Using Multimedia in D2L Multimedia for Content Delivery and Learning Activities

Using Multimedia in D2L
Multimedia for Content Delivery and Learning Activities
With an online course you are not limited to presenting text-based lectures. Not only
can you provide course materials in multiple formats, you can have students create
materials in a range of formats (by posting links, images, videos, mp3s etc.). Many
students are already familiar with basic audio and video editing applications, and you
can also make learning these applications part of your course requirements.

Why teach with multimedia?

      Using multimedia within your course may help students by accessing "multiple
      intelligences," which include logical, visual, interpersonal (group activities),
      intrapersonal (reflection), and verbal/linguistic.
      Using multimedia creates opportunities for exploring the different meanings
      emphasized by different forms of textuality. For example, you may have students
      compare the information they gain by reading Shakespeare with that of filmed
      adaptations or theatrical productions.
      Students live in a world of multimodal communication; they need the analytical
      skills to recognize a wide range of semiotic languages and think critically about
      them. Multimedia texts help students learn about audiovisual rhetoric and formal
      conventions.

New authoring tools now allow students and teachers to create multimedia texts easily.
One of the easiest ways to create a multimedia file is by using Quicktime Pro, which is
inexpensive and can create audio files (of a lecture, for example), or screen-capture
videos (a good alternative to Powerpoint slides). Keep in mind that for accessibility,
all audiovisual materials should also have a text version, or you can contact OLS about
creating captions for video material.

Uploading, linking and embedding media
Within D2L you can link to, embed, or upload video and audio files. You can also link to
interactive web sites and web applications like blogs, wikis, social media and Google
Docs within a course by creating a quicklink to the URL in the Content area. When you
use social networking sites like Facebook in D2L, however, be sure to create private
group access in order to protect student privacy.

The primary difference between linking/embedding and uploading media files is that
any time you upload a file to D2L it will live on the D2L server. Unless the file is small
(less than 50MB), you will have mixed results with the speed and quality of playback.

At present PSU does not have its own dedicated video streaming server for online
learning, so the best alternative to the D2L server is to utilize external media services
and embed or link to the media files in your course. Embedded files are recommended
since students remain in the D2L environment and aren't exposed to the distractions of
other videos on sites like YouTube.

There are many "cloud computing" online media services like YouTube, Vimeo, Blip.tv,
and iMeem, and we have included videos here showing how to utilize those services.
An excellent site for accessing some of the many "Web 2.0" application is here:

http://www.go2web20.net/

OLS video streaming services
At Online Learning Services, faculty who have participated in the D2L Orientation have
access to help with video creation, editing, compression and streaming. If you would
like OLS to upload video for your course, contact them at olsinfo@pdx.edu. You can
submit original material on disk or as an electronic file, but it's recommended that you
provide the original with as little compression as possible so it can be optimized for the
web from a good-quality master file.

Uploading media files to D2L
If you decide to upload a media file directly to D2L, be sure to test the file's playback
performance from a home computer. The PSU network is much faster than most
students' home connections, so even if a file plays well on campus, students may have
problems viewing it at home. A good way to test your home connection speed relative
to the local average is to take an online speed test (the download speed is what
matters):

http://www.speedtest.net/

To upload a media file, you simple create a new file as you would for text content.

  1. From Manage Content, select New Topic and Create New File. From The Course
     Builder, drag the "Create an HTML File" icon into the desired module. These steps
     will open the D2L HTML editor.
  2. Select the Advanced tab, drag the bottom right corner of the editor window to
     the right until all buttons are visible, and position your cursor at the top of the
     text box.
  3. Roll over the third button from the left; you will see the label "Insert Object."
     Click that button.

  4. A pop-up window will appear with two options: Course Object and Upload Object.
     If you have already uploaded your file using Manage Files, you would make that
     selection. Otherwise, click Upload Object.

5. You will now see a dropdown menu labeled Object Type. The file types supported
     by D2L are:

  6. Once you have selected a file type, you can click the Choose File button and
     browse to the file's location on your computer.
  7. Finally, you will need to enter the pixel height and width of your file. For audio
     files this is irrelevant, but for video you should check the file dimensions
     (highlight the file and click Command + I on a Mac, right click and select
     Properties in Windows) and enter them. Note: you will need to add 20-30 pixels
     to the height in order to show a video control strip at the bottom. These pixels
     are not included in the file dimensions so you have to add them in or the control
     strip will be cropped in your HTML display.
  8. Click Insert and then Create. You can now open that page and play your file. Be
     sure to check the playback quality before you make it visible to your class.

Embedding media in D2L
One of the first challenges many teachers find with online learning is how to create
activities and interactions that are not centered on the discussion board. Written

discussions can generate a lot of valuable learning, but for students taking multiple
online courses it can become repetitive to interact only by writing and reading
discussion posts.

Most students are very comfortable with other forms of web-based interaction, and
since it's easy to open most web-based applications inside D2L, there are a wide range
of options to explore. Many of these have been documented on YouTube, so the rest of
this module consists of some useful video tutorials.

Here is a short YouTube video on how to embed video in your D2L course. When you
embed a video it look like the screen below (depending on the dimensions of the file),
but I could just as easily have created a quicklink here instead, which would open the
URL in a separate tab.

Here is a video on embedding screencasts and slideshows:

This is a video showing how you and your students can use colaborative documents like
Zoho (or Google Docs) inside D2L to created shared documents that can be edited by a
group of people. The video also makes a critique of D2L for not incorporating document
editing as a native function for students. This is a really good point, but in the
meantime, you can incorporate these tools from external applications.

This video demonstrates social bookmarking using del.ici.ous:

This video show how to use Yackpack (a voice/text chatroom) in D2L:

 Links and resources (will open in new tab/window)
       The National Writing Project Digital Is website on multimedia communication
       Visual literacy portal from the International Visual Literacy Association
       Teaching resources from the University of Texas, Austin Digital Writing and
       Research Lab
       The DWRL Blogging Pedagogy blog
       Storycenter: digital storytelling
       A nice student podcast on "new literacy"

This work is licensed by Portland State University | Online Learning Services under a
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