voicethread new assignments

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Voicethread new assignments: improved student experience, grading features and course organization.

VoiceThread is a video-based discussion tool available in Blackboard that can be used to encourage student discussion and build community in asynchronous learning settings. The conversations are not live; they take place whenever and wherever it’s convenient for students to participate.

Learn more about using VoiceThread to build online community .

New Assignments Heading link Copy link

VoiceThread is rolling out its new Assignments interface that makes VoiceThread easier to use, provides more control for instructors, helps deliver better feedback to students, and other performance enhancements.

Your VoiceThread content will no longer appear on the VoiceThread home page. Instructors are now able to create Assignments, and the VoiceThread will live in that Assignment. This helps instructors organize content so that students can easily identify the Assignment workspace.

When creating the Assignment, instructors will be able to choose the activity students are required to perform in VoiceThread.

• Create – students are required to create a VoiceThread using a video image or presentation
• Comment   – students are required to contribute a comment on a VoiceThread
• Watch – students must watch or listen to an entire VoiceThread

Additionally, each activity has tabs that enable instructors to define additional conditions and options within the context of the assignment, for example enabling comment threading, comment moderation, playback preferences, and other settings. Students will no longer need to remember to change settings or need to be taught how to share, comment or create.

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Over three hundred courses in UIC currently use VoiceThread, which means that thousands of students, in a variety of courses, may benefit from the improved experience of the new assignments.

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The new Grader was developed to make grading faster, monitor student activity, identify which students have submitted, have work in progress or if no attempts have been made. Instructors have the option to unsubmit a student’s attempt so a student can resubmit the assignment for another attempt. Graded assignments will appear in a separate tab to illustrate which students have been graded helping instructors stay organized.

Enhanced Student Experience Heading link Copy link

The VoiceThread student experience has been redesigned with an intuitive interface that is meant to provide clarity on what students need to do, how to do it, and when they need to do it.

• The Assignment sidebar appears with call to action buttons with clear commands, providing students with step-by-step instructions.
• The sidebar contains full details including a published due date, grading style, and submission status.

Student Gallery is a new feature that can be enabled in Assignments, which allows students to view and give feedback on other students’ work once they have submitted their own work. Instructors no longer need to create a link in Blackboard to a course view in VoiceThread and train students how to find the relevant coursework.

How to enable New Assignments Heading link Copy link

Effective June 30, 2021 all courses will be automatically updated to New Assignments .

To enable New Assignments before June 30, 2021 perform the following:

1.) Go to your VT Home Page.

2.) Find your course in your left-hand sidebar, and hover your mouse over the course title.

3.) Click on the gear icon that appears to the right of your course name. This will open the new course settings in a new browser tab.

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4.) Select Start using this new feature for this course.

5.) Click Save.

Once you start using the New Assignments feature in your course, any new assignment you create from that point on will use all new features.

What happens when you start using New Assignments? Heading link Copy link

None of your past assignments or VoiceThreads will break. You and your students will start seeing the upgraded interfaces described, but no work will be lost, and everyone can continue completing and grading existing assignments without interruption.

Keep in mind that old assignments will retain old features and policies. To take advantage of all new policies and features, you will need to build a new assignment.

Using new assignments is optional now but effective June 30, 2021 all courses will be automatically updated to New Assignments .

Resources Heading link Copy link

To learn about VoiceThread Assignments and the new features available go to:

• How to Use New Assignments (article)
• VoiceThread Transition Guide & Roadmap (article)

VoiceThread New Assignments Video (4 min) Heading link Copy link

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Voice Thread Guide

• What is VoiceThread?

VoiceThread, a web application, is a learning tool for enhancing asynchronous student engagement and online presence. With VoiceThread, both instructors and students can create, share, and comment on images, Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, videos, audio files, documents, and PDFs, using microphone, webcam, text, phone, and audio-file upload. VoiceThread has a devoted following in language instruction, especially.

Signing Into VoiceThread

Navigate to dartmouth.voicethread.com . Click Sign In and login with your Dartmouth NetID credentials.

Note for prior users only:

• If you already have an existing VoiceThread account associated with your Dartmouth email address, you will be prompted for an additional verification step via email. This will happen only during your first login.
• If you already have an existing Voicethread account associated with a non-Dartmouth email , and would like to convert this account to a Dartmouth account, contact us at [email protected] for assistance. We can help you migrate existing VoiceThreads as well.
• Creating a VoiceThread

Once you are signed in to your Dartmouth account, you can begin creating VoiceThreads by clicking on the “Create” Button at the top of the menu bar.

Watch a short video (1:43) on creating a VoiceThread

VoiceThreads can also be easily edited : you can add cover art, reorder, replace or delete slides, insert links, copy VoiceThreads, etc.

• Sharing a VoiceThread

VoiceThreads are private by default. You can easily share a VoiceThread, with individuals or with groups; by sharing a link, or by embedding a VoiceThread on a web page .

If you are using Canvas, the easiest way to share a VoiceThread with your class is to use VoiceThread's Canvas integration .

Commenting on a VoiceThread

Commenting is what makes VoiceThread so unique, and transforms it from a screencasting tool into a rich asynchronous media discussion tool. Comments in VoiceThread can be attached to any point in the VoiceThread’s timeline. Comments can take the form of audio (recorded from a computer microphone or by phone), webcam video, plain text, or any uploaded media file. It’s even possible to doodle onto a VoiceThread with a pencil tool. Comments can be private or public; they can be threaded (comments commenting on comments) or linear; they can be moderated, size-or time-limited; downloadable, or not. They can be re-ordered, edited and deleted. Students can also adopt different “identities”, for role play scenarios.

