All of our classrooms are equipped with digital equipment and control panels at the podium or mounted on the wall.
Classroom Environment
What is the thinking behind the room arrangements? Can I change the arrangement if I don't like it?
Generally, the rooms are arranged for the best possible viewing angle. In the longer, narrower rooms, the screen will often be placed on the long wall, while in small, square rooms, the projection will be to the front of the room. If the room has easily moveable furniture, it can be rearranged to suit the instructor's and students' needs. However, please be respectful of the next class to use the room, and move the furniture back to its original position at the end of your class.
My class is too big for the room I'm assigned to. How can I change it?
Contact the Registrar's Office if your room is inadequate to your needs. They can help you find a more suitable classroom.
Why doesn't somebody fix the broken chairs and desks in my classroom?
Probably because they don't know about them! If you find broken furniture in your classroom, the best thing to do is to put in a work order to have it fixed. IT does not fix furniture.
The podium in my classroom isn't in a convenient place. Why can't I just move it where I need it to go?
Podia are full of all sorts of equipment, which is run by cables into the wall. Although most rooms have a little "give" on those cables, there's a very real chance that moving the podium will dislodge some of the connections, or worse, break them. There's also the chance that you'll inadvertently run over some of the cables that are under the podium and render some of the equipment inoperable. Please don't move them more than a foot in each direction.
There's not enough whiteboard space in my classroom because the projection screen or display covers up half of it. Why aren't there more large whiteboards in the classroom, and why do the projectors have to display to the middle of them?
Many boards have been added to the classrooms over the past five years, but unfortunately, with room capacities and lots of natural light in our spaces, there's a limited amount of space where whiteboards can be installed. Most classrooms are already outfitted with the maximum number of useable boards. The screen, or display, needs to be central in the room for the best viewing experience of the students who need to see it. When we could, we tried to make the screen off-center to allow for more writing space, but sometimes that option wasn't practical. But good news--if you teach in a room with an interactive flat panel display, you can use the display itself as a writing surface for your finger. Contact the IT Helpdesk for more information.
I want to come in to a clean whiteboard every morning. Why aren't the boards cleaned more often?
The boards are used not only by instructors, but also by students who study in the classrooms in the evening and don’t always clean up after themselves. Housekeeping usually cleans the boards first thing in the morning, so we rely on faculty members to clean up their own boards before moving on to the next class. Your administrative assistant has a supply of micro-fiber cloths and dry-erase markers if you run out. Please try to remember to bring markers with you when you go to class, as there is not much chance you'll find any in the room if you don't bring them yourself.
I'd like to have some input into how classrooms are configured. How do I do that?
Contact Tim Dusablon in the Classroom Services office (x2738). A classroom committee of faculty, IT staff and students meets regularly, and will be happy to accept your input and feedback as they plan future changes.
Projectors
How often are projectors replaced? What do you do with the old ones?
Projectors are on a rolling life cycle replacement of 5-7 years. Projection technology has a quick change cycle, with continual marked improvements in the brightness and clarity of the image. By replacing equipment on a regular basis, we can stay current with the technology and not be stuck with extra charges for repairing equipment whose parts are no longer supported. Old projectors are either recycled or donated to local schools and businesses.
What rooms have wireless projection?
For a list of current rooms with wireless projection, see our Tech-Enabled Classrooms poster. AirMedia is the digital device used at the College to provide wireless projection, and requires a quick client download to your laptop before use. For help with wireless projection, download How to Use Air Media or contact the IT Helpdesk at x2020.
Air Media Client for Windows
Air Media Client for OSX
Interactive Flat Panel Displays
For a list of current rooms with interactive flat panel displays, see our Tech-Enabled Classrooms poster.
Other than a brighter display, what does an interactive flat panel give me over regular projection?
