With exams coming up, iClicker may pose to be a beneficial study tool for your class. Saving and tracking your progress in class polls and quizzes, iClicker allows you to flag specific questions and create flashcards and practice tests.
For instructions and more information on how to use iClicker’s study tools in the iClicker Reef app, please click here to be redirected to their knowledge base document.
When you have finished a session using iClicker, select ‘Course History’ from the toolbar region above. This will bring you to a list showing your activities and attendance throughout your time in the course, and should look something like this:
Select the chosen session that you wish to review. From there it will bring you to a page showing all of the questions that appeared during that session.
Notice the flag at the top right of the question. By clicking (or tapping) the flag you can review the question later in ‘Study Tools.’ If you don’t select any flags, the ‘Study Tools’ tab will simply say: “You don’t have any questions yet.”
Within the ‘Study Tools’ tab, you can review questions in two ways: Flashcards, or Practice Test. Flashcards allow you to review every question you have flagged in that format. A Practice Test will take all of your graded questions and format it into a test. If it does not allow you to make a practice test it is likely you do not have any graded questions flagged. Finally, the ‘Manage Questions’ link will bring you to a page with all of your questions together. This can make it easy to remove questions that you have flagged without having to go back and find them in old sessions. This is done by selecting edit in the top right corner:
Select them individually, or as a whole by clicking (or tapping) ‘Select All.’
For more information on iClicker for students, please click here.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Information Services at [email protected] or (310) 506-7425.
There are instances in which a professor would prefer to disable the chat feature in Zoom meetings, whether that be to prevent notifications or to discourage potentially distracting engagements. To do so, please view the instructions below for this quick process.
1. Note that you can only change this setting after you have begun your class session. Once you start your Zoom session, click the chat icon on the bottom tool bar.
2. Then, click on the three dots to the right of the text box and select “No One.”
3. You may now exit out of the chat window, as the updates will automatically save once your selection is checked.
In case you are dropped from your Zoom meeting there are some back-up teaching procedures you should know–with the possibility of blackouts, brownouts, or sluggish internet, it’s good to have a backup plan.
Shut down and re-start your computer
The first action you should take if you are unable to join your meeting is to re-start your computer. Quit all applications and shut down your computer, wait one minute and turn it back on. Only open applications you will be screen sharing with your Zoom participants before launching your Zoom session.
Use a phone line
This next advice is only recommended for faculty use. To help students adhere to the attendance policy, they must attend the class via Zoom with their names properly represented on the chat and participant gallery as well as have their video on. With that in mind, please don’t share these phone numbers with your students.
When you create a Zoom session, it gives you the option to use a phone line. If your internet is out, you may use Zoom’s automatically generated phone line number to call and enter into the session to let your students know your status. You can follow the steps below anytime to keep a copy of the phone number on hand in case your internet goes out. If you did not turn this feature on, you can follow the steps below to turn on the telephone and computer audio feature.
Please note, the phone numbers are not published in Courses. Because of this, you can only find the phone number by logging into zoom.pepperdine.edu Then, find your course meeting session in the Meetings and click on the Copy Invitation button. This will show you all of the information relevant to your meeting, along with the phone lines for each time zone.
In this case, if a student experiences internet connection issues, it is recommended to instruct them to call their classmate and listen over the phone through their friend’s computer, as well as use speakerphone to talk through their friend’s mic.
Asynchronous: Recording a lecture in Zoom (with slides)
You also have the option to record your lecture, with PowerPoint slides and all, in Zoom. You can distribute this presentation-style recording to students to view asynchronously, in the case of a blackout or network issue. (See this article by Zoom to learn the tools you can use in this feature.)
1. First, to ensure that your Zoom account is updated to the latest version, navigate into your Zoom application and under your profile, find check for updates.
You may also click here to be redirected to a page that will show Zoom’s latest version, as well as provide links and instructions for download.
2. Next, begin your meeting and click on the Share Screen icon (green arrow).
3. Then, click Advanced on from the two options on the toggle at the top of the page. Select Slide as Virtual Background.
4. Click Share.
5. From here, you will be directed into your files where you can choose the PowerPoint you wish to present. You will then be superimposed over the slides (which will be your new background) and it will emulate teaching in front of slides in a class or lecture setting. Find the presentation you wish to use and click Open.
6. You should see yourself mirrored over your presentation via Screen Share.
7. Next, click the circular record button in your bottom toolbar to begin recording, and select record to the Cloud.
Again, see the Zoom article on sharing slides as a virtual background to learn the navigation, positioning your video, and more. For learning more about recording in Zoom, see this article.
For more information on Zoom for faculty, please click here. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Information Services at [email protected] or (310) 506-7425.
After a Zoom meeting has commenced, in most cases you may access a recording of the meeting via the Zoom Pro tool. Please follow the instructions below to view your recordings. NOTE: If you are hoping for a transcript of the recording, you may need to wait a little longer because sometimes Zoom’s transcription coding takes much longer than it takes to just make the video available.
Step 1: Navigate to your class on Courses, and click the Zoom Pro tab in the lefthand toolbar. Step 2: Click on the Cloud Recordings tab in the tabs listed on the top of the page. Step 3: Once the class recording has uploaded to the cloud, it will be available and listed in the Cloud Recordings tab. Click on the name of the course you wish to view.
Step 4: Select the play button on the left-hand option, which allows you to view the entire recorded session. The right-hand option is for audio only.
Step 5: If password protected, there will be a passcode section, and the eye icon will be crossed out.
Step 6: Note that if you click on the crossed out “eye” icon (seen above and labeled “1”) the passcode for that video will be revealed. With your cursor, select that passcode and copy it. Enter/paste the passcode for that video after selecting the play button, to be able to access the recording.
Faculty may utilize Zoom’s dual monitor display feature so the students’ video layout and screen share content can be placed on two separate monitors/screens. Specifically, gallery (grid view of all of your students) or speaker view (full screen view of the current speaker’s video) can be displayed on one monitor while the other monitor displays your slide presentation, documents or videos.