Commenting in VoiceThread is very intuitive: every VoiceThread has a commenting semi-circle along the bottom, with an easy tool picker. Simply click the plus button, select your tool, and comment!

You can explore all of the details of VoiceThread’s commenting options and settings in their documentation.

VoiceThread's Canvas Integration

• Canvas Integration: Benefits

If you are regularly using VoiceThread with a class, we strongly recommend that you use VoiceThread’s Canvas integration. Here are some of the reasons why you might want to do this:

• The integration allows your students to seamlessly pass from Canvas into the VoiceThread application, without being prompted for a login.
• All enrolled students will automatically have permissions to VoiceThreads you share in their Canvas course - no need to set permissions on VoiceThreads, or “invite” students.
• In the VoiceThread application, a course folder for your course will automatically be created, housing all of the VoiceThreads for the course
• VoiceThread integrates with the Canvas Gradebook. You can easily create VoiceThread assignments, and grade them in a grading area in VoiceThread. You can also easily see, at a glance, who in your class did or did not complete a VoiceThread assignment. Any grading you do in VoiceThread will automatically be synched back into the Canvas Gradebook.
• Canvas Integration: Create a Connection to all VoiceThreads for your Class

It is a good idea to create a link to your course’s VoiceThread folder, where students can find all of the VoiceThreads for your class in one place. This is only possible in a Canvas Module.

• Navigate to the “Modules” area of your course
• Find (or create) the Module to which you’d like to add VoiceThread, and then click the Add Item button. It is fine to have a module for the sole purpose of linking to VoiceThread.
• In the “Add Item…” Dialogue Box, choose (a.) External Tool from the Drop-Down menu. A scrollable area will appear from which you need to select the tool (b.) VoiceThread . (c.) Then select Add Item .

• A new box will pop up and present you with 4 choices; this may take a few seconds, because you are actually getting connected and logged into VoiceThread. Choose the Course View option, and click Save and Save and Continue when prompted.

• You will return to the Canvas “Add Item” Dialogue Box. Scroll down further, and make sure to check the box next to (a.) Load in a new tab . It’s easy to forget this last step - if you do, you can edit the item you just created, and check the Load in a new tab option then. (b.) Then, click the Add Item button (Or "Update" if you've gone back to edit).

• You have now created a link which will take your students seamlessly to your course’s home folder in VoiceThread
• Canvas Integration: Creating VoiceThread Assignments

You can create three types of VoiceThread Assignments:

• A Watch assignment: to ask students to watch a VoiceThread
• A Comment assignment: to ask students to comment on a VoiceThread
• A Create assignment: to ask students to create a VoiceThread

The creation process for all three assignment types is very similar. Here, we will walk you through the steps to create a Comment assignment.

• Navigate to the Assignments area of your Canvas course.
• Click the Plus button to create a new assignment.

• You are now presented with a long web form, allowing you to choose an Assignment name, to assign points, select due dates etc. To link to a VoiceThread, pay attention to the Submission Type area. Be sure to check the box next to Load This Tool in a New Tab . Then, click the Find button.

• On the next screen, click Save and Continue . This returns you to Canvas’ “Create a New Assignment” web form. Double-check all of your selections, then click Save or Save & Publish in the lower right.
• VoiceThread Resources

VoiceThread maintains excellent documentation on its website. The following three landing pages are the most useful:

• Complete guide to all of the functionality of VoiceThread’s web application
• Guide to VoiceThread in Canvas for instructors
• Guide to VoiceThread in Canvas for students
• Contacting VoiceThread Support

You can contact VoiceThread support here. This will take you to a web form you need to fill out. Be sure to use your Dartmouth email address, so that VoiceThread knows that your question is connected to Dartmouth’s VoiceThread instance.

VoiceThread Guide

• Signing into VoiceThread
• Commenting on a Voicethread

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Setting up VoiceThread Assignments Using the Assignment Builder

Created by Becky Shiring, Modified on Thu, 14 Dec 2023 at 10:33 AM by Raphael Keele

VoiceThread's Assignment Builder function allows instructions to create a graded assignment requiring students to create, comment on, or watch a VoiceThread. This activity is linked to the Canvas Gradebook.

Steps to Create a VoiceThread Assignment

• On the Modules page click on the plus (+) sign to add assignment.
• Click on Create Assignment.
• Add Assignment Name.

• The Assignment will be placed at the bottom of the current Module.
• Click on the Assignment link to launch the Assignment Page.
• Click on Edit.
• Copy the Student VoiceThread Instructions below and paste into the Assignment area:

VoiceThread Instructions for Students

This link provides an introduction to VoiceThread: https://voicethread.com/howto/

Follow these instructions on how to:

• use the VoiceThread Course View link
• navigate to your personal JHU VoiceThread account from VoiceThread Course View
•  start creating VoiceThreads
• share VoiceThreads with your VoiceThread course group

Related Articles

• Getting Started with VoiceThread

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Assignment Guide

If you need technical support, contact the LATTE team at [email protected] or the Voice Thread team . Be sure to use Chrome or Firefox browsers or VoiceThread may not display properly. 

