Pilot on slidecast recording has been finalized

Hi all,

Here is the the third and final update on our Grassroots project. As Danny Scholten has shown to you on April 14, we are more or less done with the technical goals. In the paragraph below we describe what we have achieved by slight adaptation of a provisional abstract soon to be submitted:

Slidecasting is emerging as a powerful tool to supplement traditional teaching methods and its merits are being investigated. Recording a slidecast from a presentation can be achieved several ways, but new complementary methods are always in demand. Within the Grassroots project, we developed a versatile method that uses a smartphone as both clicker and in-class recording device and that allows transfer of the crude recording data to MyMediasite for post-production editing. This powerful combination of two complementary software packages can be used independent of location and gives high-quality slide-audio synchronised slidecasts without the need for extensive technical equipment. The scripts written by us were used by 5 teachers for the slidecasting of ca. 40 hours of class time on varying chemistry subjects and levels and in rooms of varying sizes. The largest vulnerability proved the dependence of the method on properly working IT (notably WiFi). Teacher and student evaluations were positive and our pilot proved the ability to conveniently grow a valuable MyMediaSite collection of recorded lectures. While proven applicable to chemistry classes, we foresee that our protocols can be of use in other fields too, be it inside or outside a classroom.

As part of the next steps (not part of the Grassroots project), we will inspect how these slidecasts can best be used. It is not at all about making it easier for lazier students. Rather, we want to make the best use of these slidecasts for the larger active- and blended-learning contexts. Notably Danny will work on this in the upcoming year within the context of the ‘Video’s in VU onderwijs’ platform. Meanwhile, the Grassroots project has given us a powerful technical tool to record lectures.

Thanks

Danny, Erik and Maikel

Update on Presentain/MyMediasite combo

Hi all,

Last week I presented our e-learning work (including our Grassroots proposal) at the University of Utrecht, so I think this is a good time for an update.

Together with Danny and Erik, in the last half year we recorded about 28 hours of classes with a smartphone. Both BSc and MSc classes were involved. Generally speaking things went well although we had some frustrating setbacks which were all, in our humble opinion, attributable to sometimes suboptimal technical infrastructure (overloaded internet and/or old computers). Erik and the guys from Presentain made converter tools and we are now able to easily convert Presentain smartphone recordings to slidecasts that can be uploaded to MyMediaSite. This platform in turn allows editing of the slidecast by the teacher and, indeed, Danny and me have done some editing already.

Here are links to the presentation from last week at the UU, which I recorded using Presentain.

Initial basic Presentain slidecast (password is FAR):
http://presentain.com/showcases/54f020dc69702d230f000000

After converson to MyMediaSite using the tools developed in the Grassroots proposal:
http://av-media.vu.nl/VUMedia/Play/87bad411eb1740d2af65502a4a235f201d

Regards

Maikel, also on behalf of Danny and Erik

Grassroots educational grant for ‘smart’ chemistry lecture recording and editing

A novel approach that merges the recording of lectures by a smartphone in any class room with the editing of the recordings using contemporary VU-wide software has been supported with a VU Grassroots Award. Maikel Wijtmans (UD Medicinal Chemistry), Erik Boon (AVC, AudioVisueel Centrum) and Danny Scholten (Coördinator Onderwijsvernieuwing Scheikunde en Farmaceutische Wetenschappen) will develop the approach by joining two pieces of software: Presentain and MyMediaSite.
Lecture recording enables classes to be accessible online afterwards, considered an attractive feature for students in understanding class material. However, successful lecture recording depends on technical recording infrastructure (equipment and type of room) and editing software. The Grassroots award aims to address new aspects of this, thus allowing the more wide-spread use of lecture recordings.
One of the more basal forms of lecture recording is that of a ‘slidecast’, which combines the voice of a teacher with the Powerpoint slides in a synchronised fashion. The software Presentain involves the use of a smartphone as both slide clicker and recording device for a Powerpoint presentation, resulting in fast production of an online slidecast (slides with synchronized audio) which is however non-editable. Concurrently, in 2014 the VU started rolling out MyMediaSite (from the company SonicFoundry) as a post-recording interface for teachers to edit lecture recordings produced with the AVC equipment present in larger lecture rooms.
The Grassroots work will bring Wijtmans, Boon, Scholten and key Presentain employees together in an effort to combine the strengths of both software packages. It aims to explore the generic recording of lectures in VU (class)rooms of any size using Presentain and the subsequent customisation of the slidecasts with MyMediasite for a variety of eductional purposes. Besides thus providing (chemistry) teachers with a useful approach to help students understanding class material, the grant also aligns seamlessly with the innovations that are being developed in the Department of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences and as such can serve as a blueprint for expansion to other scenarios.