Case study
Deploying a Video CMS, Lecture Capture and Recording Solution
Background
The Need for a Video Solution
Madison Area Technical Technical College (MATC), by nature, has many hands-on courses, augmented with online and virtual learning.
Prior to implementing YuJa Enterprise Video Platform, instructors were using a number of products to aid in their instruction, combined with another media solution that didn’t effectively serve the college’s needs. “Instructors had a habit of storing files in the learning management system, which is a band-aid solution for media storage,” explained David Leo, a Faculty Technologist at MATC.
In its quest for a better solution to host and deliver media, the college formed a committee to research and ultimately recommend an all-in-one product to serve its needs. Both Leo and Kathy Jochman, who provides technology support to faculty through the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL), were appointed to the committee because of their expertise in education, course design and technology solutions that benefit both instructors and students.
150
Degree, diploma, or certificate programs
30,965
2019-2020 Enrolled
1912
Founded
Higher Learning Commission
Accreditation
About the Client
About Madison Area Technical College
Madison Area Technical College (MATC) is a public technical and community college located in Madison, Wisconsin. Founded in 1912, MATC has offered educational opportunities to a wide variety of students with varying educational needs for more than 100 years. Students can earn an associate degree, technical diploma or a certificate in more than 150 programs.
“Accessibility is one of the big features that drew us to YuJa’s products. Because instructors are often time-strapped, auto-captioning and tagging have proven to be well-used tools.”
Solution
Identifying a Suitable Video Solution
MATC has always had an active number of online classes in addition to traditional on-campus classes. Because it had invested in the YuJa Enterprise Video Platform, when the pandemic hit, the infrastructure was already in place to support online learning. The college has committed significant time and energy into virtual/online and hybrid courses.
As the committee searched for the right product, Leo said there was an immediate attraction to YuJa. “The Video Platform was so compelling, not only compared to what we were coming from, but also what was available in the marketplace,” he stated. “It was night and day, competitively speaking.”
In addition to features like in-line video quizzing, engagement analytics and gradebook synchronization, YuJa offers “accessibility, accessibility, accessibility,” Leo emphasized.
Value
Enhancing Learning With YuJa
Over the past several months, Jochman said part of her role has been encouraging faculty members to add their unique personality to their course. “We want to let students know that there is a real human behind the screen,” she remarked. Faculty have taken advantage of YuJa to create introductory videos they post online and have used it with students. “It’s a very easy tool for students to access. Instead of, say, a discussion board, they can record their responses with a short video. It adds life and vitality to a course, especially versus having everything only in print,” Jochman added.
Teachers have expressed gratitude at having automatic closed captioning and lauded that they also can get a transcript, which benefits students in a number of ways. In one instance, Jochman said there was a student whose hours of study were from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Instructors also appreciate the ease in which they can embed questions in videos, those questions are scored and uploaded into the gradebook. Inline commentary adds a human voice to student feedback, helping them understand an instructor’s comments about their work.The inline video quizzing tool quickly became popular, as has the ability to use a cell phone to create video close-ups that otherwise might not have been possible.
“Having a script rather than listening to audio created a much better learning experience for her.”
Use Cases
Creating Dynamic Instructional Content
In switching to a more virtual environment, teachers have found YuJa helps them create more dynamic content on the fly. “By the nature of its design, YuJa affords the ability to create more compelling content to draw learners in and to increase participation, rather than passively watching a video in another platform,” Leo stated.
One interesting use case during the pandemic has been in teaching a public speaking course that required viewing by five people in a live audience to replicate a public speaking venue. “We had students record videos and break out into smaller group settings to critique one another,” Jochman said.
In manufacturing and science courses, students have been required to demonstrate their understanding of a lesson with materials they have at home or with home kits. Teachers have been pleased with the level of detail students are able to capture in their videos. “We’ve also noticed how much more students enjoy consuming content. While it’s unusual for faculty to report those types of observations, we have heard that students are far more engaged and appreciate the type of learning YuJa allows,” Leo highlighted.
Jochman said that through supporting faculty, students have benefitted. The Center for Excellence in Teaching in Learning has started creating step-by-step instructions for using technology based on which format students prefer to use. “Implementation has been very successful. YuJa adds dimension, allowing students to hear and see one another, interact in presentations and use ready-made tools as part of their educational process,” Jochman shared.
One heavily used aspect is CETL’s response to faculty when they have questions. The institution has developed a repository of two to three-minute-long instructional videos to get staff started down the right path. CETL also is working with Human Resources and the Continuing Education programs to create training modules.
“Wherever instructors go, they can access and create content on-demand from anywhere, without having to wrestle with embed codes. It follows teachers wherever they’re at, making recording lessons with any device not only possible, but easy.”
Implementation
Integrating the Video CMS with Blackboard
Integration with Blackboard, the college’s Learning Management System, has been “effortless,” Jochman said, and has decreased the learning curve for users because of its ease of use. “The learning curve is so short. You can just take off and use any of the tools with little training,” Leo said. He added that Single Sign-on integration is painless and problem-free.
Centralization
A Centralized and Organized Video Storage Solutions
The cloud-based storage capabilities within YuJa allows for ease in organizing and storing videos, documents and other files. Faculty have historically been reluctant to move all of their videos to a single location because of storage capacity limitations, the potential for having to move them later and anxiety over losing files and videos they worked hard to create, Leo noted. “The storage parameters in YuJa are phenomenal, scalable, and so much more cost effective for the college.”
Jochman said not only is YuJa more efficient, but it helps create organization that is hard to rival. “Once you begin using video, you quickly have a huge collection to manage,” Jochman commented. “Instructors can organize into folders, making it easy to search and find exactly what they want.”
“The storage parameters in YuJa are phenomenal, scalable, and so much more cost effective for the college.”
Support
Comprehensive All-Inclusive User Support and Training
While YuJa’s products are intuitive and user-friendly, there are times in which an issue “isn’t in our wheelhouse,” Jochman said. “When I send a faculty member to YuJa support, I always ask them to circle back and tell me what they found. We’ve never had an issue not successfully resolved in an expeditious manner. It builds such confidence in the company.”
Both Leo and Jochman agreed that technology can cause anxiety for users, but YuJa always has what they coined as a “partner mindset,” with a willingness to jump in and help without making anyone feel inadequate.
“We work with a lot of vendors, some of which don’t provide answers or return tickets without helping. But we don’t think twice before sending something to YuJa’s support team.”
Looking Ahead
The Future With YuJa
Madison Area Technical College administrators, faculty and staff are excited about the college’s future with YuJa. In fact, the creation of VR (virtual reality) content is already underway in the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. They’re also looking forward to taking advantage of 360-degree video, leaning more heavily on YuJa’s storage solutions, and are considering more ways to integrate tools such as Webex.
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