Introduction

Connected Classrooms use videoconferencing technology to connect students and instructors in different physical locations. They are a service provided by Technology-enhanced Learning and Online Strategies (TLOS) in Virginia Tech's Division of Information Technology. 

• Instructors must reserve Connected Classrooms prior to the beginning of the semester.
• Instructors can opt to capture lectures in Connected Classrooms and to link the recordings to their Canvas sites.
• Instructors and students can be in a Connected Classroom or on their computers.

Connected Classroom list:

• Burruss 123A
• Durham 261
• Northern Virginia Center 106, 113, 206, 219, 323
• Torgersen 1000, 1030, 1050
• Whittemore 281

Contents

• Scheduling a Connected Classroom
  
  • Scheduling priorities
  • Scheduling deadlines
  • Schedule the Connected Classroom
  • Schedule lecture capture
  • Access lecture captures/recordings
  • Change a scheduled class
• Designing a Course for a Connected Classroom
  
  • Learn how to use the classroom
  • Get credentialed for teaching Connected Classes
  • Decide how to present teaching materials
  • Prepare your teaching materials
  • Tell students how to connect
  • Discover our teaching strategies
  • Consider engaging activities
  • Encourage connectedness during class
  • Have a contingency plan
• Setting up a Connected Classroom
  
  • Set up a Connected Classroom
  • Test your connections
• Using the Zoom Panel
  
  • Make an unscheduled Zoom connection
  • Join another Zoom meeting
  • Invite participants
  • Manage participants
  • Stop the Connected Classroom Camera
  • Record the meeting
  • Access recordings
  • Toggle camera view
  • End the meeting
• Teaching in a Connected Classroom
  
  • Log in to the Crestron
  • Share content from your device
    
    • Share from a personal computer
    • Share from a mobile device
  • Share content from the Classroom PC
  • Host a class remotely from your device
  • Use a Virtual Smartboard
  • Show a student who's speaking
    
    • Show a student in your Connected Classroom
    • Show a student in a different Connected Classroom
    • Show a student from their own device
  • Show a website
  • Use the Document Camera
  • Use Chat, Polls, and Breakout Rooms
    
    • Use Chat feature
    • Use Poll and Breakout Room feature
• Shutting Down the Connected Classroom
  
  • Shut down classroom equipment
• Getting Help with Connected Classrooms
  
  • Learn how to use the room
    
    • Attend an orientation workshop
    • Schedule a test session
  • Get credentialed
  • Get help preparing for class
  • Get help during class

Instructions

Scheduling a Connected Classroom

Scheduling priorities

Connected Classroom requests are prioritized based on: (1) usage priority, and (2) date of request. Usage priorities are: 

1. Courses connecting two or more classrooms.
2. Courses connecting a classroom to instructor or student computers ("virtual").
3. Courses that don't connect to external people or sites. 

Scheduling deadlines

Submit requests before:

• Nov. 1 for spring semesters*
• Jun. 1 for fall semesters*

*After the deadlines, requests will be fulfilled on a strict first come, first served basis, regardless of usage priority. 

Schedule the Connected Classroom

1. Collect instructor information, course information (name and CRN), course or event schedule, Canvas course site URL (if you have it), and the room(s) you want to request.
2. Fill out the Connected Classrooms - Classroom Video Conferencing and Lecture Capture request form. 

Schedule lecture capture 

Lecture Capture is automatically selected when you schedule a Connected Classroom. If you want Classroom Video Conferencing but no recording, uncheck Lecture Capture under Requested Service on the Connected Classrooms - Classroom Video Conferencing and Lecture Capture request form.

• For semester-long courses, recordings will appear in the Canvas site's Media Gallery and the instructor's private My Media area within one day of the lecture. 
• For one-time events, recordings will appear in the instructor's private My Media area in Canvas within a day of the event. 
• Instructions for using Media Gallery and My Media Canvas are in: 
  
  • Video Content Management - How to Use My Media and Media Gallery (for Instructors)
  • Video Content Management - How to Use My Media and Media Gallery (for Students)

Change a scheduled class

Changes to scheduled classes disrupt videoconferencing and lecture capture. Make change requests 48 hours prior to class. TLOS cannot guarantee we can accommodate changes with less than 48 hours' notice. 

To make a change, reply to the email you got when you submitted the Connected Classrooms - Classroom Video Conferencing and Lecture Capture request form. 

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Designing a Course for a Connected Classroom

Learn how to use the classroom

Read this article, and/or:

1. Go to the Professional Development Network enrollment site.
2. Log in with your PID.
3. Sign up for a Connected Classroom orientation workshop.