As a prerequisite to continuing on with the information provided in this article, please make sure that you have installed the Zoom desktop client and have dual monitors enabled on your system. For an instructional guide on establishing a dual monitor setup with your Mac computer, please click here. For an instructional guide on establishing a dual monitor setup with your Windows computer, please click here.
Enabling Dual Monitors in Zoom
1. As a trial, you may join or start a solo meeting through theZoom Pro tool in Courses, or through the Zoom desktop client on your computer.
2. To enable the dual monitors feature in Zoom, click your profile picture, and then click “Settings.”
3. Click the “General” tab, and under “Settings,” check the box that is labeled, “Use dual monitors.”
Testing Your Dual Monitor System
4. Once in the Zoom meeting interface, with the dual monitor setup already configured on both your computer and Zoom, you will see a Zoom window open on each monitor. Though it may be different based on your individual computer, typically, the meeting controls and your video will display on one monitor, while the other monitor will display students’ videos.
As a note, Zoom tends to default to full screen view. If you would like to exit the full screen view to access your desktop, simply press “ESC,” or escape, on your keyboard.
5. To share your screen with your desired presentation (slideshow, document, video, etc), open the display on your preferred monitor.
6. Then, press the green “Share Screen” button on the bottom center of your Zoom screen.
You will be redirected to a pop-up window where you may select whether to share Desktop 1 or Desktop 2, and you may select whichever monitor has your desired display open.
7. When sharing your screen, you will still be able to view your participant’s videos on the other monitor while selecting what specific window to share on the second monitor. Feel free to adjust your windows to your preferred layout.
Photo courtesy of SUPPORT.ZOOM.US
POWERPOINT SETTINGS TO ENABLE “GALLERY VIEW” AND “SPEAKER NOTES”
One useful approach to note is how to set up your PowerPoint presentation in a separate window. This prevents PowerPoint from taking over both of your monitors, so you may move your slideshow with your speaker notes to the monitor of your choice and keep gallery view on the second monitor.
1. To do this, open your PowerPoint presentation “Slideshow” menu.
2. Select “Setup slideshow.”
3. Then, “Browse by an individual (windows)”
4. Click “OK.”
5. Then you may either play “From Beginning” or “From Current Slide.”
You should now see your slideshow with your speaker notes on one monitor, and still have your Zoom gallery view available on the second monitor.
“Gallery View” Settings (setting up display to 49 participants)
If you would like to view more than 25 profiles on a screen, by modifying your Zoom settings, you will be able to display up to 49 participants at a time. This is provided that your computer has the capacity to display more than 25, however, which depends on your computer’s CPU.
First, navigate to the Zoom App.
Then, select your profile from the top right corner, and select settings.
Under the video tab (1), scroll down and check the box to enable “Display up to 49 participants per screen in gallery view” (2). (If it is gray and inaccessible, your computer does not support the 49 participant display.)
Now that you know the basics of Zoom and and the Zoom Pro Tool, we will dive into the specifics of what tools and settings Zoom has to offer once in the meeting session.
Please view the informational video below to learn more about how to efficiently use Zoom’s in-session features, which include the following:
This blog will walk you through creating personal Zoom Meetings. By creating your meetings personally (not through the Courses Zoom Pro link), recordings of your class will be completely private and unavailable to students unless you choose to send a link via email.
Create your meeting:
Instead of using Zoom Pro, you will need to schedule your meeting on the website, zoom.pepperdine.edu.
Sign in using your Wavenet username and password.
Next, select schedule a meeting and fill out the meeting information.
Under the time zone section, you may select make reoccurring meeting– this way you can use the same link for each meeting. This also means you only have to post one Zoom link for your students in Courses.
Under meeting options, select record the meeting automatically, and then select in the cloud.
Finally, save the meeting link.
Once you have saved your meeting, navigate down to the invite link section and copy the meeting link. Make sure you copy the URL itself and do not hit “copy invitation”. You will need the link on its own to paste into Courses later.
Publish meeting link for students:
Next, you will need to create a space to house your personalized links. First, navigate to your Courses homepage, then click into a course.
In the course that you would like to paste these meeting links, select Site Info from the lefthand toolbar.
Then select Manage Tools.
Scroll to the bottom of the list of tool. REMOVE Zoom Pro tool by unchecking the box, and ADD the Web Content tool by checking the box.
Select continue, which will bring you to a page where you can customize your Web Content link. This is where you can paste your Zoom meeting link you previously made on pepperdine.zoom.edu! Title the page Class Meeting Link and in the URL section, paste your link.
After selecting “continue” you will see a page confirming your choices. Ensure that the Zoom Pro tool has been removed and the Web Content tool has been added. Then, click Finish.
Finally, notify students that they should check the Web Content Tool to find meeting links before each class. By clicking on the new tool in your Course labeled “Class Meeting Link”, students will be immediately directed to your Zoom meeting. Your meetings will be recorded to your personal cloud only, and you are free to distribute those recordings as/if you see fit!
Re-Order Tools in Courses
To make the Course Meeting Link more obvious to your students, you may want to consider moving it to the top of the left navigation. Follow these steps to do so:
First, navigate back to your Site Info tool from the lefthand toolbar, and select Tool Order.
Then, simply click on the small lines icon at the far right of the Web Content tool, and holding your cursor down, drag the tool to the top of your list.
Click Save, and you will see your Course Meeting Link at the top of your toolbar.
Distributing your recordings to specified students only:
After your recording is complete and your video has been processed, you will receive an email with a link to watch the recording. You can forward this email to students who have been granted permission to watch the recording.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out directly to our Information Services support team at [email protected] or at extension x7425.
With the new school year around the corner and the recent notice of student organizations’ email addresses now being live, there are two main email tips student leaders should know.
As a student leader, you will likely want to auto-forward emails to the rest of your student organization’s leadership team using filters in gmail, as well as send emails from your student organization’s email address rather than your personal email address.
