Using

   Telecommunications

   For Instruction

 

 

 

CONTENTS:

 

I.       OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTATONS........................... Pages 1-8

 

II.      WHAT IS IT AND WHY YOU USE IT......................... Pages 9-13

 

III.    HOW YOU USE IT........................................................... Pages 15

 

A.      Equipment Identification and Placement............ Pages 16-21

B.      Equipment Operation.......................................... Pages 22-25

C.      Fax Numbers............................................................. Page 26

D.      Guidelines............................................................ Pages 27-28

 

 

IV.     OPERATION / TURNING ON THE NETWORK..... Pages 29-30

 

V.      TROUBLESHOOTING .............................................. Pages 31-32

 

VI.     USER TIPS................................................................... Pages 33-36

 

 

  Project Interact

Interactive Distance Learning Training Objectives

 

 

 

 

To learn and understand the technology known as Interactive Distance Learning...

 

 

To learn the status of Interactive Distance Learning in the state of Kansas...

 

 

To identify the equipment needed in an IDL classroom...

 

 

To operate and manipulate the equipment in an IDL classroom...

 

 

To be able to successfully bridge the gap of distance between sites over an IDL network...

 

Self Evaluation & the "Other Person"

Evaluation

 

 

 

Evaluation is the cornerstone of building good presentations. In fact, evaluation is vital to every facet of our lives. We learn by doing, but the key to success is learning to do it better. Without evaluation we may never recognize the need for improvement. Evaluation is simply an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of an individual's performance. It is a positive, constructive learning tool.

 

 

Do's and Don’ts of Evaluation:

 

 

DO's           —Be truthful, but tactful (constructive criticism)

                   —Appraise growth in relation to potential

                   —Note improvement over past performances

                   —Be specific

                   —Be positive

      —Always recommend something; if you find no weaknesses, point out why the performance was so good

 

 

 

DON'Ts     —Apologize for your inadequacies as an evaluator

                   —Say "give the speech over" in evaluation

                   —Repeat what's already been said

                   —Repeat yourself ("as I said...")

                   —Praise a poor performance

                   —Generalize ("everything was good")

                   —Say you could find nothing to evaluate

 

 

 

 

Three absolutes: Be concerned, be considerate, be constructive.

In evaluating yourself or someone else, there are four main areas to consider:

 

 

Organization            Was the speaker prepared; was the material well organized; was it appropriate — did it do what was promised in the introduction.

 

 

Presentation             Did speaker adhere to allotted time; was the message clearly spoken; was enunciation, grammar, etc. effective; was good eye contact maintained; were gestures effective; was overall appearance good, did posture include total countenance; were techniques of audience inclusion adhered to (small and large group activities), open-ended questions for discussion, demonstrations, summarizations or "theatrics," eye contact with camera and satellite studios.

 

Audience

Reaction                   Did speaker grab and keep the audience attention, interest, did the audience continue to be alert to what the speaker was saying, were there signs of audience participation — nod of agreement, smile of recognition, look of appreciation; was the audience supportive or were there signs of disagreement.

 

Overall

Effectiveness            Did speaker achieve what he or she set out to — entertain, inform, persuade, etc,; as you see it, what were speaker's strongest assets; information, presentation, audience control; in your opinion, what might be done to improve the quality of the presentation.

 

 

Adapted from material furnished by CSPD Project Coordinator,

Kansas State Board of Education and Specialist

Joan Miller, Kansas State Board of Education

IDL Success

 

 

Depends Upon Your Students

 

 

 

Let them know that:

 

 

1.    You depend upon them to inform you when the system needs adjustment.

            a. If they can't hear well they need to let you know immediately.

            b. Visual problems must be reported immediately.

2.    You trust them to make minor adjustments.

            a. Have them use the overhead camera to show you their work.

            b. Have them adjust mute controls, camera focus, etc.

            c. Have them operate the FAX machine.