Get credentialed for teaching in Connected Classrooms

Those teaching distance learning courses must comply with VT Distance Learning Policy 6364. The Learning Experience Design (LED) group in TLOS offers credentialing for Connected Classroom Instruction.

For more information and/or to sign up, email Daron Williams at daron.williams@vt.edu.

Decide how to present teaching materials

To present slides or online content

You can show slides, websites, or videos on the Classroom PC (see: Share Content from the Classroom PC) or from your own HDMI-capable device (see: Share Content from Your Device).  

• The Classroom PC runs Windows and is automatically connected to Zoom.
• You can save files for up to two weeks on the Classroom PC in the Save Files Here folder - but not longer. 
• You must request software be installed on the Classroom PC. You must provide a license and allow two weeks for installation.

If you use your own device, choose a computer that has an HDMI connector. 

• To connect your HDMI device to the meeting, see Share Content from Your Device.
• Teaching from mobile devices via WiFi requires more steps.
• Make sure your device can connect to a Zoom Test meeting.
• Test your device in a Connected Classroom. Call 540-231-5149 to schedule a session.

To write and draw

Use either the document camera (see: Use the Document Camera) or the Virtual Smartboard on the Classroom PC (see: Use a Virtual Smartboard).

Prepare your teaching materials

Prepare Canvas site

• Have a well-organized Canvas course site.
• Share ALL content in Canvas before class.
• Avoid last minute changes or additions, so students have time to prepare. 

Prepare slides

• Use 24-point or larger Sans Serif font (Helvetica, Arial, etc.).
• Have no more than 50 words per slide. Keep the details in the Notes area of the slides.
• Use more images and fewer words to make your points. 

Write/Draw electronically

• Don’t plan on using a physical whiteboard or chalkboard. Offsite student's won't be able to see it. 
• Use the computer's virtual whiteboard or camera to draw or write.
• Try out the virtual whiteboard before teaching! Call 540-231-5149 to schedule a test session.

Test multimedia

• Understand that sometimes videos don't play well over video conference connections. 
• Test the videos you intend to share before class. Call 540-231-5149 to schedule a test session.
• Have a backup plan - share links to online videos beforehand, even if you plan to show video in class.

Understand accessibility

• Add alt-text for images and transcripts. Add captioning for videos.
• Email TLOS at tlos@vt.edu or go to the 4Help Portal and click Get Help to ask for more information.

Tell students how to connect

• Students in an offsite Connected Classroom will connect automatically when the scheduled Zoom Meeting begins.
• Students connecting from their own computers will need the Meeting ID, which they enter at join.zoom.us.
  
  • You can share the Meeting ID with the class via Canvas or with individual students via email.
  • During class, you can invite them by tapping Invite on the Connected Classroom’s Zoom Panel.

Discover our teaching strategies

• Go to Connected Classrooms - Classroom Overview and Help and scroll down to Teaching Strategies.
• Watch videos for:
  
  • Fostering Effective Communication
  • Content Design and Delivery
  • Group Work
  • Assessments

Consider engaging activities

Flip the class

Consider flipping the class by creating and posting instructional content in Canvas, which students review before class. During class, students can engage in deeper learning, such as exploring professional case studies, describing their biggest take-away or most confusing point, or relating the content to current events or personal experience.

Do a think/pair/share activity

You can do this via Google Docs or Slides, in which your students can co-create artifacts regardless of their location.

1. On Canvas, set up the student groups.  
2. Student groups use Google Chat or Canvas Chat to communicate. For information on using Zoom’s chat feature, see Use Chat feature.
3. Student groups create their own group Google Docs or Slides. They have a set time period to collaborate on the artifact.
4. Students submit the artifact through Google Drive or Canvas Assignments.
5. You share the artifacts with the class for discussion.

Try the fishbowl technique

Assign a group of students to be the discussion leaders for a topic. Other students can contribute via chat or by raising their hands physically or virtually.

Try student presentations

Students, individually or in groups, can share content and deliver a presentation either in the classroom or via Zoom. See: Sharing Content from Your Device.

Encourage connectedness during class

Use classroom and offsite cameras

Be aware of your camera presence and stay in frame - use the confidence monitor to confirm proper placement. Make “eye contact” with camera when possible, because it connects you to your distance students. If you do move around the room, frequently check your camera presence.

Ask offsite students to enable their webcams to promote a personal connection with their fellow students at all other locations.

Be aware of classroom microphone locations

Offsite students cannot hear you if you do not speak near a classroom microphone. So, be sure you can be heard from around the room if you intend to move.