Below, please find two headlines that will hyperlink you to informational Google Docs with step-by-step instructions.
Welcome to iClicker for faculty! For an extensive tutorial on creating an account and utilizing the features iClicker has to offer our faculty, please see the video below.
This page will walk you through setting up an iClicker account, so that you may begin to create your courses.
In a web browser, navigate to iclicker.com and click Sign In in the top right corner.
2. Click Instructor.
3. You will be directed to iClicker Cloud, which is the platform for instructors and faculty. Click Sign Up underneath the Sign Up button to create your account.
4. You will be asked to begin creating your profile. NOTE: Make sure to type in Law School: Pepperdine University as your primary institution. The label “Pepperdine University” is not the version paid for by CSOL.
5. Continue to fill out the information and click the box agreement to iClicker’s policies. Then, click Create.
6. In the next page, make sure you have the option for Polls, Quizzes, and Attendance selected. You do not need to use all of those features, but if you select “Just to take attendance”, you will not be able to change your settings later.
7. Again, you will be prompted to select an institution. DELETE “Pepperdine University” and TYPE IN Law School: Pepperdine University.
8. Fill out the rest of your course information (optional) then click Create.
9. Congratulations, you now have a course! By clicking on the course name, you will be directed to the course itself.
Note that on the left-hand side of your course, you can find the class history where attendance and statistics will be held, assignments, and more.
IClicker Cloud Application
In order to start class and use the tools in IClicker, you must download the IClicker Cloud application. In order to download, navigate to your class menu in your browser, select the blue “Ready to Start Class” button in the top right corner of your screen and select to download the desktop app when prompted.
After downloading the desktop app, it should open to the menu shown below with a list of your classes and an option to create a new course. Hover over a course name to show the “Start Class” option. Additionally you can find the class join code from this screen to add students to your class.
Once you start class, IClicker Cloud will open as a toolbar that you can drag around your desktop and collapse by clicking on the blue cloud icon. IClicker is meant to run in the background as you present, giving you the ability to quiz students, take attendance of what students have checked into class, conduct polls, and give assignments.
How to Add a Student to Your Class
In order to add a student to an existing class, navigate to the settings tab in your class menu screen.
Next, find the “Join Code” link in the Course Details section. The link will redirect you to a pop up screen (note this may not automatically show up if you have pop ups blocked in your browser).
Class History
From the class history tab, you are able to see information about each class you have already completed. From here you can quickly see the attendance of each class, poll results, and quiz results. Clicking on each quiz, poll, or attendance will show more detailed information.
Assignments
Assignments in IClicker is a tool that allows you to post questions and get graded responses. Start by using the blue “Create” button in the top right of the assignments menu.
From here you can change the assignment name, the dates it is available to students in your class, and the amount of points given per question.
In order to add questions, take pdf slides or any pdf and upload it in the “Add Your Questions” section as shown below.
Uploading a pdf of multiple slides with questions on them will add those slides to your assignment. From there you can select the question type and the correct answer.
For added accessibility, you can use the “Edit Alt Text” link on each question to add text that will be read aloud.
After you have selected your question types and added the correct answers you can publish the assignment with the blue “Create Assignment” button in the bottom right.
After your students respond, you can select the assignment from the menu to see your questions, the responses and grades.
Attendance
Within the IClicker Cloud toolbar you can access a tool to see which students you have added to your class have checked in to be marked as present. IClicker will show you how many students are present or absent in this menu while you are running class, and will also record this information that you can find in the attendance tab of the IClicker site in your browser.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Information Services at [email protected] or (310) 506-7425.
For online teaching, it is important to give students a clear agenda and set clear expectations for the class. Without the visual and in-person cues and conversation one receives in a regular classroom setting, guidelines are crucial to help the class flow. Consider giving students a written plan or agenda for each class meeting, via email or screen sharing a document at the beginning of class.
Encourage student engagement by using online platforms such as zoom’s whiteboard attachment. In whiteboard, through sharing your screen, students can use annotation to mark up the text.
To break up lecture time and encourage student engagement, consider breaking students into discussion groups; you can use zoom’s breakout rooms feature for this.
Delivery Tips
Pre-set your meeting settings to mute participant’s microphones upon entry. This will allow students to enter class without ambient noise, and keep your class environment more controlled.
Take a second after larger sections of lecture material to check in with students for comprehension.
Speak as if you are truly face-to-face with a class, and ensure you are a proper distance from the microphone and camera.
Embrace the pauses at the end of content delivery, giving students time to process.
Additional Features
For a comprehensive blog about the different features zoom offers, and how to navigate its basic functions, see our Zoom For Faculty page. Note that by scrolling to the bottom of the post, you can find additional posts that target specific questions regarding zoom.
FOR QUESTIONS OR ANY OTHER FORM OF TECHNOLOGICAL ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR [email protected]. GOOD LUCK!
In your zoom settings, you can customize your zoom personal meeting ID (PMID) to a different number. If helpful, you may change it to your faculty phone number extension.
For more information on how to set your PMID to be used for office hours, see this article.
To begin, navigate to the zoom website and log in.
Click on the Profile tab on the left column. Then click on Edit for the Personal Meeting ID bar.
This will open a page where you can edit your PMID. Simply delete the numbers that have randomly been assigned, and enter the sequence you would like. We recommend that you use your 10-digit faculty phone number. Remember to save your changes.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Information Services at [email protected] or (310) 506-7425.
There have been numerous instances in which a faculty member is not able to properly access their Zoom account and receives an error notice, or gets redirected to Zoom.com.
While Zoom accounts are meant to be linked to an email designed as “[email protected],” for faculty who teach in the 2PEP platform and “[email protected]” for instructors who teach regular on-ground courses, these accounts are getting mixed up.
