Zoom
Zoom is the primary video conferencing software for NICC. All instructors will be given licensed accounts to hold virtual classes for all hybrid and online courses. Below is information on how to set up and schedule your Zoom sessions in your Brightspace course.
Setting Up Your Zoom Account
All NICC instructors should have a licensed account linked with their NICC Login account. In order to access your account, you will need to do the following:
Go to nicc.zoom.us
Select Sign In
Enter your NICC Login information
Click Sign In
From there, you should be directed to your NICC Zoom account. Feel free to edit your profile information. You will also need access to this site so you can set up different Zoom meeting settings. Please see the Helpdesk Systems Information site for more info.
Note: If you experience any issues with Zoom, please contact the Helpdesk at x555, helpdesk@nicc.edu, through their live chat, or in person.
Scheduling Zoom Virtual Class Meetings in Brightspace
Our current Zoom integration with Brightspace allows all courses to have the ability to schedule Zoom meetings directly within the course shell. In order to schedule your Zoom meetings you will need to do the following:
In your course, select More Tools from the blue nav bar at the top
Select Zoom from the dropdown list
Click Schedule a New Meeting
Leave the Topic section as that will autofill the course name
Optional: Enter a description
Enter in the initial start date and time for the meeting in the When section
Enter in the duration of the meeting
If the meeting is going to be recurring, select the checkbox next to Recurring Meeting
For recurring meetings, select the recurrence dropdown
Daily: Repeats the meeting every selected amount of days until you reach an end date or set amount of occurrences
Weekly (Recommended): Repeats specified days of the week every week until you reach an end date or set amount of occurrences
Monthly: Repeats one specified day of the month every month until you reach an end date or set amount of occurrences
No Fixed Time: The meeting will stay open indefinitely without starting or stopping times
Note: Recurring meetings can only have 50 sessions at a time. If you have more than 50 sessions for your course, you will need to use the No Fixed Time option after scheduling the meeting (See the FAQ below).
Leave Registration, Video, and Audio sections
Select your Security settings for the meeting as needed
Enable Record the Meeting Automatically and select In The Cloud to allow the meeting recordings to go to your course's Panopto folder
Note: DO NOT adjust the Panopto_Folder_Context section as this will break the integration causing your videos to go to your Meeting Recordings folder.
If you need someone else to host the meeting, such as another instructor co-teaching the course, enter their email in the Alternative Host section
Click Save when done
Once the meeting is saved, the meeting dates and times will automatically be added to the course's Course Calendar for students to see. Students will also be able to go to More Tools then Zoom to find the current and upcoming Zoom Meetings. All meetings scheduled through the Brightspace Zoom integration should be using a Generated Meeting ID. DO NOT use your Personal Meeting ID, please see the Helpdesk's Systems Information site for more information on possible Zoom security risks.
Scheduling Virtual Office Hours
Scheduling time to meet with students in person is not always easy with schedules, work, and life going on. However, you can always use Zoom to make it easier. You can use the following steps to set up virtual office hours where students can register to meet with you:
Go to your course in Brightspace
Select More Tools then Zoom
Click the Appointments tab at the top
Select Create Schedule
Select the Days that you wish to have your office hours on
Enter the Start and End times for your office hours (ex: 3:30 PM - 5:00 PM)
Click on the '+' icon next to the End Time if you wish to have multiple office hours during that day (ex: Monday's office hours are 8 - 9 AM, 11 AM - 12 PM, and 3 - 5 PM)
You can also simplify the process by enabling the 'Follow the same schedule each day' setting so that you only enter your Start and End Times for each selected day once. Use this option if all of your Office Hours will be at the same time(s) for each selected day.
Select the checkbox next to 'End repeat on' and select when you would like the office hours schedule to end
Use this option if your schedule is not set between semesters.
Set your Duration, event name, and description
Click Create when done
From there, you will have an appointment schedule that students can use to sign up for Office Hours. Alternatively, you can also set up a recurring meeting, or you can use other tools such as Calendly or the Appointment Schedule feature in Google Calendar.
Starting a Zoom Meeting with Zoom Rooms
Some courses may require you to have students join from Zoom Rooms between campuses. Here are a few steps to help you start and run a Zoom Meeting with one or more Zoom Rooms:
Starting the Meeting from a Laptop in the Room or Remote
Make sure you are signed in to the Zoom Desktop client on your device
Note that you must use the SSO option to sign in as it uses the NICC Login
Start the meeting by going to your course and clicking on More Tools, Zoom, then Start
In the meeting, select Participants from the Meeting Controls at the bottom of Zoom
Select Invite, then search for the Zoom Room(s) you wish to add to the meeting
Click the Invite button to invite the selected Zoom Room(s)
Students in the Zoom Room may need to go to the Zoom Room iPad controller and accept the meeting invite
From there, the students should be able to participate in the meeting from the Zoom Room(s). Students that are joining remotely can join your meeting by going to the course, selecting More Tools, clicking on Zoom, then selecting the Join button next to the meeting.
Starting the Meeting from a Zoom Room
In the Zoom Room, go to the Zoom Room iPad controller
Select the Join button and enter the Meeting ID that you set up in your course
Once you are in the meeting, select Participants on the iPad
Select the Zoom Room(s) you wish to invite to the meeting
Click Invite when you have selected the Zoom Room(s)
The students in the other Zoom Room(s) may need to go to the iPad controller and accept the invite
From there, you should be able to host your meeting. If the rooms sound quiet, try adjusting the volume slider on the iPad.