Be sure students are aware of microphones in your room and ask ALL students to use their microphones when speaking, so that students at all locations can hear and be heard.

Check to be sure that student questions or comments have been heard by all students. Make a habit of repeating student questions at your location before you answer them.

Use students’ names

Remember ALL of your learners as you conduct the class. Know your students’ names at all locations and call on them by name whenever possible (you can pull a roster with images from HokieSPA). Promote open discussion between students at all locations and encourage them to use names as well.

Have a contingency plan

Have a backup plan for how you can hold class if you cannot teach in your connected classroom due to weather, technology issues, etc.

An example plan is:

1. On Canvas Syllabus, describe how you will meet if the connected class is disrupted.
   2. In the event of a disruption, set up your own Zoom Meeting and note the Meeting ID.
   3. On Canvas Announcements, post the Meeting ID.

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Setting up a Connected Classroom

Set up a Connected Classroom

• Connections and scheduled recording start five minutes before the scheduled class time. You can start them earlier by tapping Start on the orange screen of the Zoom Control Panel.
• Connections and scheduled recording end five minutes after the scheduled class time.
• If you have a connection problem, press the red help button. A technician will come to your class within five minutes. You can also call 540-231-2229.

Test your connections

Before you begin teaching, make sure students in all locations can see and hear each other. Make sure students can see your teaching content.

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Using the Zoom Panel

Make an unscheduled Zoom connection (not for scheduled classes!)

Scheduled classes and events connect automatically. Only make your own Zoom connection if you’re holding an unscheduled videoconferencing event.

1. Tap Meet Now on the Zoom control panel menu. 
2. Choose connections. The connections with green labels are available.
   
   • After you start the meeting, you can invite other people with the Invite Participants button.
3. Tap the Meet Now button.

Join another Zoom meeting

Scheduled classes and events connect automatically. Only join another Zoom meeting if you’re trying to connect to an unscheduled event.

1. Tap Join on the Zoom control panel menu.
   2. Enter the Zoom Meeting ID.
   3. Tap the Join button.

Invite participants

On the Zoom control panel, tap Invite. Invite participants from the contact list or by email, phone or another Connected Classroom.

Manage participants

1. Tap Manage Participants on the Zoom control panel. The Participants screen will pop up.
2. Tap a participant and, at the bottom of the screen, choose to mute or unmute them. Click More to: 
   
   • Make them the Host
   • Make them the Co-Host
   • Allow them to record
   • Assign them to type Closed Caption
   • Rename their screen name
   • Put them on hold
3. Tap a participant’s camera or microphone to start and stop their video and audio feeds.
4. Tap More… and then tap Lock Meeting to prevent anyone else from joining a public meeting.
   
   • All scheduled Connected Classroom sessions are private by default.  

Stop the Connected Classroom camera

To stop the camera in the Connected Classroom, tap Stop Video on the Zoom control panel.

Record the meeting 

Scheduled lecture captures automatically record! If you scheduled lecture capture, you don't need to record yourself. 

• Scheduled recordings will appear in both My Media and Media Gallery in your course site.
• Unscheduled recordings will appear in My Media. You can add the recording to any Canvas site's Media Gallery. See: Video Content Management - How to Use My Media and Media Gallery (for Instructors). 

To record an unscheduled meeting, on the Zoom control panel:

1. Note the Meeting ID and meeting time to help you identity the recording. 
2. On the Zoom control panel, tap the Start Recording icon. The meeting will be recorded to the cloud.
3. If you want to stop recording before you leave the meeting, tap Stop Recording. 

Access recordings

Wait between two hours and one day. Then check My Media in Canvas for the recording.

If it doesn’t appear, request it be sent to you by following the steps below:

1. Go to the 4Help Portal and log in. 
2. Click Get Help and provide the:
   
   • Connected Classroom room number
   • Meeting ID
   • Meeting start time

Toggle camera view

Tap the Gallery View icon (it may also say Speaker View or Change View) to switch between showing everyone’s camera feed and showing just the camera feed for who’s talking.

End the meeting

The Zoom meetings in Connected Classrooms will automatically end five minutes after scheduled class time ends.

1. If you want to leave the meeting early, tap Leave on the Zoom control panel. 
2. Click End Meeting for All to end the meeting for everyone or click Leave Meeting to leave the meeting yourself. 

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Teaching in a Connected Classroom

Log in to the Crestron

Logging in to the Crestron Videos by TLOS: Professional Development Network

 

Share content from your device

Share from a personal computer

Follow the steps below or watch the instructional video. For the video, go to Connected Classrooms Services and under Classroom Overview and Help, click Setting up your own Laptop.