Evidently, random faculty accounts that have been mixed seem to have restrictions on their settings they otherwise would not have with their proper Pepperdine account. Pepperdine and 2U are currently collaborating to fix these Zoom accounts, and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
To avoid this issue: Please access 2U’s Zoom course sessions through the 2PEP platform. Use zoom.pepperdine.edu to access all other Pepperdine sessions such as regular JD course meetings and faculty or staff meetings.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Information Services at [email protected] or (310) 506-7425.
The Zoom software offers multiple options to schedule a meeting, such as from the Zoom App (desktop or mobile), the Zoom Web Portal, or from a Zoom plugin (Chrome, Outlook, Firefox).
This post will go into detail on how to install the Zoom Chrome extension, specifically. The Zoom Chrome extensions allows participants to schedule or start Zoom meetings directly from Chrome, as well as schedule them from Google Calendar. You may learn more about the Zoom Chrome extension by visiting Zoom’s official documentation here, or continue reading to learn how to use and install the service.
1. To utilize the Chrome extension, you must first have the Chrome browser, which you may download here. Note that Chrome is compatible with Mac OS X 10.10 or later, and it is preferable to have the latest updated version.
2. If you are already using the Chrome browser (or if you have just finished successfully downloading it), next, you may download the Zoom Chrome extension from the Google Chrome Store by clicking here.
3. From the Chrome Store, select “Add to Chrome.”
4. A pop-up window will now appear to confirm you selection. To confirm and begin installation, select “Add extension.”
5. Shortly, you should now see the Zoom icon appear at the top of your browser menu, to the right of your search bar. Another pop-up menu will show asking whether or not you would like to sync these extension to all computers under this Google account; select your preferred choice.
6. Now, when selecting the extension’s icon, you will be asked to sign-in. To use your Pepperdine Zoom account, select “Sign In with SSO” at the bottom.
7. Next, enter your Pepperdine email address and password.
8. You will now be able to either schedule or start a meeting directly from your Chrome browser menu at any time.
9. Additionally, when logging on to the Google Calendar associated with your Pepperdine account, you may schedule any calendar event or invite as a Zoom meeting.
To do so, simply select on the time and day you would like to schedule a meeting on your calendar, and a pop-up window of details will appear. Adjust the meeting settings accordingly to fit your preferred title, date and time.
On this window, select “Make it a Zoom Meeting” on the bottom right.
10. You will now see the meeting created, alongside an automatic Zoom Meeting Link. To edit or view the details of this meeting, simply click on the scheduled event.
11. If you have shared this meeting with another individual, he or she will automatically receive an email with the Zoom Meeting invitation and link. If you would like to adjust any details on your created meeting, simply select the “Edit” pencil on the top menu of your scheduled event.
Welcome to iClicker for students! For an extensive tutorial on creating an account and utilizing the features iClicker has to offer our law students, please see the video below.
Note for returning students: the former “iClicker REEF for students is now named iClicker Student.”
1. Create a student account.
In a browser, go to the iClicker website and choose Sign In from the top right corner and then Student.
2. At the bottom of the screen, select Law School: Pepperdine University from the institution options and then select Go.
3. You will then be directed to the CAS campus portal. Log in using your CAS Login username and password.
4. You’ll then be directed back to iClicker student account setup page. If you already have a student account, you will be prompted to enter your iClicker password again (same as Wavenet password) to link the accounts.
Adding a Course
1. Click the plus sign at the top right corner of your iClicker Student account
2. When prompted for an institution, type Law School:Pepperdine University. Ensure that you do not choose simply “Pepperdine University” as that is not the version used by Caruso School of Law.
3. Click “Next” to confirm. The prompt should indicate that you attend Law School: Pepperdine University.
4. Next, type in either the name of your course or your instructor. Note: if the course does not appear, reach out to your instructor as they may have created the course in “Pepperdine University” instead of “Law School: Pepperdine University”.
5. Finally, confirm that the course is correct, and then click Add this Course.
iClicker on your Mobile Device
Download the iClicker Student app from the app store to your mobile device.
At the bottom of the login page, choose “Sign in through your campus portal”
Select Law School: Pepperdine University
Login with your Wavenet account at the CAS screen.
Add a course by clicking the plus sign in the top right of your screen.
9. Under “Find your institution”, find Law School: Pepperdine University.
10. Find your course by typing in the course name OR professor name. It will show up when you start typing. Then select it from the options listed.
11. Check to see the information is correct, then add the course.
12. Now, under course lists, your class should appear.
13. Note the major benefit of using iClicker: study tools. Once you enter a class, on the top toolbar region will be listed course history, statistics, and study tools to aid in tracking your progression!
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Information Services at [email protected] or (310) 506-7425.
In this post, we will discuss how to utilize PowerPoint and/or Google Slides to create an informational and visually effective presentation that will generate the optimal level of student learning engagement and retention.
Because this is a lengthy post, feel free to navigate to the topics of interest in the table of contents below, as well as be navigated back to the top at the end of each section.
When creating a presentation, it is important that the audience is in mind, the presentation is message focused, and that the information is presented in a clean, clear format. Knowing visual design concepts alongside presentational skills available on popular presentation platforms such as PowerPoint and Google Slides are vital to ensure your information is presented clearly.
Storytelling Structure
Creating a memorable and effective lecture is almost like crafting a story. Here are a few key points to keep in mind when considering the storytelling structure of a lecture or lesson.
Put the audience first. Remember that your story is their story, meaning that though this lecture is coming from your knowledge and perspective, the goal is to have your students understand and relate well enough to envision the knowledge as their own. When creating a lecture, make sure to keep your audience in mind.
Have a solid theme and structure. A theme can be as simple as the main subject point of the day’s lecture–however, it is important to have a clear and set theme which each sub-point is constantly reconnected to. The structure can be as simple or as complex as the instructor desires, but it must help build his or her narrative. The more details and complexity included in the lesson, the more important it is to have a clear theme so your students may hear, understand and remember your points.