If you are unable to find your Meeting ID, try using the 'Starting the Meeting from a Laptop' instructions above to start your meeting. Remember to invite your current Zoom Room along with the other Zoom Room(s) that students are joining from.
Please note that all Zoom Rooms should have documentation on how to use the room technology. If you or your students have any technical difficulties with the Zoom Room or Zoom in general, you will need to reach out to the Helpdesk at 844-642-2338 x555, helpdesk@nicc.edu, or live chat on mycampus.nicc.edu.
Turning on Closed Captioning
Turning on your closed captioning allows you and your students to view real-time captions of live meetings. This feature is useful for participants with disabilities, or even for those who are viewing a meeting in a loud place or might be having audio issues with their devices. It's a great idea to turn on your captioning now so your participants have the option to view captions any time they need them!
To enable Zoom's live Closed captioning for your own use:
Sign in to the Zoom web portal.
In the navigation menu, click Settings.
Click the Meeting tab.
Under In Meeting (Advanced), click the Closed captioning toggle to enable or disable it.
If a verification dialog displays, click Enable or Disable to verify the change.
Note: If the option is grayed out, it has been locked at either the group or account level. You need to contact your Zoom admin.(Optional) Select the check boxes to enable additional features:
Allow use of caption API Token to integrate with 3rd-party Closed Captioning services
Enable live transcription service to transcribe meeting automatically
Allow viewing of full transcript in the in-meeting side panel: If disabled, participants can't view the full transcript in the side panel. They can only view captions in the video window of the meeting or webinar. Participants also won't be able to save captions.
Note: This feature requires Zoom version 5.7.0 or higher.
Learn more about Zoom's accessibility features.
Zoom FAQs
What should I do if I am having issues with my Zoom Meeting?
If you are experiencing issues with your Zoom session, you will need to contact the Helpdesk. The Helpdesk can be reached at x555, through live chat on MyCampus or the NICC Login page, or you can send them an email at helpdesk@nicc.edu.
Why do I not have the option to record?
You need a licensed account in order to record a Zoom Meeting and host a meeting for longer than 40 minutes. You will need to contact the Helpdesk so they can upgrade your account. Helpdesk can be reached at helpdesk@nicc.edu or x555.
Why do I not see any of the Host options when I am in my meeting?
It is possible that you were not logged in to your Zoom account before joining the meeting, so you joined the meeting as a guest. You will need to leave the meeting, sign into your NICC Zoom account, then rejoin the meeting.
How do I edit an existing Meeting?
You will need to do the following to edit an existing Zoom Meeting:
In your course, select More Tools then Zoom
Select the title (blue text) of the meeting you wish to edit
Scroll to the bottom of the meeting info and click Edit this Meeting
Make your changes and click Save when done
What Security and Meeting Options should I use?
The Department of Instructional Innovation and Design recommends that all instructors use the Record Meeting Automatically to the Cloud option so that all virtual class sessions are saved to the course's Panopto folder. Helpdesk recommends that instructors use the Waiting Room and Passcode options to secure their meetings from unwanted guests. Another optional feature is to disable Join before Host if you are automatically recording as this will keep you from having short recordings of students joining before the class starts.
What should I do if I have more than 50 sessions for my recurring meeting?
If you are going to have more than 50 sessions, it is recommended to do the following:
Schedule your meeting as you normally would
As you get closer to the 50th session, edit the meeting
Edit all sessions if prompted
Select the Recurrence dropdown and select No Fixed Time
Click Save when done
This will keep the scheduled Zoom sessions on the Course Calendar, but allow the meeting to persist beyond the 50th session. Please note that once the meeting is set to No Fixed Time, you will not see further scheduled meetings. This setting simply allows you to continue to use the same Meeting ID. You will want to make sure that your students know that they will still need to join at the designated days and times as previously scheduled.
Why are Zoom links from previous Semesters in my course calendar?
During a course copy, it is possible to copy in calendar events from the last time you taught the course. Due to this, you may have Zoom links from a previous Semester in your course calendar. As an example, if you taught in the Fall and used Zoom and then copied over all of the calendar events to your Spring course and then adjusted the dates using 'Manage Dates', the Fall's Zoom links will be in your Spring calendar.
To remedy this, you have three options:
When copying your course, choose 'Select Components' instead of copying all of your course over with 'Copy All Components'. Then exclude the calendar entries for Zoom.
When using 'Manage Dates', do not adjust the dates for your Zoom links in the Calendar.
Simply Delete the Events from the Calendar.
To delete the events from the calendar:
Go to 'More Tools' and select 'Calendar'.
Click on the checkboxes next to any Zoom event that has a reference to a previous semester.
Click on the 'More actions' button at the top of the calendar events list.
Select 'Delete'.
Am I required to record my class sessions?
Yes. Per direction from the Teaching and Learning Team, faculty are required to record all face to face theory courses (delivered face to face in the classroom or face to face via Zoom in an online synchronous or video class format).
How do I see who attended my Zoom session?
Go to nicc.zoom.us
Sign in with your NICC Login information
Select Analytics & Reports from the menu on the left
Click on the Usage Reports tab
Select Usage
Adjust the dates as needed
Click on the link under the Participants column
Note: This link should be the number of participants that were in your meeting. Some users may join using a Guest account, so names are inputted by the user and may not match what you have in the Classlist.