Create an initial VoiceThread activity in your LATTE course to connect it to VoiceThread. Don’t worry about the name or settings; we will delete it later. Click Save and display.

You will then be directed to a page where you can choose an activity type. Select Assignment Builder.

You will then be brought to a page where you can select what kind of assignment you want your students to complete: Create, Comment, Watch, Reconnect Previous Assignment. For this example, we will select Create Assignment, click Continue.

You can edit your assignment's set up options to your liking, click Continue. For a more detailed explanation of the setup options, please see below.

You can then add assignment instructions, a URL, dates, submission settings, assessment and student message. When you are done, click Publish.

At this point, you will be redirected to your course page, if you want to look at your assignment, scroll down to where you initially created the activity and click on the assignment.

Additional Features in the Assignment Builder

• Number of comments required: Enter a positive number and choose “minimum” or “exact” to require students to post comments on the VoiceThread. Students can see the requirement while they work on the assignment, and they will not be able to submit until the requirement is met.
• Commenting types: Select which types of comments (microphone, webcam, telephone, upload and/or text) students can post.
• Enable threaded commenting: Allows participants to start threaded conversations .
• Enable comment moderation: Allows the VoiceThread creator to preview all comments before revealing them to others. You can also choose never to reveal them. Learn more about Comment Moderation .
• Start playing when opened: If checked, the comments on your VoiceThread will begin playing automatically when opened.
• When final comment on a slide has played, automatically advance to the next slide after __ seconds: If checked, the VoiceThread will play through all of the comments on a slide and then move to the next slide automatically. The number of seconds is the “pause” time before the slide advances.

Permissions

• Allow download: Allow students to download the central media from one another’s VoiceThreads or your initial VoiceThread.
• Allow students to make a copy: Allow students to make a copy of one another’s VoiceThreads or your initial VoiceThread.

Student Gallery ("Create" Assignments only)

• If you want students to view one another’s VoiceThreads after they are submitted, check this box. This will give them a “Student Gallery” button in their interface to see just the VoiceThreads their classmates have submitted for this assignment.

Setting Up an Assignment Where Students Are Required to Comment on a VT Video or Submission from their Peers

You will then be directed to a page where you can choose an activity type. Select “Assignment Builder.”

You will then be brought to a page where you can select what kind of assignment you want your students to complete: Create, Comment, Watch, Reconnect Previous Assignment. For this example, we will select the Comment, click continue.

From here, you should be able to see all of the existing VoiceThreads you currently have access to, select the VoiceThread you would like your students to comment on and click the little circle on the particular VoiceThread. Additionally, you can also create a new VoiceThread from scratch. When you are satisfied with your selection, click Continue.

From here, you will be brought to a page with the VoiceThread you selected. If you are interested in adding more material or slides to your current VoiceThread, you can click the “add media” button on the right hand side of the screen. When you are satisfied with your VoiceThread, simply click continue.

On the next page, you will be brought into your VoiceThread. You can simply click continue to the instruction page, or you can add in comments for your own preference. In this image, a comment is added to explain the directions of the assignment. Then click Continue.

The next page will allow you to build the assignment features such as comment types, comment settings, etc. Once you are done, click Continue.

The last page is where you will give the assignment instructions, dates and assessment type. Once you have selected your settings, click Publish.

How to Grade a VoiceThread Assignment

Note: The RABB GPS School does not grade assignments in VoiceThread. Please talk to a learning designer.

For this example, we will be grading a VoiceThread Assignment that requires students to comment on a VoiceThread that the instructor posted. First, you will scroll down to a VoiceThread assignment that needs to be graded and click on it. You will be able to see the assignment you created along with who has started the assignment and who has been graded.

When a student has submitted their assignment, you will see that under their names in the ungraded category. To look at the students submission, click on the dropdown button right next to their name.

From here you will be taken to the VoiceThread and will see the student comments on the left hand side. If you click on their name, you will see what the student commented. On the right side of the screen you will see an area where you can assign a grade and save it.

Lastly, if you go back to your voice thread, you will see that the students comment has now moved from the ungraded to the graded category.

How to Restore Previous Assignments

In a case where you have a new course created for you and you are interested in using a previous VoiceThread assignment you made in the past, there is a way you can restore it without having to start from scratch.

Create an initial VoiceThread activity in your LATTE course to connect it to VoiceThread. Don’t worry about the name or settings; we will delete it later. Click Save and Display.

You will then be brought to a page where you can select what kind of assignment you want your students to complete. Click Reconnect Previous Assignment.

You will then be routed to a page where you can view all of the VoiceThreads you created and published or unpublished. Additionally, you can click on the i symbol at the bottom right of each of your VoiceThreads to get some basic information and also preview the assignment in a new tab. Here you can see the general information about your assignment, preview your assignment and make changes to it if necessary. If this is the assignment you would like, simply close the tab.

Once you determine which assignment you want to restore, select the assignment and click Publish at the bottom of the page.

You will then be routed back to your course home page. From here, scroll down to the VoiceThread you created and click on it.

Here, you can see the general information about your assignment, preview your assignment and make changes to it if necessary. For this example, we are going to click on Assignment Content.

From here you will see your original VoiceThread along with any comments that were made when you first created it. You can add new comments yourself or delete comments that either you or your students made previously. Additionally, you will be able to click on the three dots on the top right corner of your VoiceThread and see additional information: Show assignment details, Open in a new tab, and Edit assignment. Click Edit Assignment.

