Guidelines

Introduction to Distance Learning Classrooms

Courses delivered via media technologies are becoming more common throughout West Virginia. Interactive Television makes it possible to link two (or more) electronic classrooms that may be many miles apart and create one classroom environment.

If this is your first time teaching on television, you may feel a little anxious. You may be concerned about how you will look and sound on TV. Think of it this way: you look and sound that way all the time. The only real difference in live video distance education is that you are separated from your students at the receive sites and any overflow classrooms by the television medium. The only people that can see you are your students, whether they are with you in the classroom or facing you through the television monitor and, just like in the traditional classroom, you are in control.

Teaching through interactive television requires a little different preparation that the regular classroom and there are few things to keep in mind so that you are effective. These guidelines will assist you in preparing for teaching on television. This manual and other resources available on this website will give you a head start to preparing your materials and yourself. You will need to go through a “hands-on” session to orient you with the technology. This should provide most of the information you will need but please feel free to call Instructional Television and Video Services for help or attend one of the periodic training sessions. Please consult the personnel listed at ITVS Staff for additional information on specific topics.

When you walk into the classroom, you will see cameras, television monitors, microphones and screens. This technology allows everyone in one location to see and hear everyone in the other location (or locations). If there are only two sites in your class, your room and the distance site, you will be able to see and hear each other all the time. If there are three or more sites you will see and hear a site only when they ask a question (or make any sort of noise).

You will have students with you in the electronic classroom. It is easy to concentrate on the students in the room with you because you get instant feedback, but you should spend equal time looking at your "distant" students through the camera at the back of the room. Make a point to ask them questions and get them engaged in the class and they will have a much better experience. This is interactive television after all.

You will have a document camera for your paper-based graphics instead of an overhead projector for transparencies, but functionally it is the same concept. A document camera also comes in handy for 3-dimensional objects too, and can zoom to about the size of a penny. This is the main reason that most instructors that have had a chance to use the document camera soon start requesting them for the regular classroom.

A VCR is standard equipment in the classroom. Please keep in mind that all the same copyright issues that guide the use of videos in the traditional class are also pertinent in the interactive television classroom. Contrary to what many people believe, there are no “extra” rules about the use of commercial videos in the classroom. If you can legally use it in the traditional classroom, you can use it in the interactive television class. If you have questions about copyright contact ITVS or the University Libraries.

Each classroom is also equipped with a computer for showing PowerPoint’s, demonstrating software, or browsing the web. The most common application used in the classroom is PowerPoint. Even simple slideshows are a huge aid to students. You will need to do a little more prep work to get your materials ready for class but once they are created you will probably find yourself using them in several classes.

All of these tools will be at your disposal and are located at a teaching station in the front of the room. This makes it very convenient but if you like to roam around the classroom you will find your movements somewhat more restricted on television. With a little organization and planning and a bit of practice you will find that the experience of teaching via interactive television can be very rewarding. After the first few classes, you'll be familiar with your new surroundings.

The Benefits of Interactive Television

Use of interactive television for conferences and meetings saves both travel time and expenses. For classes, the system makes it possible for students on other campuses to take courses not available on their home campuses.

There are a few small ways in which interactive television classes are different from the classroom situations to which we are most accustomed.  The following information will give you a handful of guidelines that will make your electronic classroom experience more productive and pleasurable.

The Classroom & Your Class

Breaks

For a two hour and thirty minute lecture, plan a break. It can usually be taken anytime towards the middle of your class and can last five, ten, or fifteen minutes. Or, you could try two shorter breaks; the format is up to you. Breaks often give students at the distance sites a chance to ask questions that they may have been to shy to ask while you were teaching.

Questions

Leave five minutes at the end of class for students to ask general questions, at least the first few class periods until students adjust.

• Keep within a field of view of the classroom cameras. When responding to a question from a student at a distance site try and look directly at the camera, so that they can see your response better. The rooms are designed to make this easy. We’ve mounted the camera and incoming video monitor next to each other to give the illusion that you are looking directly at them.
  
