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Is Your Zoom Up-to-Date?

An update to Zoom was released on November 16, 2020 version. Upgrade (here’s HOW to upgrade) to version 5.4.3(58887.1115) when you can. Why?

Changes to existing features

  • Non-video meeting interface will appear the same as a video meeting with video off 
    Meetings scheduled with video off will now just show profile pictures or names, rather than the plain screen with meeting info and options.

New and enhanced features

  • Meeting/webinar features
    • Share multiple programs at once 
      Users can select multiple desktop programs at once for sharing, instead of sharing their entire desktop. Other programs and unoccupied areas in the desktop will not be visible to the viewer. The sharer will always know which applications they are sharing by an extensible green border. Only the user employing this feature will need to be on version 5.4.3, viewers can be connected with older versions.
  • Meeting features
    • Enhanced in-meeting user abuse reporting 
      Simplified process for meeting hosts and attendees to report abuse to Zoom.
    • Suspend participant activity 
      New option in the Security panel to immediately suspend all participant activities, which will mute all video and audio, stop screen sharing, end all breakout rooms, and pause recording.
  • Chat features
    • Pin chat messages 
      Users can pin a message in a channel, which is displayed at the top of the channel. Pins can be removed, replaced, or hidden. A log of pinned messages is accessible in the channel options panel.

Questions? Need help? No problem! Contact the ITS Information Desk at 540.458.4357 (HELP) or email help@wlu.edu.

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Images in Canvas aren’t appearing in Safari!?!??

 

Sadly, there is an on-going issue with Safari 13.1 and later versions with displaying images and downloading files. Canvas engineers are currently working on a solution for this issue.

Until Canvas releases a fix, you may avoid errors by disabling cross-site tracking prevention in Safari when using Canvas:

On Mac:

  1. Open Safari.
  2. Go to the Safari menu and select “Preferences…”
  3. Click on Privacy.
  4. Uncheck “Prevent cross-site tracking”:

    Prevent cross-site tracking in Safari on a Mac

On iOS:

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Scroll down the list of headings on the left and choose Safari.
  3. Uncheck “Prevent Cross-Site Tracking” (under Privacy & Security).

If disabling cross-site tracking doesn’t resolve the issue, please try the latest version of Chrome or Firefox. (Stinks, we know.)

Need assistance with Safari or Canvas? Contact the ITS Information Desk at 540.458.4357 (HELP) or email help@wlu.edu. 

 

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If there’s one tweet you need to read, read THIS one!

Thematically, it sounds as if instructors are embracing:

  • Zoom office hours in place of — or in addition to — face-to-face office hours
  • greater flexibility (soft deadlines/due dates, choices/alternatives in projects)
  • collaborative annotating of readings (Perusall, hypothes.is) 
  • open book and open note quizzes and tests OR shifting from tests to assignments/projects
  • scheduling “break days” into the syllabus
  • allowing themselves to be “real” (allowing pets to show up on camera)
  • actively checking in on how students are doing physically/emotionally/mentally 

This thread is pure gold. Many thanks to Professor Dennie for asking this great question!

BONUS: W&L Peeps You Should be Following on Twitter (If we’ve missed someone, please let us know!)

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Watch the final Pedagogy and (perhaps you have) Pizza workshop of 2020!

[must log in with W&L credentials]

Many, many, many thanks to the wonderful W&L students Julia H., Troy L, Natasha G., Nicky D., and Emma W. who were willing to share their experiences and opinions. We are all deeply grateful for your willingness to tell us honestly how your classes have gone. 

To all W&L students, please know that faculty and staff SEE you and we HEAR you. We CARE about you as people, not just students, and we are HERE for you. We WILL get through this together. ❤️ 

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130 IDEAS FOR CHECK-IN QUESTIONS DURING REMOTE LEARNING

Taking time to connect with each student not only helps maintain relationships but also allows us an opportunity to gather important data to inform our assessment. It gives US feedback on the effectiveness of what we are doing. In a bricks and mortar environment, this would be equivalent to informal checkins through the day or the kind of personalised conversations we have when we confer with students individually and in small groups. 

By scheduling regular check-ins with our students, we gather data that can inform plans for ‘where to next’ for their learning.  

Check out this great resource  (.PDF) compiled from the audience of “Inquiry by the Fire” with Kimberly Mitchell, Trevor Mackenzie and Kath Murdoch.

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Still time to register for Tuesday’s Pedagogy and (perhaps you have) Pizza!

Pedagogy and perhaps you have) Pizza

Join Dr. Chanelle Wilson, Assistant Professor of Education and Director of Africana Studies, at Bryn Mawr College, as she facilitates a journey toward deconstructing colonization and racism in the classroom via Zoom next Tuesday, October 13 at 12:30 PM EST.

The session series will provide background information about the intersections of colonization and race, specifically in the context of classrooms and social interactions, at small liberal arts institutions. We will further our exploration with the opportunity to engage in subsequent interactive small group sessions to deepen engagement, skill exploration, and strategy building. The follow-up sessions will focus on locating ourselves in oppressive structures with the analysis of current syllabi and classroom practices and working collaboratively to implement principles and practices of decolonization and anti-racism to disrupt and dismantle institutionalized systems.

Participants will leave this series with products ready to implement, immediately, or at minimum, in Spring 2020.

There is work to be done, and you are invited into the movement.

Sign up at go.wlu.edu/pedagogy.

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The “Read Aloud” feature in Word: a game changer for proofreading!

Did you know that Microsoft Word can read aloud the text of documents to you? Aye! This can be super helpful if you’re tired of reading the screen or are proofreading from another document.

Using a desktop version of Word, position your cursor where you want the reading aloud to begin and click on Review > Read Aloud button. Watch below!

Click the Read Aloud button a second time and it stops. Click the button again to continue from that point on.

Pretty sweet, right?

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NEW! All W&L Zoom Pro accounts can host meetings with up to 300 participants total!

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That’s right, folks, if you need to host a meeting for up to 300 participants total, now you can! All W&L faculty, staff, and students with a Zoom Pro license can use Zoom to meet and collaborate using video, voice, and screen sharing across campus or around the world with up to 300 participants — no need for the large meeting or webinar license! (But if you DO need the large meeting or webinar license, contact help@wlu.edu or call 540.458.4357 (HELP) to make your request.)

Questions about Zoom?  You know what to do: contact the ITS Information Desk at 540.458.4357 (HELP) or email help@wlu.edu.

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What?!? You missed it? Nooooooo!

Ugh, if you missed out on the first Pedagogy and (perhaps you have) Pizza lunch time session of the Fall 2020 term, we’re so sorry: it was a terrific (virtual) gathering.

In fact, Paul Hanstedt even went so far to tweet:

And we can’t disagree!

If you want to hear about activities that W&L professors have done to engage students, virtually and in-person, then you’ll want to watch this: 

[must login with W&L credentials – choose SSO Login]

After you smack yourself for missing this workshop, be sure to sign up for upcoming Pedagogy and (perhaps you have) Pizza sessions at go.wlu.edu/pedagogy.

Have ideas for future Pedagogy and (perhaps you have) Pizza sessions? Email Julie Knudson at jmknudson@wlu.edu.