Because instructors can interact with the displays, a big advantage is that you no longer have to be tied to the podium while you're teaching. Navigation is a big part of the effectiveness of these panels, and if you only use that one feature, you're still ahead of the game! Not enough whiteboard space in your room? Activate Smart software to write on the panel and save it to share with your class later. You have unlimited pages of "whiteboard" if you use the flat panel for your notes. Need to illustrate a point or focus in on a topic? The Smart features will help you engage your students in your teaching. Students also enjoy some "hands-on" work with the flat panels--let them interact with the boards if you have an exercise that will lend itself to that sort of engagement.
There's an interactive flat panel in my classroom. How do I find out more about how to use it effectively?
Contact our Classroom Team at 654-2020 for an individual tutorial.
Cameras
I've heard that I can automatically have my classes recorded if I'm in a room with an installed camera setup. How do I find out more about this?
See the Tegrity information in the "Academic Resources" section of this Knowledge Base. Tegrity is the college's lecture capture application.
Where can I find installed cameras and mics so I can record my classes with Tegrity?
For a list of current rooms with installed cameras and mics, see our Tech-Enabled Classrooms poster. Cameras will continue to be added to classrooms as budget allows.
There isn't an installed camera in my classroom, but I need to record my lectures. What are my options?
A limited number of "Tegrity Kits" are available from the Circ Hub in STE 221. Tegrity Kits contain a Logitech web camera, a microphone, and cables. Instructors can check out a kit for a day, a week or a semester. If you're planning to record in your office, this is also a good option, since the mics are much clearer than the laptop mics that you might use otherwise.
Why isn't there a document camera in every classroom?
While document cameras are essential for some users, they take up valuable podium space for others. The majority of our classrooms are multipurpose use, so we have limited the installation of document cameras to the rooms where they have been requested by the departments who use them frequently.
Classroom Support
What happens when I call the IT Helpline?
Classroom calls have priority over any other calls at the Helpdesk. Every phone at the Helpdesk has a special ringtone for classroom calls, and our students are trained to jump on those phone calls as quickly as possible. If, for some reason, the call isn't immediately answered, it is transferred to another area in the department for response.
How can I help the IT staff when I have to report a classroom issue?
Describe the issue as clearly and completely as possible, telling us what you were doing when the issue happened, how it affected your class, and what you were trying to accomplish. If you see an error message on your monitor, try to capture it, either in writing or by using the Snipping Tool on the PC computer. If the issue is a showstopper, make sure the technician knows; if the class can continue despite the issue, ask the technician to come back after the class rather than interrupting it.
Is it okay to rely on my knowledgeable students to fix the problem instead of wasting time calling the IT Helpline?
No. Please call us at x2020 if you have any technical issues. Your students may be able to fix your immediate problem, but they may also create a much bigger problem for those who teach after you. We put a lot of training time into our student assistants at the Helpdesk, who are on the front desk when you call the helpline. Your call also creates a ticket for the problem, and helps us track symptoms that are often indicative of larger issues in that particular classroom.
Why do I often get IT students answering my calls instead of a professional staff person?
Our students get lots of training on classroom troubleshooting, and are taught to be able to handle most classroom calls by themselves. The week before the Fall semester begins, our continuing student employees come back to campus and receive intensive training on all aspects of IT, including classrooms. In the early fall, new student employees shadow these trained students in order to learn the ropes. Because the classroom services office is within the Helpdesk area, new calls are often quickly triaged through that office before students come to the classroom to assist. They are trained to escalate the issue to the appropriate person, if it's something they cannot fix themselves.
I want to try a new technology that's installed in my classroom. Can I ask for an IT staff to come to class and help me get it right?
Absolutely! We're happy to come to your class as long as you can give us some advance notice (48 hours is perfect!). Depending on availability, the person who works with you will either be a lead student, an instructional technologist, or a classroom technician.
I teach in the evenings. How do I get help outside of the normal business hours?
The Helpdesk is open until 7:00 p.m. Monday-Thursdays. The best way to contact us outside of those hours is by email, to ithelp@smcvt.edu.