• Know how to use the document camera (Elmo).
  
• Take advantage of other teaching options, e.g. Laptop for powerpoint, playing videos, etc.

As often as you can, make eye contact with the camera at the back of the room. That's your audience at each receive site.

Turn on your microphone and remember to turn it off when you leave the room, especially to use the restroom.

Graphics & Other Visuals

You are encouraged to prepare graphics ahead of time. Please look at this example for recommended font sizes to use on 8-1/2" by 11" paper. Note also the recommended margins. Why 1" margins? So the document camera can move in close enough to allow for video cropping and not show the edges of the paper. This gives a better appearance. It is also suggested to use you paper in landscape format rather than portrait. If you notice TV monitors are shaped that way and this may help you to fit more information onto the screen for students.

To avoid camera glare use non-white paper.  Blue, tan, beige, yellow, pink, and green are fine.  Gray is all right, but it's boring. Powerpoint presentations look best with a darker background and lighter text, for example a navy blue background with yellow text shows up very well.

Try to restrict graphics to a few key words and phrases.  Align formulas and equations according to their "=" signs.  Use "bullets" to set off points.  Use handouts for tables and extensive textual materials.  You may want to leave parts of your graphic blank to encourage the class to fill in missing formulas, terms, etc.  This promotes active viewing on the part of the students.  As the class responds, you can fill in the blanks.

If you already use Microsoft Word for your routing word processing, you should look into Word's graphic capabilities.  In any case, take advantage of large, bold fonts (24 point or larger) for easily-readable results on television.

Be sure to use as large a font as possible if you use mathematical software to write formulas.  Break up long expressions to fit on several lines.  A good place to break is at 11=11 and at  "+" signs.  Align several equations on a page under their "=" signs.

Other Graphic and Visual Items

Feel free to show pictures, tables from books, etc.  Under the copyright law, occasional use of these items constitutes "fair use." 

Videotape

VHS videotapes are also useful.  You can record them yourself in your lab or elsewhere.  VHS tapes must be recorded in standard speed, not EP, ELP, or SLP.

Copyright

BE SURE TO READ THE “COPYRIGHT AND FAIR USE” GUIDELINES ON THE UNIVERSITY WEBSITE LISTED BELOW:

http://www.marshall.edu/muonline/faculty/policiesandprocedures.asp.

Computer

A PC is available for your use in each of the electronic classrooms.  You may bring your own portable computer (laptop or notebook) to class and connect it into the video system.  If you choose to do this, you’ll need to make arrangements at least one week prior to your class to work out any technical issues. 

Use Power Point, Harvard Graphics, etc. for good-looking graphics.  Just follow the general guidelines for graphics that we've already discussed.  If you must use smaller text and numbers, remember that this tiny lettering translates poorly to NTSC video, so you will have to tell your students what (and where) they should be reading on the screen.

Whereas your computer monitor may display up to 700 lines of vertical resolution, ordinary television monitors can only resolve 350 lines maximum, but perhaps less than that when your computer output is converted to NTSC video for broadcast.

Why is this so?  Remember the Commodore VIC 20, the TI-99/4A, or the Timex/Sinclair 1000? Or the early IBM PC Junior?  These computers used your home television as a monitor, and the results were poor.  The computer industry's response was CGA, EGA, VGA, SVGA video, and Macintosh, with higher resolution for each generation.  But the NTSC video standard is forty years old, with its roots going back to the 1930's.  So converting your spiffy computer graphics to NTSC video is a losing proposition, which will not be corrected until everyone uses high-definition television.

The bottom line is: make your computer graphics as big as you can for best readability.

Special Requirements

If you have special requirements for your class, please contact your engineer or facilitator several days in advance.

Interaction with Off-campus Sites

In order for the students to know each other a little better, you might ask each one of the receive sites to send in a picture.  During discussion periods you can put the appropriate picture under the overhead camera.  It can be very amusing at least once.

Handouts

For highly-detailed graphics you should consider making copies and mailing them to the receive sites several days in advance for handing out in class.  This frees time during class to discuss the content instead of marking time waiting for students to copy the graphics.