Now you will be able to edit the assignment to your liking. Once you are satisfied with your selection, click Publish.

You will be routed back to the screen where you started editing to begin with. At this point your assignment is up to date!

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Using VoiceThread to Enhance Existing Assignments

This is a guest post by Nursing Educator and VoiceThreader Kimberly Davis.

I attended the online VoiceThread Basics Training this past spring and was quickly hooked! One of the features that really appealed to me about using VoiceThread was the idea that students could use multiple modalities to express themselves. I teach Concepts of Professional Nursing, an introductory nursing course, where students have traditionally used a written discussion board post to answer how this class has shaped their professional identity. This summer instead of using the discussion board forum, I took the question to VoiceThread and had the students post their discussion using their own slides, video, audio, images, etc. This assignment became so much more interactive, and the student responses were truly inspiring!

Logistically, I wanted to make the discussion meaningful since I have 80 students in the class, so I divided them into groups of 10 to make it more manageable. After they read over and responded to each other’s posts, they then created an electronic poster presentation of just images to represent their group’s collective professional identity as a nurse. Each of the groups then presented their electronic posters to the class on our final day.

I think utilizing VoiceThread allowed for a deeper reflection since students were able to use color, voice, video, and imagery to represent their thoughts. As I read through their posts, there was definitely an underlying feeling that students were starting to realize how challenging the nursing profession will be. Some themes I saw in the responses included recognition of the complexity of patient-centered care/advocacy, importance of caring and safety, need for evidence-based practice, dangers of horizontal violence, importance of caring for self, etc. An unintended effect of this assignment was that I saw multiple encouraging responses between the students, such as “You will be an awesome nurse” and “I have no doubt in my mind you will be compassionate and knowledgeable to all of your patients! Your patients are going to be lucky to have you as a nurse!” Using VoiceThread for this assignment truly enhanced student engagement and contributed to their learning in a significant way.

Since I had such a positive experience in the introductory nursing course, I decided to implement VoiceThread into a reflection activity with my community clinical group this semester. Since this is a service learning course, students are expected to participate in meaningful reflections of their community-based experiences. This semester I started posting their reflection questions on VoiceThread and gave them editing rights which allowed them to add their own slides after my introduction so they could then respond to each other with voice, text, video, and imagery. I have led this reflection activity for several years now using a traditional written discussion board forum. Typically students have responded to the minimum number of posts as required, however, this semester I noticed a higher level of engagement with some students responding more than this required minimum. Reflecting with VoiceThread has been a success!

Another feature that enticed me to implement VoiceThread was the editing ability. I am program director for the Care Coordination Certificate program at our university, which is 95% online. The first course that students take in the program includes an overview of the United States healthcare system. We identified early this year that pre-recording these lectures was not going to be in the best interest of the students due to the rapidly changing health care environment. For the instructor, the editing features of VoiceThread are ideal when content may change from week to week (or even day to day!)

We are able to prepare lectures and re-record over one slide at a time, or even exchange slides, all without having to re-record the entire lecture. This editing feature has been a huge win for the faculty in the program who need to be able to quickly adapt to an ever-changing health care environment. It’s also wonderful in an online program that students can add questions and comments directly to the slides throughout the lecture. This promotes engagement when learning is asynchronous, and inserting audience response questions is a great way to break up the content.

Implementing VoiceThread has been a big win for me and my students this year! Faculty are excited about using this tool, and students are more engaged in the learning activities.

Kimberly Davis, MS, RN, CNE is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Nursing in Richmond, VA. She teaches in a variety of undergraduate nursing courses with a special focus on community health nursing. Kimberly also serves as core faculty for the Center for Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Care and is program director for the Care Coordination Certificate at VCU, an interprofessional post-baccalaureate graduate level certificate targeted to health science students. You can contact her at daviskd5 [at] vcu.edu.

Perspectives in Teaching & Learning

Voicethread new assignment design.

Our vendor partners at Voice Thread have been busy enhancing the assignment experience in their multimedia discussion tool. You can turn on the new assignment workflow now on a course by course basis or wait until the summer when we will turn it on as the default for all courses.

So what is new about the VoiceThread assignment workflow? According to VoiceThread’s advance communications the new workflow includes:

• Interface enhancements to streamline the assignment creation process
• Instructors can control more options in assignments
• Ability to edit assignments
• Better feedback for students
• A student gallery so students can easily see classmates VoiceThreads

To turn on the new assignment workflow, follow the instructions for Instructors in the VoiceThread New Assignment Transition plan .

More information on using the new assignment workflow is available in the instructor guide .

VoiceThread will be hosting regular webinars on the new assignment workflow. Check the calendar on the Online Hub to see when the next one is being held.

Instructional Technology Group

• Toggle Navigation

Canvas: VoiceThread Graded Assignments

Updated 8/8/21

    VoiceThread is integrated with Canvas!

As of june 30, 2021, welcome to the “new assignments” voicethread interface. a few improvements:.

— The Canvas assignment will control all VoiceThread content associated with it. Once you use a VoiceThread for an assignment, it will no longer be visible on your VT Home Page. The assignment is the only place instructors and students can see it. –You can set start dates and due dates. Students will not be able to see your assignment outside of that time range. –After students submit, they will not be permitted to make any alterations to their submission unless you’ve allowed them to resubmit. –Selecting an existing VoiceThread will make a copy of it for use in that assignment. 