(note: be careful not to insert stapled pages or fax paper into the machine)

 

  Performance Test Checklist

 

 

Verbal Test

______1.    If any of the remote site classrooms could not hear you loudly enough, what should you do?  (pg. 30)

______2.    If you could not hear one of the remote site classrooms loud enough, what should you do?  (pg. 30)

______3.    Describe the steps to playing the VCR.  (pg. 24)

______4.    Describe the steps to record your classroom on the VCR. (pg. 24)

______5.    Describe the steps to record a remote site classroom.   (pg. 24)

______6.    Describe how the incoming audio is heard in your classroom.  (pg. 30)

______7.    Describe how you would turn up the audio from classrooms A, B, C.  (pg. 18 & 30)

______8.    Describe what you would do if you are not getting a signal from a remote site.  (pg. 23-24)

  Performance Test Checklist

 

 

 

continued

 

Demonstrative Test

______1.    Turn on the system. (pgs. 32-33)

______2.    Show the classroom. (pg. 19)

______3.    Focus in on one person in the classroom. (pg. 21)

______4.    Show a paper on the graphics camera. Zoom in on one line of the paper.  (pg. 21)

______5.    Locate Echo Canceller and make sure it is turned on (pgs. 16 & 18)

______6.    Show yourself and make the shot wider.  (pg. 21)

______7.    Turn off the system. (pgs. 32-33)

______8.    Send a FAX. (pg 29)

______9.    What would you do if you are not getting a signal from a remote site to which you are connected.   (pgs. 23-24)

 

IDL Presenter Evaluation

 

1.     Presenter's Name_______________________

 

2.     Use of Technology                                                               Needs

3.                                                  Excellent              OK              Work              N/A

 

1. Camera positioning                                 5                4                3                2                1                N

 

2. Camera switching                                   5                4                3                2                1                N

 

3. Sound level(s)                                         5                4                3                2                1                N

 

4. Use of visual aids/AV materials               5                4                3                2                1                N

 

5. Eye contact with participants                   5                4                3                2                1                N

      (home/remote)

 

6. Attention to remote site(s)                       5                4                3                2                1                N

 

7. Freedom of movement                            5                4                3                2                1                N

 

8. Response to technical problems              5                4                3                2                1                N

 

9. Apparent comfort level                           5                4                3                2                1                N

 

10. Balance of home & remote site             5                4                3                2                1                N

      interaction

 

11. Active involvement of                            5                4                3                2                1                N

      participants

 

12. Personalized interaction with                 5                4                3                2                1                N

      participants

 

13. Encouragement of site to                       5                4                3                2                1                N

      site interaction

 

14. Rate the presenter's overall                   5                4                3                2                1                N

      effectiveness

Please write additional comments:___________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________


Evaluation Criteria

 

This evaluation instrument is intended to help you and your colleagues analyze and provide feedback to one another on your use of the IDL system. It focuses exclusively on your adaptation to and use of the medium; it does not address presentation design or style except in the sense of adaptation to IDL.

 

WHAT THE ITEMS MEAN:

 

1. Camera positioning

Are the cameras initially positioned so that the presenter and the participants (and other relevant areas, such as the graphics board) can clearly be seen?

2. Camera switching

Does the presenter switch from camera to camera as often as seems necessary? For example, is the camera on the presenter when he/she is speaking and on the participants when they speak?

3. Sound levels:

Can both presenter and participants be heard? Is there unnecessary noise? Does the presenter remember to check sound levels between sites?

4. Use of visual aids:

Is the presentation visually interesting? When appropriate, does the presenter incorporate charts, graphs, pictures, etc.?

5. Eye contact with participants:

As one does in a "normal" presentation, does the presenter actually look at his/her audience?

6. Attention to remote sites:

Does the presenter appear to pay attention—equal attention—to the participants in the remote sites? Are only the participants in the home site acknowledged?

7. Freedom of movement

Does the presenter move about the room as appropriate, or does he/she remain only in one spot?

8. Response to technical problems:

If technical problems (e.g. sound) occur, does the presenter take appropriate action — try to adjust, etc.?

9. Apparent comfort level

How well does the presenter appear to have adapted to the interactive situation? What could be done to make it more like a "normal" presentation situation?

10. Balance of remote/hone site interaction:

Are questions, comments and personal interactions with participants fairly well balanced among the groups?

11. Active involvement of participants:

Does the presenter make a real effort to ensure that all participants have an opportunity to be involved in the workshop/presentation? Does the presenter involve participants in a timely and appropriate fashion?

12. Personalized interaction with participants:

Does the presenter address participants by name, or does he/she refer to them with the name of the site?

13. Encouragement of site to site interaction:

Does the presenter encourage participants to interact with each other, particularly between home and remote sites?

  What It Is

 

 

 

Interactive Distance Learning (IDL) is a telecommunications system which permits students and teachers to see, hear, and communicate with one another simultaneously.

 

 

p What is IDL?

 

IDL allows for a simultaneous exchange of voice (audio signals), picture (video signals), and data transmissions.

 

Each site in an IDL system resembles a little television studio, with cameras, microphones, monitors and speakers. The video cameras and monitors send and receive to/from other sites in each of the IDL classrooms. (Pg.15)