Our advice to anyone that would like to create something similar is to work as a team, have assigned roles based on strengths (editor, voice, performer of experiment, etc.). Also, we suggest filming a lot of footage to then be patient with iMovie as you cut and paste the best clips into the final form. Finally, we highly recommend dubbing in voice at the end of video editing to create better sound quality. 

For more information about iMovie: https://www.apple.com/mac/imovie/ Here is an example experiment video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPqtF-pBDP0

Submitted by Eugenia Turov, Tanya Cordes, and Kate Friesen, Chemistry

CATME by Mary Hamman

Comprehensive Assessment of Team Member Effectiveness (CATME) is a system of tools that allows instructors to manage student teams. I use CATME in my BUS 230: Business and Economics Research and Communication course to help with two things in a semester-long project, (1) create teams and (2) collecting on-going peer evaluations.

First, to help create teams, the tool asks each student to complete a survey based on customizable factors which uses an algorithm to match team members together. I simply create the account and upload my class list, then CATME distributes the survey, collects responses, and I am able to use the algorithm to assign teams. I also have the opportunity to manually adjust the teams if I choose. Once I have confirmed teams assignments, CATME distributes the team matches to students along with a schedule matrix identifying which days and times during a usual week all members are available to meet. The system also does allow an instructor to upload a team list that is already created.

Also, CATME is used in BUS 230 to facilitate peer evaluations using CATME's validated instrument. The instrument includes scales that measure contribution to the team, interaction with other team member, extent to which kept team on track, extent to which they expect quality of self and team, extent to which they have the knowledge skills ability to perform team tasks, and more. Individuals rate their own performance as well as that of all teammates (i.e. 360 degree feedback) and I use the peer evaluation at various points throughout the course (after each deliverable on the course-long project). I distribute the evaluation task through CATME after each deliverable and after students complete it I am able to view all data as well as summary scores for each construct within the scale. CATME also "flags" teams where there appears to be a conflict, such as when one team member rating herself far higher than her teammates but her teammates ratings do not agree. CATME also provides a global evaluation score for each student, which I use to weight the grade the group received on the deliverable and assign individual grades. I also allow CATME to automatically release a summary of feedback to students so they know what team skills they should focus on improving. However, instructors can choose to withhold that summary if desired. I am extremely happy with CATME. Students also seem very happy as I am getting comments such as, "This is the best team I have ever worked with" and "I feel well matched with my team members." I feel it offers the opportunity to help students develop their team skills and improve rather than simply evaluate and assign grades.

CATME is free to instructors and information is available here: http://info.catme.org/

Submitted by Mary Hamman, Economics

Jabber by Jorge Aguilar-Sanchez

Jabber is an application by Cisco that allows for video-to-video synchronous and recorded conversations. It is similar to Skype but it is supported by our campus and, in my opinion, offers better connection and performance with multiple people per call.

I use Jabber in both my online and face-to-face courses to meet a student learning outcome targeting the ability to carryout basic, intermediate, or advanced (based on course level) conversations in Spanish.  Students are assigned a partner with whom they complete specified oral practice exercises. The integration of Jabber allows my busy students to complete their oral practice exercises in a virtual place (not bound to a lab or library) at a mutually agreed upon time. The conversations are recorded and I can review the conversations for assessment and feedback. 

There are many reasons I like Jabber. First, I like Jabber because it is supported by the university and there is a person I can call for assistance (Terry Wirkus). I also enjoy Jabber because it is reliable, server controlled, and recorded for future review. Most importantly, I like Jabber because it includes the social part of learning a language. That is, there is another person actively receiving your communication and interpreting your message, your body language, your reaction, etc., making the experience more meaningful. Jabber allows for the back-and-forth communication to happen in real time.


For more information about Jabber, review the "Desktop Video Conferencing" section of this website or email Terry Wirkus.

Submitted by Jorge Aguilar-Sanchez, Modern Languages 

Vimeo by Kate Parker

I use Vimeo to host video response lectures that I create for all my online classes as a means of responding, directly and personally, to their discussions for the week. By uploading a video of myself talking through the interesting questions and problems raised by their online discussions, I am able to recreate--to a limited extent--the way I might respond to student work in a face-to-face setting. Because the video responses are not too structured, and are not really scripted or edited, the students see me in my true form. I have found this to be a more effective way to respond to student work, as it models synthesizing salient points for the students and enables me to draw broad and meaningful connections across discussions. I also find that students are more likely to access and engage with a video summary than they are to read a series of follow-up posts, even if those posts are assigned by the instructor. Recording these lectures also saves me time, allowing me to channel more of my energies into communicating with students about projects or creating other meaningful and fun content.

I chose Vimeo over YouTube and other free video hosting sites because it has a great quality of video. After creating my account with Vimeo, I record videos (usually of me sitting at my office desk) with my webcam, saving the movies as files on my computer and then uploading the files to Vimeo. I make the videos public and share them with students. After the semester is over, I make the videos private, but I love being able to access past videos to get ideas and inspiration for my current classes. Collectively, this video archive has helped me to see the kinds of questions and ideas that students tend to generate semester after semester. I've also assigned these videos in face-to-face classes, if I feel that they cover important material in a concise way. Because I respond differently to specific students each semester, I do recreate the videos every time I teach an online course. However, I find the process is easier each semester, as I use the previous semesters' video to help outline my thoughts and prepare my comments.

The videos are short--ten, fifteen minutes--and students report enjoying the chance to see me in my element and get to know me as an instructor. In my evaluations, students regularly commented on the videos as one of the activities they found most engaging and helpful in the online course. It also helps to humanize the process of online teaching--and connecting with students personally is extremely
important to me, whether I am in the classroom or on D2L.

For more information about Vimeo visit: http://vimeo.com/about

Submitted by Kate Parker, English