You can build a VoiceThread assignment in Canvas, asking students to: CREATE a VoiceThread, COMMENT on a VoiceThread, OR  WATCH a VoiceThread.  As you grade the VoiceThread assignments, the grades go into the Canvas grade book.

(Not familiar with VoiceThread? Check out these videos: What is a VoiceThread?     and  VoiceThread Basics Workshop 1 )

There’s a link to the full video tutorial lower down in this article, but the main tips to remember when creating a graded VoiceThread assignment in Canvas are…

When you are creating an Assignment (click more options if necessary, to see all the assignment settings), for the Submission Type , choose EXTERNAL TOOL  in the drop-down menu.

The area will then expand and you will see a Find button. 

Click the VoiceThread link one time and you’ll see information appear in the URL field at the bottom of that window. (Also, if you’d like your assignment to open in a new tab, check that box.) Click the Select button.

You’ll then need to configure the settings of your VoiceThread.

The main takeaway here is to choose “ Assignment Builder ” (see screenshot below) if you want to create a graded VoiceThread assignment (asking students to Create , Comment on, or Watch a VoiceThread). The other options in the screenshot below work fine with VoiceThread, but do not tie in with the Canvas grade book. The video below explains what each option can do.

Here are videos with all of the steps and additional details: Using VoiceThread in Canvas

Voicethread new assignments, other tips and fyi:.

–Audio and video comments on WFU VoiceThreads are auto captioned, providing greater accessibility.

–When you create a VoiceThread assignment, it appears in the Canvas gradebook immediately with that name. If you rename a VoiceThread assignment, it also renames  it in the gradebook immediately–however, it does not  rename it in the VoiceThread assignment interface. Also, once you create a VoiceThread assignment and choose your settings, they are permanent for that link. You can’t edit those settings. So, if you need to edit your VoiceThread assignment name or settings and you catch the error right away before students submit, go ahead and delete the assignment and recreate it.

–When you go to grade a VoiceThread in your Canvas course, you don’t use Canvas SpeedGrader. Just click on the assignment link. You’ll see at the top “SUBMITTED” and below that “NOT SUBMITTED.” But in the sample screenshot below, “NOT SUBMITTED” is empty, when I know I have several other students in the class. Here’s why: It’s not until a student has clicked the VoiceThread assignment link that they are authenticated into the VoiceThread group in the course. and they will then be recognized by VT and appear in the “Not Submitted” area until they submit. Later, if you create additional VoiceThread assignments in that same course, those students who have already authenticated in that course (that VT group) will immediately show up as “Not Submitted” (until they submit) since they have already authenticated into that VoiceThread course. 

Want to learn more about VoiceThread?

Attend an online workshop or view the workshop recordings!

Categories: Canvas , Instructional Design , Tech Tip , VoiceThread

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New VoiceThread Experience (May 2024)

by marindindj | May 7, 2024 | Uncategorized | 0 comments

Enhanced Voicethread Experience

The College of Charleston will open the new VoiceThread experience in May of 2024!  This is the biggest update in VoiceThread history, featuring a more intuitive design that is fully accessible and usable, ensuring an enhanced user experience for everyone.  Additional highlights include a simpler-to-use conversation structure.  Also, the new VoiceThread improves the ability to zoom, pan, and jump navigation.  Several exciting upgrades are highlighted below, along with a variety of tutorials.

Commenting in a VoiceThread — Select a slide and use the new comment button, now located on the left side of the page. You can type and record audio or video as part of your comment.  To add a comment to a conversation, just click the button on the lower left. You will then choose a comment type.  A choice between text, audio, video, and upload will be available unless settings are adjusted to eliminate any of these choices.  To see the new commenting features in action, watch this video .

One Conversation/Viewing Comments : Comments are aligned in a single timeline called ‘One conversation’, making it easier to follow discussions. You can also zoom in and pan on images while commenting to point out specific details​ ( One Conversation Video ) ​​ One Conversation vs. multi-conversation tutorial:  https://voicethread.com/howto/one-conversation-vs-multi-conversation/

Enhanced Accessibility Features:  Ensure that you explore accessibility options, such as adjusting for dark mode or utilizing closed captions for a better user experience​ https://voicethread.com/blog/new-voicethread-simpler-more-accessible-and-more-powerful-2023-09-07/

Additional Enhancements

Bulk Actions for Comment Management: The introduction  of bulk actions like deleting all comments or revealing moderated comments at once, streamlining the management process. / https://voicethread.com/howto/deleting-a-comment-2/

Zoom & Pan – You can now zoom in and move around in an image during your comment, and everything you do will playback for your audience, just like they were sitting right next to you. – Zoom and Pan

Multi-slide (M/5) Comments: This feature allows users to j ump navigation –Open the new slide gallery and keep it open during your comment! This allows you to jump from slide 1 to slide 40 in a single click rather than flipping through them one by one. https://voicethread.cmail20.com/t/y-l-pkrjiul-iholktlc-u/ 

Assignment and Grading : For educators, the platform allows for the creation of assignments and the grading of student work directly within VoiceThread. Make sure to familiarize yourself with these options to leverage VoiceThread effectively in educational settings. https://voicethread.com/howto/using-new-assignments/

Questions ? Reach out to [email protected]

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• VoiceThread
• Center for Learning Innovation
• Canvas: Fall 2024
• Add an App or Tool

NOTE: VoiceThread is only available to the English Language Services group .

