Students and instructors have a few options for how to record videos for their courses. Those options are below, but first let’s cover a few terms to get oriented to our media system.
What are Kaltura and My Media?
Kaltura is the UW-System approved video management system that is integrated into Canvas. Kaltura offers several recording tools and allows you to embed videos in your Canvas courses. When working in your courses, you might not see the word “Kaltura” unless you use Kaltura Capture (Option 1). However, “Kaltura” will be mentioned below, and it might come up in conversations with UW staff members who work on online courses.
A term you are more likely to see is My Media. My Media is a private video repository area in Canvas where all users can upload and manage videos. My Media is part of Kaltura. When you record a video using Kaltura tools, such as Kaltura Capture or Webcam Recorder, your videos will appear in My Media. You can also upload videos from third party tools to My Media.
Once a video is in My Media, you can:
- Embed that video into any of your courses
- Share a link to the video outside of Canvas
- Make minor edits, such as clipping a portion of your video
- Download the video to your device for later
- Caption your video
To access My Media, go to Account > My Media.
Click on your profile picture, then on My Media.
A note on captioning
Instructors must caption all of their videos, and those captions must be accurate, in order to meet accessibility standards. The options below include directions for including captions in the videos shared on Canvas.
Students may choose whether they want to include captions. However, we strongly recommend it. Some classmates may have hearing impairments or may not be in an environment in which they can turn their sound on. Captions allow them to still understand your video. It takes very little time to add automatic captions to videos, but the benefits are great.
Option 1: Record in Kaltura Capture
This is the RECOMMENDED option for recording your video because it is a one-stop, versatile solution. It allows you to record your presentation and upload it to Kaltura. The video will be saved in My Media, which means it can easily be embedded in your course and/or retrieved outside of your Canvas course.
Follow these directions for installing, recording, and sharing Kaltura Capture videos.
- Install Kaltura Capture
- Use Kaltura Capture
- Insert Kaltura Videos into Canvas
- Add and edit the captions for accuracy
Option 2: Record Via Third Party Tool
You can record your presentation through PowerPoint, Screencast-o-matic, or some other video recording tool. You must then upload the resulting mp4 it to My Media to share it via a link or by embedding it in a Canvas course.
- Record your video with your third-party tool of choice, then download the mp4 file.
- Upload the video file to My Media
- Add and edit the captions for accuracy
Option 3: Embed via YouTube
Some users are more experienced recording videos to YouTube. You can embed these videos into Canvas using the embed code from YouTube. Remember to turn on captioning in YouTube.
Follow these directions for embedding via YouTube.
Option 4: Record via Canvas’s Rich Content Editor
We DO NOT recommend this method because you will not be able to access the video outside of the Canvas course and assignment it is embedded into. You also will not be able to caption the video. This is a “last resort” option.
Follow these directions for recording via Canvas’s rich content editor.
Video Requirements and Tips
- Keep your videos short and sweet.
- Pay attention to lighting, background noise, speaking volume, and other distractions.
- Speak clearly and well-paced.
- Rehearse what you are going to say before recording.
- Like many things in life, this may take a few attempts!
- Providing Flexibility for Students, Especially During Disruptive Times - November 25, 2020
- Quick Tip: When to Use Captions vs. Video Summaries - November 5, 2020
- Add a Subject Line to Discussion Posts in Canvas - October 8, 2020
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