1. On the podium, find the HDMI cable labeled BYOD and plug it into your computer.
2. Change the content feed to your device. 
   
   • In rooms with Crestrons, tap Laptop or iPad HDMI under the list of HDMI Sharing sources on the Crestron. 
     
     
     
     
   • In rooms with switches, press the BYOD button and make sure the green light next to the button turns on.
3. Your device’s screen will be shared with all participants. If your device’s screen doesn’t appear, check your device’s display settings:
   
   • In Windows, press Win+P and click to duplicate displays.
   • In Mac OS, press Command+F1 to mirror displays.
4. Open your content:
   
   • Open a PowerPoint presentation or other instructional content on your device.
   • If you’re playing a video, make sure your device is set to output audio to HDMI and that playback volume is loud enough for remote participants to hear. The video might appear choppy to offsite participants due to frame rate, compatibility, and connectivity issues. Work around that problem by sharing the video URL or by posting it the Canvas Media Gallery.

To test content and video sharing in a Connected Classroom, call 540-231-5149 and schedule an appointment.

Connecting to HDMI Videos by TLOS: Professional Development Network

 

Share from a mobile device

Most mobile devices don’t have HDMI outputs, so you’ll need to install the Zoom app on the device. 

1. Install the Zoom Mobile App on the device. See Log into the Zoom mobile app in Zoom on Personal Computers and Mobile Devices. 
2. Go to join.zoom.us.
3. Enter the Meeting ID from the top of the Zoom Control Panel, and Join the meeting. 
4. Change the HDMI input to No Source on the Crestron.
   
   
   
   
5. From your device, share the content to the Zoom meeting. 

Share Content from the Classroom PC

Follow the steps below or watch the instructional video. For the video, go to Connected Classrooms Services and under Classroom Overview and Help, click Using the Classroom Computer.

1. On the Classroom PC, open your content from email, a USB drive, or Canvas. 
   
   • Files saved on the Classroom PC are removed nightly, unless they're in the Save Files Here folder. Then they're saved for two weeks. 
2. Set content sharing to the Classroom PC by: 
   
   • In a room with a Crestron, under HDMI Sharing and then tap Built-in PC.
     
     
     
     
   • In a room with a switch, press the button under CLASS PC and make sure the green light turns on.
     
     
3. Confirm the Classroom PC is sharing to the Confidence Monitor.
   
   1. On the keyboard, press Windows + P to bring up the different window displays. Set it so the desktop extends to the Confidence Monitor (not Duplicate). 
      
      
      
      
   2. Touch or click back on the main screen outside of the “arrange displays” window to close that window.
4. On the Zoom control panel, tap Share Content or Camera and select start HDMI sharing.  (This automatically starts sharing.)
   
   
   
   

Using the PC Videos by TLOS: Professional Development Network

 

Host the class remotely from your device

These instructions are specific to teaching online because of COVID-19 closures. Instructors are typically expected to teach courses as listed by the registrar. 

Learn your host key:

1. Go to virginiatech.zoom.us.
   2. Click Profile on the left. 
   3. Scroll down to Host Key and click Show on the right side to reveal the 6-digit code.

Join the meeting from your device and claim host:

1. Join the meeting the same way you'd join a regular Zoom meeting from a your Virginia Tech Zoom account from your browser, the Zoom Client, or Mobile App using the Meeting ID. 
2. Click on the participant tab at the bottom of the screen.
   3. In the Zoom Meeting, there should be a claim host button at the bottom. Click on that button and type in your host key to claim host.

Use a Virtual Smartboard

The Classroom PC has a touch-enabled monitor. It's easier to use than a Smartboard, and you don't need to turn your back to students. 

1. On the Classroom PC, open a blank PowerPoint slide.
2. Click Slide Show, and then click Presenter View.
3. Press Alt + F5 as a shortcut to begin the slideshow from the beginning.
4. Click the pen icon once the Presenter View is on.
   
   
   
   
5. Click Pen in the options under the pen icon.
   
   
   
   
6. Use a stylus or your finger to draw on the PowerPoint slide. The line won’t appear until you’re done drawing. 
   
   
   
   
7. Press Esc to go back to Edit view.

Show a student who’s speaking

Show a student in your Connected Classroom

Some Connected Classrooms are equipped with motorized cameras that the instructor can aim at students.