VoiceThread is integrated with Canvas but needs to be installed on the course. To install, please follow these steps:

• Email [email protected] and ask for Packback Client ID . Client ID sample: 212100000000000XXX
• After receiving the Client ID from support, open your course in Canvas.
• Go to Settings on the left-side menu.
• Go to Apps at the top.
• Click View App Configurations .
• Click +App .
• Change the Configuration Type to By Client ID .
• Enter the Client ID in the field provided.
• Click Install .

Now, the tool is installed on your course. To use it, please follow these steps:

• Navigate to the Assignments area of your course.
• Create a new assignment.
• Name the assignment and write a description if you choose.
• Under Submission Type, select External Tool .
• Click on the Find button.
• Click on VoiceThread .

This will launch the VoiceThread Setup Page. Proceed to the instructor support page for details about what comes next.

Learn more...

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Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Online learning, quarterly updates for summer 2024.

Posted by Andy Freed

D2L Brightspace

On June 17th, Online Learning will roll out the new standardized navigation bar (navbar) in D2L Brightspace! We are very excited because this new navbar is the result of over a year of research, prototyping, user testing, and collecting feedback from both faculty and students. For more details, see our Navbar 2024 project updates page .

Primary Needs:

• Students: Consistent navigation between courses.
• Faculty: Ability to provide links to course-specific resources.

Rollout Plan

On June 17th, we will be replacing the current default navbars used in the majority of courses with the new navbar. This will not require any action from most instructors. We will not lock the navbar until fall term so you have time to collect links and update any documents you have with custom instructions.

• Courses with custom navigation will also be updated to the new navbar for fall term.
• Add your custom links to the Links tool.
• Optional: Turn off the tools you don’t use

To provide feedback, you can use the “Send corrections or feedback” link in the Help menu from the navbar.

Assignment Annotations update

The assignment annotation tool has been updated with several minor interface updates and should address a number of minor defects. One note is that it will not work with older versions of Safari (15.4 and earlier).

Grades & Feedback

Feedback files are now available in Grades for Assignments, Quizzes, and Discussions! If you attach a file with feedback for your students, it will be available in the Grades area. This makes it even easier for students to see/access your feedback.

Manage Dates includes Intelligent Agents

Intelligent Agents can now be updated as part of your term to term Manage Dates workflow. For power users, this is an excellent update. If you haven’t used Intelligent Agents, check out our intro documentation .

Quarterly Minimum Version Enforcement

Zoom will be enforcing a new minimum version of the client software by August 1st, 2024. We will notify users who are using a legacy version prior to the update. Computers managed by PCC will be automatically updated well in advance. You can download the newest version now at https://portlandcc.zoom.us/download .

Zoom Workspace aka v6.x

Zoom has made a fairly major update to the client software. It allows some customization of the interface for your preferences. One new feature that has taken some adjustment is that the menu options collapse as you shrink the Zoom meeting window:

AI Companion

Zoom’s AI companion feature is still under review. We want to ensure adequate security and privacy measures for our students and faculty/staff.

New Tools & Previews

Ally to panorama.

Ally, the accessibility reporting and mitigation tool we’ve had for the last several years is being replaced with Panorama. The software is provided through a consortium license paid for by the Oregon Community College Distance Learning Association. The changes for users should be fairly minimal.

Rollout plan

We will be switching from Ally to Panorama on June 28th to ensure students have access to alternate formats during the first week. Documentation for the tool for students and faculty is available.

Annoto is now fully available for users and out of pilot stage! This tool integrates with D2L Brightspace and Kaltura, so you can allow students to comment on videos in your class! You can have students submit videos in Assignments and you can respond in-context to the student using text, audio, or video.

Learn more about Annoto .

Kahoot! has moved out of pilot stage and is widely available to PCC users! This tool serves as a polling tool with Zoom sessions for your remote courses. Learn more about Kahoot!.

Voicethread

An updated interface in VoiceThread is available and will be the default starting June 17th. The new interface should improve the overall use experience with VoiceThread and not really create any challenges. The new interface has been available to faculty for several months and we’ve not heard of any complaints.

Learn more from Voicethread .

Website updates

The Online Learning website is about to get a face lift thanks to our BIG-funded web designer position. The website will better present Online Learning support based on roles (student, faculty, dean/fdc) and the technical content will be moving over to the Instructional Support site .

About Andy Freed

I'm the Director of Learning Technology & Innovation (LTI!), where I oversee our infrastructure, technical support, and online student services teams. I've been with the College since 2001 and have worked in several positions, from tech... more »

Quarterly updates for Spring 2024 , Quarterly updates for Winter 2024 , September 2023 Highlights

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Air Force delays bonuses and new assignments amid political feud over Space Command’s new headquarters

The U.S. Air Force is delaying re-enlistment bonuses and planned moves for its personnel after Alabama lawmakers blocked funding for the service amid a political quarrel over the location of Space Command’s new headquarters .

The Air Force is taking actions “to avoid exhausting funds” and is putting off orders for planned change of station moves for personnel as well as bonuses for airmen who re-enlist, the Air Force said in a statement Monday.

“The Air Force continues to work through additional options to avoid the funding shortfall and will provide more information when available,” it said.

