Online Rooms can be used to facilitate interactive presentations in which students are not simple listening to information, but actively engaged in the material. This strategy should not be used to replace a face-to-face lecture; rather it can be used to conduct online exam reviews, library database tours, or guest speakers. Below is a list of steps and strategies for using Online Rooms for group work. Please review the information below and contact Amy Mangrich (amangric@uwm.edu) with questions or additional needs.
Navigation bar:
In order for your students to use Online Rooms, you will need to add [Online Rooms] to your course navigation bar. Here are a set of instructions that will walk you through the process: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2011/08/adding-online-rooms-to-your-navigation.html
Room Setup:
You will create a separate Online Room for each of your student groups. Here are a set of instruction that will walk through these steps: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2011/05/creating-online-room-in-your-d2l-course.html
In Step 6, be sure to set the [End Date:] to the end of the semester.
In Step 7, under [Advanced Properties], select:
[All Attendees join as Moderators],
[Moderators can edit and delete this room],
[Archive Mode:] to [Automatic].
Online Room Tools:
In most group work, students will use two tools primarily, the Audio feature and the Application Share feature. Below are links to online versions of these tutorials:
Online Rooms/Elluminate Audio Setup Wizard: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2011/09/online-rooms-audio-setup-wizard-quick.html
Online Rooms/Elluminate Application Sharing: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2011/09/online-rooms-using-application-sharing.html
Preparing to access Online Rooms:
Please inform your students that they will need high-speed internet connection and may need to be connected to the internet using an Ethernet cable, especially if you are using Application Sharing.
It is recommended that users access Online Rooms using the Mozilla Firefox browser. This can be downloaded, free of charge, at: http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Also, inform your students that many companies do not allow employees to download software, so if they plan to access Online Rooms while at work, please have students visit the following website to ensure that they have the necessary permission to download and install Online Rooms/Elluminate software plug-ins and updates: http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=8336&task=knowledge&questionID=1473
Students can make sure their computer is setup correctly by accessing the following site: http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=8336&task=knowledge&questionID=1473
Students should check System Requirements in Step 1. Then test their connection, settings, and configure audio (if using) in the Configuration Room in Step 2.
Tips for preventing technical issues during meetings:
Additional tips for accessing Online Rooms can be found here: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2011/05/tips-for-accessing-online-rooms.html
The most common issues associated with Elluminate relate to Audio Communication. Tips for using Audio Communication in Online Rooms can be found here: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2011/05/using-audio-communication-in-online.html
Practice facilitating Online Room meetings:
If you would like to practice using Online Rooms before you begin using them in your own course, you can add a fake user to your D2L course site using these instructions: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2009/08/adding-someone-to-your-d2l-course-site.html
In Step #4 of the helpsheet, type the work “fake” the search box. There will be fake students with username AND password (numbered sequentially) "fake100" through fake129.” Choose one of these users and select [Student] as the [Role] when prompted.
Once the fake student is enrolled in your course, setup a sample Online Room in your D2L course site. You may want to refer back to these instructions: http://d2ltipsandtricks.blogspot.com/2011/05/creating-online-room-in-your-d2l-course.html
In Step #10, under [Attendees], add the fake student to the sample room. Using a different computer, you can log in to D2L as of the fake students and enter the Online Room. The username AND password are the *same* for fake student accounts.
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