1. On the Crestron under Camera Controls, tap Student Camera. 
   
   
   
   
2. There are two instructor and student cameras in each room. On the Zoom control panel, tap Switch Camera and choose which camera feed to share. 
   
   • If you don’t see a camera, your Connected Classroom doesn't have one yet. 
3. Aim the camera. Tap Camera Control. On the Camera Control pop-up, tap the arrows.
   
   

Show a student in a different Connected Classroom

To show a student in a different Connected Classroom, you will need to control the cameras in that remote classroom.

1. Tap Manage Participants on the Zoom control panel. The Participants screen will pop up.
2. Tap the classroom whose camera you want to control. A menu will appear for the classroom.
3. Tap Request Camera Control.
   
   
   
   
4. Tap Now on the permission pop-up.
5. Tap the camera-aiming arrows on the Zoom control panel. Tap Switch Camera to switch between cameras in that room. 
6. Press Give Up Controls when you're done. 
   
   

Show a student from their own device

Zoom automatically highlights the speaker in Gallery View or shows the speaker’s camera feed in Speaker View. 

To toggle between views, on the Zoom control panel, tap Gallery View/Speaker View.

Show a website

Minimize or close other content you’re sharing from the computer. Open a web browser and go to the site you want to share. Students will be able to see the browser while you work.

Use the Document Camera

Follow the steps below or watch the instructional video. For the video, go to Connected Classrooms Services and under Classroom Overview and Help, click The Document Camera.

1. Turn on the document camera.
2. Change the Zoom content feed to the document camera.  
   
   • For rooms with a Crestron, you would set the Confidence Monitor to share and then press Doc Sharing on the Crestron.
     
     
     
     
   • For rooms with a switch box, press the button under DOC CAM. The green light next to the switch will turn on.
3. Put your teaching materials under the document camera and check the confidence monitor. Make sure video from the document camera is reaching offsite participants.

 

Using the Document Camera Videos by TLOS: Professional Development Network

Use Chat, Polls, and Breakout Rooms

Use Chat feature

We recommend you use Google Chat or Canvas Chat instead of Zoom chat, because chat isn't accessible from the Zoom control panel, through the Classroom PC, or through a device plugged into the podium's HDMI cable. To use Zoom chat, you'd have to join the Zoom meeting from your own device, change host to that device, and manage the chat from there (see Use Poll and Breakout Room feature below). 

Use Poll and Breakout Room feature

Zoom Polls and Breakout Rooms aren’t accessible from the Zoom control panel, through the Classroom PC, or through a device plugged into the podium's HDMI cable. To use them in Connected Classrooms, you must connect to the Zoom meeting from your own device. 

1. Learn how to manage these tools on your device. See: Video Conferencing - How to Hold Zoom Conferences on a PC or Mobile Device.
2. Disconnect your device if it is connected to the BYOD HDMI cable. 
3. On your device's browser, go to virginiatech.zoom.us and enter the Meeting ID from the top of the Zoom control panel. Join the Zoom meeting.
4. Make your device host. On the Zoom control panel, tap Manage Participants. Then tap the participant for your device. On the popup list, tap Make host. 
   
   
5. Share content and run Chat, Polls, and Breakout Rooms from your device.
   
   
   
   
6. Make sure your content appears on the Confidence Monitor.

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Shutting Down the Connected Classroom

Zoom meeting connections and scheduled lecture capture stop automatically five minutes after the scheduled end of class.

Shut down classroom equipment

1. To end the connection early, on the Zoom control panel, tap Leave and then End Meeting for All.
2. If you brought your own device, don’t forget to unplug it from the HDMI cable and take it with you.

ONLY in rooms with Crestrons:

1. On the Crestron, tap Return to Classroom Mode. This will automatically disconnect what you used to share content.
2. On the Crestron, turn off devices. Tap the Off buttons beneath each one.
3. Tap Exit and then Yes Shutdown System.

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Getting Help with Connected Classrooms

Learn how to use the room

Attend an orientation workshop

1. Go to the Professional Development Network enrollment site.
2. Log in with your PID.
3. Sign up for a Connected Classroom orientation workshop.

Schedule a test session

Call 540-231-2229.

Get credentialed

Those teaching distance learning courses must comply with VT Distance Learning Policy 6364. The Instructional Design (ID) group in TLOS offers credentialing for Connected Classroom Instruction.

For more information and/or to sign up, email Daron Williams at daron.williams@vt.edu.

Get help preparing for class

For help designing and preparing to teach in Connected Classrooms, email  Daron Williams at daron.williams@vt.edu.

Get help during class

Tap the red Help button on the podium. A technician will arrive within five minutes.

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