The decision came after Alabama lawmakers moved to curtail funding for the Air Force until the service’s secretary makes a public announcement on the location of the new Space Command headquarters. The facility originally was planned for Colorado but during the administration of President Donald Trump, the Air Force revised its plans and opted to place the headquarters in Alabama after reviewing six possible locations. Trump has claimed credit for the change in plans.

The Air Force said it faces “higher than projected personnel costs” but did not say why that was the case and did not mention recent moves in Congress to curtail funding.

NBC News previously reported  that Biden administration officials have signaled privately to Defense Department leaders and lawmakers that they are considering reversing the planned move to Alabama over concerns about the state’s strict anti-abortion laws. 

Lawmakers from Colorado, meanwhile, have pushed to build the Space Command in their state. The command’s temporary headquarters is currently in Colorado.

Under the actions announced Monday, Air Force personnel who already have orders to move this month will be able to go ahead with their new assignments, but all other change-of-station orders after July will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and some planned departures will be postponed, the Air Force said.

Citing the funding shortfall, the Air Force also said it will suspend re-enlistment bonuses for airmen for the fiscal year ending in the fall. But the service will allow airmen to extend their current enlistment into the next fiscal year of 2024 to permit them to secure a bonus at that point.

The funding squeeze also meant the Air Force will have to temporarily pause a new bonus program for aviators, the service said. The program plans to “restructure” the program and reopen it within two weeks, it said.

Dan De Luce is a reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit. 

Courtney Kube is a correspondent covering national security and the military for the NBC News Investigative Unit.

Gerrit Cole strikes out 10 in Triple-A rehab start

Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole strikes out 10 batters in 4 1/3 innings during his rehab assignment with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre

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Marine training shifts may add tech, change officer assignments

Marine Corps changes to training and education in 2024 and in the coming years will establish more training teams, build a career path for instructors, add advanced technology and could alter how new officers are assigned jobs.

The Corps’ first Training and Education annual report on Force Design published Wednesday ― and the 14-page document noted moves made and laid out deadlines in areas across the service for modernizing how Marines learn.

Lt. Gen. Kevin Iiams, head of Training and Education Command, said in a press release that the document was the command’s “strategic vision” to implement education that matches modernization in Force Design and new equipment and technologies entering the ranks.

“These initiatives collectively aim to equip the Marine Corps with the most modern, lethal, and capable Marines conceivable,” Iiams said. “Our efforts have been, and will continue to be, centered on two core pillars: Force Design and modernization. By driving innovation along these vectors, (Training and Education Command) is ensuring the development of a Marine Corps force primed not only to compete but to dominate in any theater of operation.”

Marines say no more ‘death by PowerPoint’ as Corps overhauls education

Less lecture, more projects and problem-solving on the horizon in marine schools..

The Training and Education 2030 planning document released in January 2023, under then-Commandant Gen. David Berger, laid out gaps in doctrine for such skills as drone and cyber operations, and emphasized modernizing training simulators and other education technologies.

Changes in training could have a direct, early impact on Marines in fires or communications jobs and new officers.

Training command has undertaken a two-phased study with combat development and integration to examine the “quality spread” policy used at The Basic School when assigning new officer military occupational specialties.

The quality spread is used to ensure that top finishers and lower-ranking graduates are spread evenly across the various job fields to avoid bunching up lower performers in one job field.

In its first phase, the study evaluated if evidence supports whether the policy should continue. Those results are expected by the end of June.

If it is found deficient, then the second phase of the study will build an alternate assignment model. That phase is scheduled to conclude before October.

Using a series of recent studies, the Marines plan to determine if measures testing an individual’s resiliency to help “screen out those who may be more susceptible to stress or adverse behaviors” to help lower attrition rates.

The Corps launched a pilot program in April at Marine Detachment Fort Sill, Oklahoma, to build a course for field artillery officers, target acquisition officers and field artillery scout observer chiefs.

The course aims to give those fires Marines in fires and effects coordination centers or fleet maritime operations centers advanced training.

The communication training battalion at Training Command is assessing how to combine critical skillsets from three communications job fields, 062X, 063X and 067X. That merging of those skills would make a more versatile communications Marine for multidisciplinary, “independent communications and information operators.”

As the Corps adopted its new training and education approach, it was evaluating how its instructors taught students and how the instructors themselves were selected and retained.

From that three-year evaluation has come an “outcomes-based learning” approach method. That method, while common in other education circles, has been less prevalent in military education. The approach puts more emphasis on having instructors guide students who learn both individually and in groups, completing tasks and problem-solving.

This is a break from the lecture model with an expert rattling off information at the front of a classroom for students to repeat on a test or quiz before moving to the next assignment.

The outcomes-based learning model will spread across the Corps, as the service has updated its formal school policy directives to include these methods.

“Instead of teaching them what to think, we’re teaching them how to think,” Col. Karl Arbogast, director of the policy and standards division at Training and Education Command, told Marine Corps Times in a previous interview.

But to teach this way requires training the instructors as well.

That’s resulted in two new exceptional military occupational specialty codes: 0951 and 0952. These are in addition to a Marine’s primary job but allow them to learn how to instruct.

The basic instructor course will be available to Marines by the end of fiscal year 2024 with the intermediate and master courses ready by fiscal year 2026, according to this week’s report.

Training Command is assessing both selection and retention of such qualified instructors, according to the report, and analyzing current and future incentive options to retain high-performing instructors.