Hook them early, and add emotion. Though somewhat cliche, it is often helpful to begin a long topic with an engaging anecdote. Individuals are more likely to engage and retain information on topics that they resonate with, so adding an emotional hook with story examples or a brief anecdote may increase your chances of having a more responsive audience. Otherwise, throughout the presentation, attempt to keep only one or two points on each slide, along with visuals that illustrate the message (more details on these topics to come later in this blog post).
Typography can make or break the presentation. Choosing the right font (proper typeface and proper sizing) is important in determining how efficiently a student can read, decode and process the information presented on the slides.
In terms of typeface selection, the general lesson is: good fonts are invisible, while bad fonts are noticed right away. For beginner designers, stick to Helvetica, Arial or Proxima Nova.
When considering font size, ensure your text big enough in order to ensure readability on your screen or projector even in the back of the classroom. For titles, 30pt minimum is suggested; for main text, size 18pt minimum is recommended.
Notice the difference between the first and second slides presented below in terms of readability in typeface and font size selection.
Once you get more advanced, you can start to play around with whatever readable and compatible fonts you like. Keep in mind that for screen projection, sans serif type faces are preferable, as serif is mainly used for print. However, sans serif and serif fonts are compatible when wanting to contrast titles and body text.
Notice the visual hierarchy created with these two different fonts and boldness selection. We will go more in depth on hierarchy in the next section.
Text Hierarchy
The amount of text you include on your slides and the way you present them contribute greatly to the way your readers take in your information. Text hierarchy revolves around the perception of importance. You can stress the importance of points in many ways, such as making the font larger, bold, a different color, etc.
When designing slides, make sure to keep in mind good visual hierarchy so you can be confident that the right elements are catching the students’ attentions.
In general, it is better to bullet your points instead of including full, complete sentences on the slide. This will ensure that your students are paying attention to you and your lecture, rather than simply attempting to read the text on the slide.
Notice how in the first slide, complete sentences overwhelm the reader and make it difficult to understand what facts are key pieces of information. In the second presentation slide below, the points are bulleted and the key takeaways are highlighted in a bolder typeface of the same family as well as with color (we will go more in depth on color in the next section).
In this last example, notice how the incorporation of more than one visual aids separates the points by categories, alongside the subheading in a bolder, larger font. The sub-point in the last bulleted statement is in a smaller font, showing that it holds the least amount of importance on this slide.
Color
In a perfect world, we would all have the time to learn the basics of color theory. Though seemingly intuitive, figuring out which colors are compatible is harder than it seems.
The easiest rules to remember are those of complementary colors and analogous colors. Complementary colors are those that are on opposing sides of the color wheel (for instance, Christmas’s green and red, or Pepperdine’s blue and orange). Analogous colors are any four slices on the wheel that are directly connected to one another (such as “yellow” all the way to “red-orange”).
Don’t worry, color theory memorization is not required to create a great presentation. If you would like to experiment with color, Adobe Color allows you to select any color on the color wheel and will automatically provide you with compatible colors based on your selection.
In terms of perception, brighter, more vibrant colors often come across as more playful, while darker colors often feel a little cooler and usually more professional.
Notice how in the slide below, incorporating a complimentary color theme and visual hierarchy makes the slide seems more professional and more engaging.
This slide was created with the help of a free template. Powerpoint and Google Slides both have pre-generated theme templates that are easily accessible. SlideCarnival is a reliable site with more options that may be downloaded for Powerpoint and/or Google Slides.
To breathe life into an ancient cliche, a picture is worth a thousand words. This is even more noteworthy when presenting information to an audience. Though a picture may not give all of the detail needed to grasp a concept, a picture will act as a visual image to aid in the memory and understanding of whatever topic presented, as long as it is related.
Overall, the best visuals are often the ones that are simply designed. If your image is too large, the audience may tend to focus on it and be distracted from the key information.
pictures
One of the only times suggested to use a large image, or background picture, is for introductory slides. This image paints a foreshadowing picture of the topic, as well as leaves room for the instructor to provide a preliminary lecture for the upcoming section.
It is often handy to incorporate visual images in presentations, whether that be through pictures, icons or data displays. It is pertinent that the image is directly relevant to the topic discussed on the same slide to aid in consistency and lecture retention.
Icons
Visuals should always help illustrate the point. If desired, icons can be the extras that make your presentation fun and visually pleasing. Much like images, icons should always directly relate to the point being presented.
You can also use visuals to conceptualize big numbers and data.
Timelines, such as the one shown below present data against time in sequential order. This allows you to tell a story chronologically or present data that shows progression over time.
A pie chart or data table as shown, or any other chart/table that best represents your data can be a fantastic visual aid for a presentation. Incorporating visuals that are standard and your audience is likely already familiar with can make your presentation easier to understand.
Multimedia elements can be extremely useful and memorable ways to convey information. If there are certain videos or audio clips that you would like to incorporate into your presentation, it may behoove you to embed them into your slideshow rather than disrupting your flow by exiting out and opening a new window.
Aside from videos and audio clips, you can also incorporate gifs by downloading them off reliable websites, such as Giphy.com, and importing them as if they were ordinary images.
VIDEO INSTRUCTIONS FOR GOOGLE SLIDES
1. On the slide that you would like the place an audio or video clip, select “Insert” at the top left of your menu bar on Google Slides.
2. For this guide, we will select “Video.” A new window will appear with a title of “Insert Video.” From here, you may either search for a video on Youtube, copy and paste a video URL, or import a video from your Google Drive.
3. After choosing your video and embedding method of choice, click “Select” to have your video placed on your side. Feel free to resize and reposition your video to your liking.
4. Notice that a new menu titled “Format options” now appears to your right side. Here, you can adjust the settings of your video, such as whether you would like the video to automatically play once you enter this slide, when the video should start/end, etc.
VIDEO Instructions for Microsoft Powerpoint
1. On the slide that you would like the place an audio or video clip, select “Insert” at the top left of your menu bar on Powerpoint.
2. Navigate to the right side of the toolbar that has now been presented. Here, you will see the options to either import your video or audio of choice.