Correspondence

Maintain regular correspondence with your distance sites out of class time via email or chat using WebCT.  Receive or send faxes containing relevant class information, homework assignments, and tests a day or two class starts.  Another option would be to mail your class information to the distance sites earlier in the week.  A list of distance site addresses and fax numbers can be obtained from the ITVS program manager or from our website, http://www.marshall.edu/itvs/concepts/ .  It is a good idea to get the students to indicate on their homework assignments their site locations as well as name.

For more information on using WebCT please visit WebCT Resource Information or contact Matt Christian at Christian@marshall.edu or call 696-7121.

Participation

Emphasize the importance of participation by all students, particularly those in distance sites.  Establish some sort of protocol that allows a student at the distance site to get your attention if they have a question.  Take into consideration that you may not be able to see the student at the site, if there are more than two distance sites connected.  It is also a good idea to get the student to specify their name and site location before they ask a question.  There may be a few seconds of delay between your answer to the question and any further response.

Teaching at the Distant Site

You are encouraged to travel to some of the off-campus sites, so special arrangements may be necessary to allow you to teach from a remote site.  If you do plan to travel to another site, please let your engineer or facilitator know ahead of time, so that we can make these special arrangements.  However, not all distance sites are equipped for origination.  To find out more about teaching at a distant site please contact the program coordinator.

Taping Classes

Instructional Television Services tapes all our distance learning classes.  A master tape is kept at Instructional Television Services to be used to make copies for receive sites that may have missed class due to technical difficulties.  This master tape is not loaned out.  You may request a copy via email or memo to Adrian Lawson, lawsona@marshall.edu for loan to students on campus.

Note:

Watching tapes of your own presentations can give you some revealing insights into how your students perceive your teaching, and perhaps may inspire you to make changes.

Pre-taped Lectures and Cancellation

If you must be out of town, you can pre-tape one or more lectures for later showing at the usual class time.  Please arrange a week in advance so the distance learning classroom can be scheduled.

If you must cancel class and if you know ahead of time, try to let your engineer or program coordinator know ahead of time, so we can make proper arrangements.

If an off-camps site needs a copy of a lecture because of a technical problem, Instructional Television Services will send one.  This usually takes about two days.  Please make this request by sending an email to Adrian Lawson, lawsona@marshall.edu .

What To Wear:

Here are some simple rules to follow so you can be confident of looking good on camera.

1.                  Wear something comfortable.

2.                  Wear coats or jackets in solid colors: brown, blue, tan, green, or gray.

3.                  Pastel shirts with button fronts.

4.                  Subdued stripes, checks or plaids are acceptable, but see below.

5.                  Avoid wearing lots of bright red.  On some TV's you will look like an inflamed kidney.

6.                  Fabrics with fine checks or stripes may cause a rainbow flutter or moiré effect on television sets.  Check ahead of time if you are not sure how a particular article of clothing will look on television.

7.                  Avoid wearing a pullover sweater, T-shirt, or jersey: clipping the microphone to it is difficult.

8.                  Avoid jewelry that might rattle against the microphone.  Herring bone necklaces cause flutter too, plus may cause a glare.

 Otherwise, don't worry about clothing.  J

Individual and Group “Hands-on” Training Sessions

Several weeks before the beginning of the semester a group training session can be arranged by the program coordinator.  During this session you and your fellow distance learning instructors will be shown the classroom and all its equipment, and you will be introduced to the people who run the video.  You will see demonstrations of what works and what doesn't work on television.  This is a good time to ask all your questions.

If you can't make the group session, call Instructional Television Services to schedule a training session for yourself (and your graduate assistant) so you can get acquainted with the electronic classroom and its equipment.  You can take this opportunity to make a sample five-minute tape that you can take home for study.

Contact Information

Crystal Stewart, Program Specialist

Distributed Education, Marshall University

Communications Building 219

One John Marshall Drive

Huntington, WV 25755

Voice:   304 696-3150                     Fax:  304 696-2973

Stewar14@marshall.edu