Classroom Technologies

The Campus Technology Services group designs and updates the technology found in classrooms across the UMKC campuses. Use these resources to help you enrich the teaching experience.

Teaching When Some Students Need to Attend Remotely

You are teaching in an ILE classroom and you unexpectedly need to take your class session online for a quarantined student or for special guest presenters. You may be better prepared than you expected.

Not all ILE rooms are created equal. You will have much more success in some classrooms and more frustration in others. UMKC does have a few specially designed spaces for HyFlex teaching. These rooms have extra video monitors, multiple cameras, student microphones and other technology to help facilitate this style of class. These rooms are few in number, but that does not mean you cannot have a successful remote learning class in a standard classroom.

The standard ILE classroom will not have multiple monitors, student microphones or extra cameras, and we do not have the inventory to install these devices everywhere. However, over half of the ILE rooms are capable as they are. Here are a few guidelines to help set your expectations.

Volker Campus Technology

Hospital Hill Technology

Rooms With Panasonic Projectors and Touch Screen Controls

If the room has a Panasonic projector on the ceiling and a touch screen remote control on the desktop, you are in good shape. These rooms already have equipment installed to improve your experience.

  • A small black camera mounted on the ceiling, usually near the projector, gives a wider shot of the instruction podium. In many cases, there is a page on the touch screen that allows you to adjust this view.
  • If the room camera is not working, there is usually a standard webcam on the monitor as a backup option. It does not capture as much of the front of the room as the ceiling camera, but it will give you a picture.
  • An audio processor ensures your microphones reach Zoom clearly while also allowing you to use them in the physical classroom without feedback.
  • Many of these rooms have an extended monitor mode so the projector and the desktop monitor can display different content. This can help put your shared content on the projector and the Zoom gallery on the local podium monitor. Contact Classroom Technology if this is not working as expected.

Rooms With Push Button Controls or Hitachi Projectors

If the classroom has a small push button control box or a Hitachi projector, it will struggle with Zoom. These rooms are older, very limited in features and not designed for this kind of use. You can still use Zoom, but it may not be a good experience. Common issues in these rooms include:

  • Poor audio to the Zoom computer and/or to the classroom. Remote participants may hear themselves talking or struggle to hear at all.
  • Only a webcam available, and sometimes not even that.
  • The projector and the monitor are always the same display, making it more difficult to have a full screen presentation.

Get Help

Contact Classroom Technology for training or assistance. Give as much notice as you can, as most options take time to implement.

Call 816-235-2000 or email Classroom Technology.