If you have comments or thoughts on this topic , please send them to my email address below.
Houghton@wcuvax1.wcu.edu
Note at this level that the emphasis is on having the teacher manage as little technology as possible once the class has started. Basically, the instructor goes through checkoffs before and after the students have left, sets the site selection before the class begins, and confirms that Cameraman is functioning and left to autopilot once the class begins. This is "Look Ma, no hands flying."
Find the Master power switch for the site and turn it on.
Check video and audio quality. There will be a faciliator and each site if problems.
Public schools must have students and parents sign.
We may want to address this with University students.
Charger
(only one site now)
Change batteries in Cameraman at the beginning of every class, but this may only be practical at a couple of sites.
Talk into the mike/sensor for Cameraman to see if batteries are OK or dead. If batteries are dead, LED lights will come on and stay on.
Remember to turn battery units off before you leave the room.
There is not yet have a checklist in the room of things to turn on and off.
Check battery levels.
Remember to turn battery units off before you leave the room.
I question the term Remotes as I don't think it communicates what these tools do.
Remotes set the choice of active windows, that is what sites will appear in which TV monitor.
Just set them to the necessary sites, and the sites are listed by number on the instructors desktop next to the remote switches.
It is an autotracking device, so that the camera finds the holder of the sensor where ever they are. Though conceptualized as a way to track the instructor, it could just as easily be given to a student or team of students and used to track their presentation sitting in the class.
You can set the accuracy of tracking. For closeup shots, you may need to set this tighter.
It has 3 switches
The one that says on should be up. You do not want mute on unless you want to cut sound. The 3rd switch says high and low for allowing greater distances from the monitor
You must turn it on.
There have been more problem with cameraman than anything else.
Note the Lavalier Keypad.
You can do presets, such as autolocation (up to 8).
At the H.S. level, the enrollment is to be limited to 25 students as a total for all sites.
See a handout.with 17 suggestions for site management.
There are 3 more handouts as well.
Have a potluck at end of the semester to bring everyone together to dicus the final exam.
Controlled manually under the counter. Begin each class by focusing on a student on the last row, then it will be in focus for closer shots.
The Elmo is a countertop camera that is generally used to point downward at flat material such as handwriting, printed material or small objects needing closeup work. It can also be thought of as a replacement for an overhead or chalk/white board.See the handout also.
You can show slides using the closeup lens.
Check the power to see if it is on, but it should be on when the site is powered up.
Set the white balance.
Move in tight and focus, then you can move out and stay in focus.
It has a closeup lens.
It can do negatives and positives.
See handout 1
See handout, Effective Visual Aids
Ask participants often about sound levels. This monitor sound controls the overall sound volume coming into the room.
If a site is not being heard or heard poorly- "You can't hear me?" tell them to turn this up.
There is a master knob. Make sure it is on.
The first three knobs are for the three remote sites that need to be set at 9 o-clock.
The VCR needs to be set at high noon on knob four.
There is a knob for each mike.
This is the sound out for the room.
Keep set at 2.5 to 3, not any louder.
The 8th mike has its own gate on its back.
Table Microphones
Mus be at least 6 inches away from the mike. Turn the mike if not hearing someone, but don't pick it up. You cannot be heard if you are positioned directly over the mike or to one side of it. The wire is delicate. They had a chair on the wire and it cut right thru it. $150 each. Let students know about these, that these will not work on any other systems such as their stereo systems or in recordng studios.
If you cover a mike with your hand or a piece of paper, then will probably not be heard. Putting paper on the mike is not good because amplication makes the paper very loud to all other sites.
If you want to have a portion of a video appear in the overall tape of your presentation, you must send it to a remote site and tell that site when to turn on the VCR and run the tape.
The University site and all other sites need computer network hookup. They are not available at this time.
To tell your sites to receive a fax, tell them to link my site on channel 3, that is set the remote so that TV monitor number three shows the instructor's site.
If you see a class on monitor 3, don't stay on it, so that you do not receive a fax.
Courier service will run every day to get confidential papers out of different sites.
You must tell the site to turn on the fax machine as they are not routinely left on.
You can use the fax machines to send in test results.
The VCR must be in LINE mode to record.
There is a "Secret compartment" where you must pull down on bottom plastic surface to see botom buttons.
If showing videotapes, to get legal, you must check with the source each time to see if they can be shown to multisite arrangements.
On the SHURE direction sheet there is reference to an auxiliary knob which is VCR is video out. It isjust above the master knob.
My thanks to Mrs. Pemble who provided my excellent and initial training in this area.