3. For this guide, you may select “Video” and have the drop-down menu appear. From these two selections, you may either use “Movie Browser” to search your computer for movies (iMove files, Adobe Premiere files, etc.) or “Movie from File” if you would like to import a video saved from your desktop.
Note that, unlike Google Slides, you are not able to search a video on Youtube or simply link a URL. This will mean you need to take a few extra steps for inserting a specific video from online that you desire. You may download the video off Youtube through any reliable Youtube to MP4 converter, such as https://ytmp3.cc/en13/, or find a free, downloadable source.
Transitions are the potential effect selections you may choose as you move from one slide to the next. It is advised to either choose one (or no) transitions throughout the entirety of the presentations for consistency, or mindfully choose a transition for a specific slide to illustrate a memorable point. This is due to the fact that though continuously changing transitions may be fun and quirky, they have the potential to seriously distract your audience.
transition instructions for google slides
1. If you would like to emphasis a certain slide with a transition, go on the slide you wish to have a transition effect on in Google Slides. Select “Transition” at the top of your menu.
If you would like to set one consistent transition throughout your presentation, you may click on “Transition” as well.
2. From here, a new menu will appear on your right. Under “Slide Transition” you will see that you can select your desired transition, as well as dictate the speed at which the effect will occur by moving the yellow bar.
By selecting the drop-down menu, you will see a list of possible Google Slide transitions. By selecting “Play”, you may preview the effect. The button titled “Apply to all slides” will automatically set this effect to all slides in your presentation.
transition instructions for microsoft powerpoint
1. If you would like to emphasis a certain slide with a transition, go on the slide you wish to have a transition effect on in Powerpoint. Select “Transitions” at the top of your menu.
If you would like to set one consistent transition throughout your presentation, you may click on “Transitions” as well.
2. By selecting the dropdown menu under the transition images, you will see the entirity of your transition effect options.
3. On the right side of your transition options, you will see a variety of transition preferences you may adjust, such as how this transition will occur and for how long.
If you would like to set a general, consistent transition effect across your entire presentation, select “Apply To All” on the far right of the menu.
Animations are movements that can be applied to objects within a slide. Since animations are pretty fun, it’s easy to get carried away. Animations are best used when it relates and enhances the message presented and you want the audience to remember the point you are making.
We will now give you two examples and step-by-step instructions on how to properly incorporate animations in your presentation. Though one set of instructions will be for Google Slides and another for Microsoft Powerpoint, the concepts and procedures remain the same on both interfaces.
animation instructions for google slides
Sometimes, it’s beneficial to not have all of your information presented on the screen at once, so students can focus on one point at a time instead of haphazardly attempting to copy all information provided in their notes. For this example, we will be using the timeline icons slide. Having a point on a timeline appear on-click is a very common way to guide discussion.
1. Go on the presentation and slide in which you would wish to have animations.
2. Highlight the object(s) you would like to be animated. In this case, we are highlighting the text boxes, bar, and circle icon all together to be animated as one cohesive object.
3. With the object(s) still selected, you may release your click and navigate toward “Animate” at the top of Google’s menu bar.
4. Now you will see a “Motion” menu pop-up on the right side. This is where you can adjust the animation settings. Because we mass selected objects, you will see each object and their coinciding default selection. Click the arrow on the left to see a list of animation details.
5. If you click the arrow next to the “Fade In” option, you will see a drop-down menu of all potential animation selections for an object. For our purposes, we will leave it at “Fade In.”
6. If you click the arrow next to the “On Click” option, you will see a drop-down menu of all potential selections for when the object will animate. For our purposes, leave the selection to “On Click” for the first selected object on the top.
7. The right-hand bar in yellow indicates the speed of which these animations will move. For our example, you may leave the animation at it’s default pace.
8. For the latter objects, make sure that the “On Click” selection is set as “(With previous)”. This will ensure that all objects will appear at the same time, instead of staggered.
9. Apply steps 2-8 to the next timeline objects.
10. Now, when you press “Play” or present your slideshow, you will see that the animations will appear on each click.
ANIMATION INSTRUCTIONS FOR microsoft POWERPOINT
1. Go on the presentation and slide in which you would wish to have animations.
2. Highlight the object(s) you would like to be animated. In this case, we are highlighting the text boxes, bar, and circle icon all together to be animated as one cohesive object.
3. Next, select “Animations” on the top of your menu.
You can now see all of the default animation selections at your disposal. Since we are trying to represent the fact that “water positively increases nutrient mobility in the body,” the “Rise Up” animation will help illustrate that point.
You will now see a new menu appear on the right of your presentation. This will show all of the objects that you have animations on this particular slide. Notice the tabs titled “Effect Options,” “Timing,” and “Triggers.” This is where you may adjust the details for your animations.
You will also notice your selected objects on the slide having numbers next to them. Since they are grouped as one, all of these objects will have the number “1” next to them, meaning that they will be the first to animate. These numbers will not appear when you present the presentation.
4. Under “Timing,” it is preferential to select “On Click” so your animation will happen on the command of your click.
You can also see the same options appear on the top right of your menu bar.
5. Now, this “Rise Up” animation can be shown through a trial play through of your presentation. On your click, the selected objects should now move themselves up to their establish position.
Hotkeys are keyboard shortcuts. By clicking these letters and/or symbols at once, you may conduct an action in one press that may have taken you several clicks. Though seemingly confusing and hard to memorize at first, after frequent practice, hotkeys are incredibly useful for speeding up the presentation creation process.
KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS for microsoft powerpoint
Below is a list of the most popular hotkeys/shortcuts used for creating Powerpoint presentations. For a complete list, visit Microsoft’s blogpost by clicking here.
KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS FOR MICROSOFT POWERPOINT
Below is a list of the most popular hotkeys/shortcuts used for creating Google Slides presentations. For a complete list, visit Google’s blogpost by clicking here.
