Students

Two types of students are involved with Telemedia Services daily -- student producers and students enrolled in distance education courses. The pages under the "Students" heading deal mainly with the responsibilities of student producers. However, they offer a look at how the teleclassrooms operate that is useful to anyone attending a distance education class.

Enrolled students should get to know the teleclassrooms and their student producer. Your student producer can help you with questions you may have about the media choices for class presentations and points of contact for administrative questions. For more information on how to enroll or what classes are available, please visit the Distance Education and Independent Study page.

Click below to take a virtual tour of the teleclassrooms

TELEMEDIA SERVICES COMMUNICATIONS

Place a blue Control Form on your instructor's desk before class. After class, put the completed form with any handouts in the box for Independent Study in the dub room. Check the IN BOX in the control room before class to see if there is anything for your instructor.

Check the white board in the control room for messages.

Use your Groupwise email account to check for messages, and to send them to others. Keeping abreast of the daily and weekly schedule is all part of a producer's responsibilities. Schedules can change rapidly, especially at the beginning of the semester.  Check the daily schedule on the printout in the Control Room and also on the calendar in Groupwise.

Names, producer schedules, and telephone lists are posted in the Master Control Room and Dub Room to supply student producers with the information they need to do their job. Keep these up to date.  Phone numbers change, as do class and personnel work schedules.

Talk to other, more senior producers, if you have a question about any of the procedures in the teleclassrooms.  They will be able to answer your questions or refer you to John Baldwin or Ric Lichtwardt for clarification. 

INITIAL MEETING WITH INSTRUCTOR

1 - Introduce yourself.  Instructors have many things on their minds when they are starting a new class and may not seek you out.

2 - Ask what media will be used over the course of the semester and specifically during the first class. If they indicate they plan to use the slide projector in the future, let them know you need advance notice, at least an hour. Explain that they must position materials under the overhead and that you can only zoom in or out.

3 - Explain the monitors and routing. Many instructors fail to use their desk monitors. The overhead camera is on their right for them to check the framing of their materials. The program monitor is on their left. If there is no far-site, the monitors at the back of the room should be routed in this same way. Explain the rationale for the routing of the other monitors. The medium or media your instructor uses and whether or not it is an interactive class with a far-site will determine how you should route your monitors. (See Routing)

4 - Explain the wireless microphone. The mute position on the mic allows them to shut it off without creating a popping sound on tape and at the far-site.  Also, show your instructor the proper way to clip the mic on so that clothing, jewelry, etc does not interfere with picking up the instructor's voice.  The wire mesh part of the mic should be pointed up and clipped somewhere around the 2nd or 3rd button on a blouse or dress shirt (or on a tie).  Avoid clipping the mic to a collar (this typically causes the instructor's voice to fade when his/her head turns to the side opposite the mic side).

5 - Explain the student microphones. The reason that their touch button must be depressed to talk is to prevent echoes with a far-site. Let the instructor know that he or she needs to explain to the students how to use their microphones and to remind them to use their mics when they have a question or comment.

The red light on the mics must come on and remain lit in order for their voices to be heard on tape and at the far-site. It is natural for most students to forget to push the touch button or to not depress it with enough pressure as they begin talking and gesturing. If the class has a far-site, suggest to the instructor that he or she ask the far-site students to speak up whenever they think they've missed something.

6 - Explain the countdown clock. If the class is longer than two hours let instructor know that he or she needs to take a break in order for you to change tapes. Ask when they would like to take their break. Let them know the countdown clock is for them. If they want to break early or late it is OK.

7 - Explain the start-up procedure. Tell instructor that you must lay down a little less than a minute of credits at the beginning of the tape. Tell him or her that at the end of the credits you will fade them up from black and when they see themselves come up on the monitor it is time to begin. Let them know that their microphone will be turned down during the credits. Consequently, they will not be able to speak to the far-site students while the credits are rolling.