April 18

D2L Brightspace The Daylight Experience

**Attention – If you don’t want to read further just check out this super short overview video! 🙂

D2L Brightspace is bringing a new design with their updates. Daylight: the overarching project name for the user interface change of design – to help everything be more web responsive.

The biggest reason for this change is to make D2L easy to use on tablets or mobile devices – keeping up with e-learning trends.

Here are some of the visual changes:

Courses will be listed  by tiles instead of text links.

courses as tiles not text in D2L

D2L will keep the same functionality, this is just a change in the user interface design, new font style, more pictures, slight changes on home page and navigation bar, and drop down menu more defined.

deesktop vs. mobile page widthIn addition, click here for a starter guide to Daylight experience.

Finally, a full one-hour Webinar about the Daylight experience (click to access).

 

 

April 10

10 Tips for Creating Effective Instructional Videos

Michael Smedshammer, faculty instructional design coordinator at Modesto Junior College, wrote for Faculty Focus on creating effective instructional videos. Here is a recap:

  • Forget the headset. If your computer doesn’t have a built-in camera and microphone, buy a webcam that does both.
  • Keep it short. If you have a lot to say (and sometimes we do!), chunk up the message. Make a video mini-series with 5-10 minute chapters.
  • Prepare well and then wing it. Sometimes a brief outline taped next to your webcam is all you need to stay on track without sounding like you’re reading from your notes.
  • Position the camera above your eyes, so you look slightly up at it. Position your head to appear at the top third of the screen so the recording includes your face and most of your torso.
  • Location, location, location. Your work or home office are usually safe choices as a background for the recording.
  • Move it out. Don’t always shoot your videos from the same spot. Your audience will tire of seeing the same background.Keep the backgrounds neutral but varied. Your audience will appreciate it.
  • Look right at the camera lens. Looking anywhere else looks weird. Your audience will think you have an avoidance problem.
  • Cover your screen. Once you get everything ready, consider taping a piece of paper over your computer screen so you’re not distracted by seeing yourself while you record. Remember, you do not need to be perfect! Try not to be overly critical of yourself.
  • Say “cheese.” Smiling helps everything. Whether you’re recording a webcast of your face or just your voice, smiling makes you look and sound better.
  • Avoid over doing it. The wacky music, goofy fade-ins, and spinning transitions that come with some video editing software can make home-videos look corny. Leave most of those tools for the professionals (who don’t really use them either).