As we adapt our teaching styles to fit with the digital world, it is useful to know that there are many ways to utilize Zoom to replicate typical classroom technology. With a smartphone, a computer and the Zoom software, you can incorporate a document camera into your lectures. This article will guide you through the steps on how to download, install and use your smartphone for this purpose.
Image courtesy of SquareCap
A document camera, also known as a digital overhead, is an electronic imaging device that can project or display on a screen whatever is being captured through a connected camera.
Typically, a phone stand is useful when using a smartphone adaption of a document camera. You may browse through numerous options online to find one that best suits your needs, or check out this one from the photo above.
How to Turn Your Phone into a Doc Cam by Signing into Zoom with Two Devices
Teachers who are utilizing online meeting platforms such as Zoom have likely found that the built-in whiteboard is not easy to use, unless paired with a tablet built for this purpose. Thankfully, since most phones have high-quality cameras that can project well on the computer and visible to students on their screen, you can join your Zoom meeting with your cellphone as a second device that may act as a document camera.
To use your phone as a document camera at home, follow these steps:
Log on to Zoom at https://pepperdine.zoom.us/ using SSO and join/start a pre-existing meeting, or create a trial meeting.
However, first, make sure that your Pepperdine Zoom account has been properly activated. For more information on Zoom for faculty, please click here.
2. Next, start or join your meeting from your computer as normal.
3. Now, transition to your phone. Go to your device’s app store so you may search and download Zoom.
First, there are two main tips we ask you to consider while using your phone as a second device for a document camera:
Whether on an iPhone or Android, go to your settings menu, and set your brightness and screen settings to never turn off in the display preferences. This will ensure your screen will not go dark while streaming.
We also recommend turning off notifications while you are teaching to prevent potential disruption, or even using an old phone that is not connected to your data plan.
Note, the screenshots shown below visually represent the process for an iPhone, however, the general steps are practically the same for an Android device.
Once found, select “Download” or proceed to re-install the app if you have already installed it previously.
4. Once installed, find the app on your home screen and select the icon to open Zoom on your mobile device.
5. Once opened, you will be presented with a screen that asks you how you would like to proceed. Select “Join a Meeting” at the bottom of the screen.
6. Much like another meeting participant would join your Zoom Meeting, enter the Meeting ID that you created and/or distributed to your students.
You may also find the specific Meeting ID to your Zoom meeting at the top center of your active meeting.
7. Before selecting join, make sure that you select “Don’t Connect To Audio” on your second device. This will ensure that there will not be an echo when you continue to lecture.
8. Now, you may click “Join.”
9. Going back to your computer or primary device, notice that your “Manage Participants” icon is orange. This shows that your second device is now waiting to be admitted into your meeting.
Select “Manage Participants” to be directed to the waiting room options. Click “Admit” for your cellphone device.
10. Depending on your personal phone settings, you may get three pop-up windows at this time: click your preference when asked if Zoom may “Send You Notifications,” click “OK” when asked if Zoom may “Access the Camera“, and click “Don’t Allow” when asked if Zoom may “Access the Microphone.”
11. Now, you have two devices at your disposal: the camera that is broadcasting your face, and the camera that is broadcasting whatever view is on your cellphone. You should notice that your Zoom screen is broadcasting the same visual that your smartphone camera is showing.
Place your phone on whatever object you choose to have support your camera (whether that be a phone stand, a random household object, or your hand–obviously, the first choice is the most recommended) and position your camera to show
12. To have your second device be the main screen showing on your Zoom meeting for yourself, such as the image above, you must pin the screen of your secondary device. This will allow you to see what the students are seeing, and you may properly adjust your smartphone’s positioning and orientation accordingly.
First, ensure that your Zoom meeting interface on your computer or other primary device is showing Speaker View. Your screen should show your participants as depicted below, with the grid icon presented on the top right.
If you are operating on Grid View, select the button at the top right titled “Speaker View” to switch.
In Speaker View on your primary device, you may now select the three dots on the top right of your smartphone’s display. Select “Pin Video,” and you should notice that your smartphone’s camera display is now the main visual on your screen. You may advise your students to do the same.
13. As another note, there is no zoom-in feature on the Zoom software; therefore, the Zoom image being broadcasted by your cellphone will not operate as your camera application. To zoom-in on your document or give your students a closer look at the information being shown, you must manually adjust the positioning of your device holder to shorten the distance between your document and your smartphone.
14. Once you are done using your smartphone document camera, to end this broadcast, select “Leave” on your cellphone at the top right corner.
You will still remain active on your primary device to continue teaching as normal, or end the meeting for all of your participants at your liking.
FOR QUESTIONS OR ANY OTHER FORM OF TECHNOLOGICAL ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR [email protected]. GOOD LUCK!
This post describes how to set up a WiFi extender, which can help improve WiFi connection to avoid freezing and glitching for video/audio calls! Consider setting up an extender if you are having connectivity issues with conferencing platforms such as zoom or Google Meet. This material is compiled from Tech and Learning’s website on WiFi extenders.
A WiFi extender is a device that extends the range of your WiFi from your router, to reach further areas of your property.
Step 1
To begin, you need to see what your download and upload speed currently is. Open a browser and go to a website such as this one to run a speed test. Once you know your baseline speed, you can find an extender that improves your number.
From there, buy an extender. Ideally, one that plugs directly in to a power socket.
Step 2
For placement, you will want to place your extender halfway between your router and the dead zone. The sweet spot will be where the extender is close enough to the router to still pick up a signal, and close enough to the dead zone to transfer WiFi.
Make sure the extender is placed in an open area, and not behind a fridge or other object which could obstruct the signal.
If you do not have an outlet in the desired area, consider running a power socket extension cord from an accessible outlet to the area.
If the dead zone is upstairs, place the extender directly above the router, on the dead zone floor.
In terms of angles, some extenders come with antennas to direct the signal. This can help to direct the signal directly to the dead zone. Also, you can even create your own booster or WiFi reflector with foil or half a can; this video describes how to create a diy booster.
