Electronic Classrooms

At Rhode Island College an electronic classroom is a traditional classroom equipped with multimedia devices to enhance presentation. Currently, the College has thirty-one electronic classrooms distributed across the campus: twenty-six classroom facilities and five auditorium facilities. We ask you to assist us by reserving electronic classrooms only when you intend to use the special equipment on a regular basis.

The Help Desk has provided answers to some common questions about electronic classrooms:

• Where are they located?
• Does every electronic classroom house the same equipment?
• Why would you want to use an electronic classroom?
• What do I need to do to schedule an electronic classroom?

Where are they located?

Most academic buildings on campus house at least one electronic classroom. By design electronic classrooms have been integrated within the traditional classroom environment.

Does every electronic classroom house the same equipment?

The simple answer is no. However, every classroom contains:

• an LCD Projector, usually ceiling-mounted and designed to take either VGA (SVGA or XGA) input (from a desktop or laptop computer system) or video input (from a VCR or DVD player)
• Visual Presenter: This device combines and enhances the traditional functions of overhead and opaque projectors. Please contact the Audiovisual Department at 456-8020 for assistance with the visual presenter.
• Sound system: This is a simple, amplified sound system located in the equipment cabinet of some electronic classrooms.
• a VCR, used with the LCD projector and classroom sound system to play video tapes
• a DVD Player, used with the LCD projector and classroom sound system to play DVDs
• at least one network connection for Internet access
• a desktop computer system: with a VGA connector to both the computer monitor the LCD projector. Each desktop system is equipped with zip and CD-RW drives. The classroom hard drive contains the same software that User Support Services installs in the academic computing labs.

Nine classrooms contain electronic whiteboards:

SmartBoard: This is an interactive whiteboard that may be used with the desktop or laptop computer (client software required). A SmartBoard serves as a projection surface for an LCD projector. The SmartBoard is touch-sensitive allowing an instructor to control an application program with by touching the board instead of typing on a keyboard or clicking a mouse. Information displayed on the SmartBoard can be captured and saved for later use.

Why would you want to use an electronic classroom?

There are many reasons why you may find the facilities in these rooms useful in your teaching. Many faculty members are using PowerPoint presentations to organize lectures and to enhance their presentations with graphic and audio content. Others want to take their students on a tour of the Internet showing their classes how to discover valuable educational resources on the web or directing them to course materials available on the WEBCT server. Please check the table below for recommended equipment for specific instructional uses of electronic classrooms.

Use	Equipment Required
PowerPoint Presentation	LCD Projector, PC (or your own laptop), possibly a sound system.
Showing a videotape	LCD Projector, VCR, sound system
Showing a DVD movie	LCD Projector, DVD, sound system
Projecting transparencies (remember that fine details in the transparency will not be visible)	LCD Projector, Visual Presenter
Projecting printouts, books, solid objects	LCD Projector, Visual Presenter
Web browsing, including information sources and researching via the Web	LCD Projector, PC (or your own laptop), possibly a sound system
Teaching computer applications using the SmartBoard	LCD Projector, SmartBoard, PC, possibly a sound system
Saving work done in class for publishing on your website or WebCT course	LCD Projector, SmartBoard, PC
Using an application or data on your laptop	LCD Projector, your own laptop, laptop connection, possibly a sound system

User Support Services schedules periodic training sessions to assist you in the use of the equipment in the electronic classroom. Watch the Briefs for workshop announcements.

What do I need to do to schedule an electronic classroom?

There are three parts to this answer since you must:

1. determine which classrooms are available for use
2. obtain physical access to the room with your College ID card
3. open the A-V equipment cabinet when needed

Determining availability. Electronic classrooms are scheduled by the College Scheduling Office. When planning your teaching schedule for a future semester, you should inform your department chair that you would like to teach one or more courses in an electronic classroom. Your department chair will identify your needs and work with the Scheduling Office to locate suitable classroom space.
The current bookings for all electronic classrooms are published for the faculty and staff in Outlook Public Folders. You may check the availability of classrooms in Outlook by clicking on the "View" menu and choosing "Folder List". Scroll down to the bottom of the folder tree and click on the "+" at the left of the heading "Public Folders". Next click the "+" to the left of the heading "All Public Folders", then click "+" to the left of the heading "Electronic Classrooms". To view the schedule for a specific electronic classroom in calendar format, click the classroom name.
Note: The scheduling information in the Public Folders is updated frequently but may not be 100% reliable. For up-to-date information and assistance with scheduling electronic classrooms, please contact the Scheduling Office by telephone at 456-8203 or by email at scheduling@ric.edu.

Opening The Door
When the Scheduling Office has assigned you a room, you must obtain ID card access or entry token access to the room. If you do not have a College ID, please get one from the Campus Card Office located in Student Union 204 (telephone 456-8394). If your classroom has token access, an entry token may be obtained from the Office of Security and Safety (telephone 456-8201).

For College ID card access, User Support Services can arrange for entry into your electronic classroom. To authorize the use of your ID card for room access User Support Services will need additional information, a list of the room(s) you want to enter, the title and section number of the course(s) that you will be teaching in each room. You may supply that information by sending an email to nuslabs@ric.edu, by telephoning the helpdesk at Ext. 8803, or by making an appointment with a support specialist (Ext. 8803).Note: if your ID card does not open the lock, it is possible that your card is damaged; the Campus Card can verify damage and generate a replacement card.

AV Equipment cabinet: Equipment stored in AV cabinets has been secured by Audiovisual, telephone 456-8020. Faculty members who expect to use VCRs, DVDs or Visual Presenters should telephone AV for instruction in the care and use of the AV equipment.