Recruits with Charlie Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, receive a class on rank structure on Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina, Aug. 23, 2023. (Lance Cpl. Ava Alegria/Marine Corps)

On the technology side, the Corps has migrated its legacy information management system to a hybrid cloud system. The service expects to have a new, cloud-based version of the system fully operational by fiscal year 2028.

Tech moves are expanding war-gaming access through cloud services and expect to have war-gaming featured in all formal schools and primary military education by fiscal year 2025 and across the fleet by fiscal year 2026.

Also in the tech vein, the service will have deployed live, virtual, constructed training simulators to Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California, Camp Pendleton, California and Marine Corps Bases Hawaii and Okinawa, Japan, before October.

At the same time, each Marine expeditionary force and the Marine air-ground task force training command will receive one battalion-capable Marine Corps Tactical Instrumentation System by summer.

The training command is preparing to field electromagnetic spectrum simulators at Twentynine Palms, California, that can replicate adversary electronic warfare capabilities in training.

The Marines plan to use simulators to cut down on injuries as well.

They have a project underway to identify ground training events that have a high rate of injury, mishap or casualty. They’ll then include simulator training prior to live execution of those types of training events, starting with the motor transport tasks before October.

Lastly, to cut down on Marines awaiting training for schools, the new policy will identify Marines prior to recruit training graduation who will wait longer than 10 days between Marine Combat Training and their follow-on school and assign them to the Permissive Recruiter Assistance Support Program.

Also, Marines in lengthy awaiting training periods will be offered a voluntary reclassification to a job that is experiencing shortfalls and an immediate school ship date.

Todd South has written about crime, courts, government and the military for multiple publications since 2004 and was named a 2014 Pulitzer finalist for a co-written project on witness intimidation. Todd is a Marine veteran of the Iraq War.

In Other News

Congress’ defense fight to focus on pay raises, total military spending

Here’s a look at the major differences in the house and senate bills, and the debates ahead..

VA to add male breast cancer, two other conditions to presumptive list

The addition of three new cancers to the list of conditions presumed to be caused by military service will speed up disability benefits for some vets..

GOP green lights FY25 defense bill, but more social fights ahead

Abortion, diversity training and covid prevention are again hot-button issues in the military appropriations plan for next year..

Breastfeeding troops can recoup cost of shipping milk during PCS moves

A new pentagon policy allows troops to be reimbursed up to $1,000 to help cover the cost of shipping breast milk back to a baby during military moves..

• SI SWIMSUIT
• SI SPORTSBOOK

Toronto Blue Jays Designate Veteran Slugger Daniel Vogelbach For Assignment

Sam connon | jun 14, 2024.

• Toronto Blue Jays
• Pittsburgh Pirates
• Milwaukee Brewers
• Seattle Mariners
• New York Mets

The Toronto Blue Jays have designated first baseman/designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach for assignment, the team announced Friday.

Vogelbach's roster spot was given to utility man Addison Barger. The Blue Jays' No. 6 prospect was recalled from Triple-A and will be active for Friday night's game against the Cleveland Guardians .

ROSTER MOVES: 🔹 UTIL Addison Barger recalled from Triple-A and will be active for tonight’s game 🔹 DH Daniel Vogelbach designated for assignment pic.twitter.com/zzU4e8yNxt — Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) June 14, 2024

Vogelbach was batting .186 with one home run, eight RBI, a .578 OPS and a -0.4 WAR. He had appeared in just 31 of Toronto's 68 games, despite not suffering any injuries.

The 6-foot, 270-pound slugger will now have seven days to either get traded, placed on waivers or released. Depending on where he goes next, as well as how he gets there, the Blue Jays could be on the hook for Vogelbach's entire $2 million salary.

Vogelbach has been bouncing around ever since he made his lone All-Star appearance with the Seattle Mariners in 2019. That season, he hit 30 homers with 76 RBI, a .780 OPS and a 1.1 WAR.

The Blue Jays initially acquired Vogelbach in exchange for cash considerations in 2020, only to waive him and lose him to the Milwaukee Brewers a week later. Vogelbach stayed in Milwaukee for the 2021 season, then split 2022 between the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Mets .

Vogelbach appeared in 104 games for the Mets in 2023, accounting for 13 home runs, 48 RBI and a 0.2 WAR, before getting non-tendered in November.

Over the course of nine MLB seasons, Vogelbach is a .219 hitter with a .745 OPS. He averages 22 home runs, 66 RBI and a 0.3 WAR per 162 games in his big league career.

Vogelbach survived several roster crunches over the past month or so, which was surprising given his lack of production, irregular inclusions in the lineup and who else was let go in his place. Just last week, the Blue Jays designated former top prospect Cavan Biggio for assignment, then traded the utility man to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday.

Toronto has All-Star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as their everyday first baseman, as well as veteran Justin Turner to take most of the reps designated hitter. Whichever catcher isn't starting, whether it be Danny Jansen or Alejandro Kirk, could slot in as a temporary designated hitter.

Longtime Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto could be joining the Blue Jays soon as well, considering the Toronto native is nearing his return from an ankle injury he has been nursing since Spring Training.

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Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by liking us on  Facebook  and by following us on Twitter  @FastballFN .

You can also follow Sam Connon on Twitter  @SamConnon .

Sam Connon is a Staff Writer for Fastball on the Sports Illustrated/FanNation networks. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's All Bruins, 247Sports' Bruin Report Online, Rivals' Bruin Blitz, the Bleav Podcast Network and the Daily Bruin, with his work as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk.

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