Step 3
Finally, test and adjust your extender. “Name” the extender in your system so that is it easy to locate (this can usually be done from within the app the extender is connected to, or through the setup website as instructed through the installation booklet) then run the same speed test from step 1. If the speed is not much improved in your dead zone area, try moving the extender, or adding an antenna. Repeat the process until the speed is improved.
Alternate Option
If the extender does not work and you still have dead or slow WiFi zones, consider installing a mesh WiFi network.
A mesh uses multiple points to create a web-like signal that interconnects your entire home. This is a more advanced system and will cost you more, but the end result is usually very impressive with strong signal in every room, even for larger homes.
Check out the video below to learn about different types of extenders:
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Information Services at [email protected] or (310) 506-7425.
This post offers a list of keyboard shortcuts for zoom that can be useful for instructors. The material has been summarized from Tech Learning’s website.
Note that these specific shortcuts can only be used in the zoom app, and not in a browser window.
Mute Audio
PC: Alt + A (to mute yourself)
PC: Alt + M (to mute your students)
Mac: Cmd + A/M
iPad: Cmd + Shift + A/M
To mute yourself in zoom without navigating to the mute/unmute button in your toolbar, try using the combination of keys listed above relevant to your device type. Always remember to check your profile on zoom to ensure that you have muted and unmuted successfully!
Screenshot Your Page in Zoom
PC: Alt + Shift + T
Mac: Cmd + T
iPad: Volume up + Power buttons
If there is an instance where you would like to capture what is presented on your screen, try using the shortcuts above. The picture will save in your files for later. This can be helpful during someone’s zoom presentation, where the presentation may not be saved and you would like to take notes afterwards and review the material. Make sure, though, that the presenter is informed that you are saving their presentation, and that they are ok with you doing so.
Note: There’s no Zoom shortcut for the iPad but you can share your screen by accessing the control center, holding down the record button (solid white circle inside another circle) and selecting Zoom from the options.
Raise/Lower Hand
PC: Alt + Y
Mac: Option + Y
A really great feature of Zoom, which makes it feel more like a real-world meeting, is the ability to raise a hand. This allows you to keep the group muted but still give participants the feeling that they can speak up and interject when they need to, perhaps with a question.
Other Shortcuts
For a full list of zoom shortcuts, go to Settings in the upper right hand corner of your main zoom screen. Then, on the left, click keyboard shortcuts, which will show a full list.
This post is a student response to Thomas Tobin’s webcast on Universal Design of Learning as well as the UDL Guidelines page from UDL’s website. For more information, please visit those sites.
In his webcast on the basics of UDL, Thomas J. Tobin of the University of Wisconsin-Madison made it clear that we need to re-frame how teaching institutions approach UDL and accessibility. When presented with students who desire accommodations for their learning, instructors, though willing to comply, can often feel frustrated and stressed at the prospect of altering curriculum to fulfill the request.
But, UDL is not only a disability or access services format. Rather, UDL is a proactive way to structure material to help make the interactions the happen at your institution more easily accessible for people on their mobile devices.
What is UDL?
UDL is defined as a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn. There are three components:
We need multiple ways to keep learners engaged. This is the “why” of learning. For example, instructors could give a time estimate for an assignment so that students know how to self-regulate their approach to the assignment, and experience autonomy.
We need multiple ways of representing information. This is the “what” of learning. For example, the students can be presented with both audio and visual versions of the content, and choose which style works best for them to retain the information. Providing different options for the information display allows deeper comprehension for the student, as they may understand one form of communication better than another.
We need multiple ways to give people choices for their actions. This is the “how” of learning. For example, as long as learning objectives remain the same, you can offer multiple ways for the student to complete an assignment, perhaps through an essay or visual presentation option. Or, give multiple options for first drafting that point toward the same end result assignment.
Realistic Implementation
UDL helps to understand what has to happen at the level of course design that makes accommodation less necessary.
UDL is “plus one” learning. If there is a way you interact with students, just make one more way to interact with materials, each other, and the wider world.
Remember that UDL reduces barriers by offering students choices and control. If you offer more ways for students to access material, they are more likely to persist in classes, more likely to be retained in later years, and more likely to be satisfied with their learning experience.
UDL is work, but will alleviate more work and stress that could potentially arise later in the course, as it is a proactive, not reactive format.
Many instructors are familiar with DI, or “differentiated instruction”. DI is customizing the instructor’s response to the student in any way they can. DI occurs in the moment, responding to a specific student situation. It is also reactive, allowing instructors to hear and respond. UDL is the proactive counterpart to DI, and happens on “day 0” to set up for success.
5 strategies for UDL:
Start with text. Use your written content as a script for audio/podcast or video. You can post the text version and video/audio as the alternative (multiple ways to represent information).
Make alternatives. You can offer different formats for print/PDF content, or post take still photos with captions from a video. This reduces cognitive barriers for students. Note: UDL does not aim to water down content, but instead makes it easier for the student to get in and do it.
Let them do it their way. As long as objectives for assignment are the same, could offer video or paper presentations, let the student choose.
Go step by step. 10:2 ratio. Give info for 10 mins, then ask students to respond for 2 mins. The response does not even need to be related to the info, it is used as a pause to retain info given in the 10 minutes.
Set content free. Publish content on platforms that are mobile accessible. Also, make sure they are not tied to a specific software that the student has to download or buy.
FAQs
What about the science surrounding different learning styles? Learning styles, in the conventional sense, (audio verses visual presentation, etc.) don’t exist. At least, not as six characteristics. Our learning preferences change from moment to moment based on the content and circumstances. For example: a man who is taking a class but also has to drop his daughter off at school before work may prefer an audio version of the class content to listen to during his commute, and in that instance, an audio option is much more helpful to him than a PDF.
Retention also varies and is not based on hard principles but based on accessibility; if the student can get to the information, look through it multiple times, and customize how they move through it, they can retain it.
