Teaching in Brightspace
Resources to help you get started with teaching online
As an individual lecturer, use these resources to get started quickly with online teaching.
If you would like assistance with developing a fully online module, or a programme-wide initiative, then please email LTA@tudublin.ie to arrange a consultancy.
How to deliver a webinar
Webinars allow you to teach your students in a live online environment where you can present a lecture/PowerPoint, and where your students can interact with you and their classmates. A webinar is the best online alternative to a traditional lecture. A webinar/virtual classroom tool (Bongo) is available to all TU Dublin City Campus staff via Brightspace.
General advice:
- Video: Conducting an effective live webinar. (Log in 'via Organisation' and use your TU Dublin credentials to gain access to the full video)
- Checklist: How to prepare for, and facilitate, a webinar/virtual classroom
- Checklist: Considerations when recording webinars/virtual classrooms
Bongo/Brightspace-specific advice and instructions
- Guide (printable): Practical instructions for using the webinar tool, Bongo, in Brightspace
- Guide (video): Practical instructions for using the webinar tool, Bongo, in Brightspace
- Advanced and troubleshooting: Short individual guides on Bongo's features and tools, and some troubleshooting tips.
- Useful slides: Interface Tour slides to incorporate into your own presentations and there is also an introduction to Bongo for students on the student login page
- Your browser settings: Getting an authentication error or other browser error? Check your browser cookie settings.
More help? See www.tudublin.ie/brightspace/training for training sessions and also Drop-In sessions - the VLE tutors will be happy to help you get going with webinars/online teaching at any Drop-In session, and can help check the audio settings on your laptop if necessary.
Pre-recording your lecture using Bongo
There a number of different ways of pre-recording your lecture, and then making that recording available to your students via Brightpace (And of course you can always deliver a live webinar as outlined above and then make that recording available subsequently - the instructions below specifically cover making the recording without any students in attendance).
- Guide (printable): Use Bongo to create a pre-recorded lecture
- Guide (printable): How to add audio to a PowerPoint presentation and upload that recording to Brightspace
- Guide (webinar recording): Deliver a webinar using the Bongo virtual classroom tool, AND pre-record your lectures (recording of a webinar given by Derek Dodd in March 2020)
Screencasting
Screencasting software allows a lecturer to create a recording (video and audio) of any activity performed on a computer screen. You could, for example, prepare a short video guiding your students around your Brightspace module; or demonstrate a particular piece of software; or explain a particularly difficult concept using powerpoint.
- Screencast-O-Matic is a screen recorder that captures all movement on your screen making it easy for you to create content for online delivery or to pre-record lectures and TU Dublin has purchased licences. Access this document to find out how to create your Screencast-O-Matic account and use this straightforward software.
General guides to screencasting:
- Guide (printable): Creating screencasts to deliver content online
- Tips (printable): Tips and hints for creating screencasts
Communicating effectively online with your students
You communicate with your face-to-face (f2f) students on a constant basis, it comes naturally. However, when working online with your students you need different strategies.
Guide (printable): Communicating effectively online with your students
Facilitating your students to work together online
Bongo, the webinar/virtual classroom tool available in Brightspace, also offers a very useful set of groupwork tools. The Bongo group project tools can be used to allow your students to:
- learn collaboratively
- share and discuss work in progress
- chat asynchronously
- schedule virtual meetings, and make recordings of those meetings
- upload individual and group video presentations
- set and manage project milestones
- team, peer and self-evaluate.
Guide (Video): Instructors - how to set up, monitor, and grade a group project/assignment using Bongo group project tools