Educator's Review: ScreenWatch Producer 5.0 Multimedia Lectures Direct to the
Today multimedia presentations have become a popular method to deliver class
course content in many disciplines. Textbook publishers provide PowerPoint slide
presentations, lecture outlines, spreadsheet applications and other electronic
resources for instructors to use in their classrooms. These publisher-prepared
materials generally provide coverage of the textbook concepts and save faculty
a great deal of lecture preparation time. The instructors still have the ability
to maintain complete control over their classroom materials by personalizing
these resources by adding, deleting, or modifying them.
While these packaged resources are often useful, a new software tool, ScreenWatch
Producer 5.0, provides instructors an opportunity to easily create original,
high-quality multimedia presentations themselves, complete with a table of contents.
The software provides instructors the ability to create and record high-quality
multimedia presentations and easily post them to the Web for playback. The full-motion
and full-screen recording software combines video and/or voice of the instructor
with computer applications, spreadsheets, PowerPoint, or whiteboard content
in real-time for Web streaming. With a few keystrokes, the professional-grade
recordings can be stored on a server without additional programming or post-production
effort for immediate retrieval. The ScreenWatch application presents a lecture
that is very similar to what g'es on in a live traditional classroom and is
available anytime for the students to view.
Applying to Instruction
PowerPoint and spreadsheet applications are frequently used to illustrate accounting
concepts and procedures. I have used ScreenWatch for my accounting classes and
found that the students preferred PowerPoint presentations created by ScreenWatch
to the traditional in-class PowerPoint slide presentations.
The software is easy to install by a “low-tech” person. Once installed, most
faculty can learn how to use the software in approximately three hours with
the assistance of their computer technicians. The technical service provided
by the software developer is helpful. They took me through the process of making
my first ScreenWatch class from start to finish and helped the university computer
technicians install the software on the university server.
ScreenWatch Producer is a screen-capture software program supporting RealServer,
Linux, Solaris, HP-UX, and Windows 2000/ NT systems. It records using Windows
2000 and XP and plays back using RealNetworks and Windows Media streaming technology.
Once the software is installed and running, all the instructor has to do is
call up the PowerPoint presentation or any other computer application such as
a spreadsheet or Word document to use for class presentations. The applications
can be minimized and accessed while ScreenWatch is running. The Word document,
for example, could be a lecture outline. Instructors can demonstrate the step-by-step
creation of spreadsheet applications and access the Internet to demonstrate
how to search or view information on a particular Web site. Everything will
be captured in the lecture presentation file.
General Benefits
The software is easy to use by a relatively “low-tech” instructor. Within one
day, a new user can prepare excellent class presentations. An important feature
of ScreenWatch is the software compression that permits students with a dial-up
modem to view the class with the same quality as using a high-speed connection.
The software is ideal for an online learning environment, student-centered learning,
and when students are absent from class. The video option places the instructor
in a region on the screen so the viewers can see the instructor. Faculty members
will appreciate the fact that they can post their presentations to their Web
site immediately after recording without the help of computer technicians.
Because all students do not comprehend classroom material at the same rate,
ScreenWatch can be a better way to deliver classroom lectures as students can
view the lecture as many times as needed. With the easy-to-create table of contents,
instructors can provide the student with a convenient way to access a specific
section of the lecture. Students with learning difficulties, poor note-taking
skills, or special needs are better served.
The software includes Milori Training Tools that let instructors use “hotkeys”
to underline, write on the slides, magnify, spotlight a section of the computer
screen, highlight screen material, or put boxes/ circles around important information.
For PowerPoint presentations, I use an interactive process whereby the students
mark up their paper copy of slides with my comments. I can review their work
to verify that they viewed the class by grading their marked up copies of my
lectures.
Advantages for Higher Ed
Faculty will like the ease of use and the ability to prepare lectures that can
be used for multiple sections or in the next term. I put extra effort in designing
a better lecture because I know that many lectures can be used again. I can
record a live class or prepare a lecture in my office. One downside is that
it took as long as 30 minutes to publish a lecture to an external server. I
was permitted to work on other computer applications so the time was not lost.
The ScreenWatch lectures provide an opportunity for individual instructors
or administrators to critique or evaluate the quality of instruction. These
critiques may be used to supplement student evaluations. By critiquing my own
ScreenWatch classes, I have been able to make improvements in my teaching methods.
For classes with multiple sections, ScreenWatch provides for consistent quality
of presentation over different sections. Approximately 40 percent of my course
is a ScreenWatch class. The other 60 percent of my accounting class is a more
traditional class where I work accounting problems, answer questions, and interact
with the students. Students are only required to attend the regular classes.
I believe ScreenWatch software should be as common as blackboards and overhead
transparencies were 30 years ago once faculty experience its benefits.
Dr. Norman Meonske is a Professor of Accounting at Kent State University
and an online instructor for the Beckerconviser CPA/CMA review course. To view
an example of his ScreenWatch presentations, please visit: rtsp://realserver.kent.edu/nmeonske/syllabusfinal.smi.