Fourth Class: Wed, Feb 4

Mike …My Students need a Mic

Immediately following my last class, I visited Mike Buck, Canadore College Education Resource Technician, to get his thoughts on how best to deal with audio issues being experienced in my e-learning Rec 130 course.

To date, I have been using a wired microphone with 50 feet of cord that is a tad cumbersome as I wander around the classroom...occasionally, sharing the microphone with “in-class” students who wish to ask questions or contribute comments.

After some head scratching, Mike ruled out the option that the entire classroom be “microphoned”…too costly. As a consolation prize, he offered to set me up with a cordless microphone for my next class...an offer that was met with quick acceptance and appreciation…no more wrestling with a 50 foot cord…free at last.

Fifteen minutes before today's class started, Mike expertly installed and tested the cordless microphone…as he left our classroom, he assured me that using this cordless microphone was so simple even an idiot would have no problems… some of my students immediately started to take bets.

At precisely 11:30am, I connected with our Contact North website and welcomed our “e-class” students to today’s session…at precisely 11:31am, I began to receive a tsunami of chat messages:… “we cant hear you”… “your mic isn’t working”…I fiddled with the mic to make sure it was connected…text messages continued to flood in…reluctantly, I discarded the cordless mic and plugged in my old friend the 50 foot wired microphone…we had audio…a few lucky "in-class" students collected their winnings…they know to bet on a sure thing.

Later, Mike explained the source of my trouble…apparently, I had accidentally hit the mute button on the cordless mic...he said "don't worry, it happens to everyone and besides I won enough money to buy you a coffee."

The Mystery of the Disappearing Students

Followers of this Blog will remember that originally 26 students registered to take the Rec 130 course by “e-class” while the remaining 87 students opted to take the course “in-class.” You may also recall that after only our second class it was decided to register all students with Contact North; thereby, offering everyone the choice to take the course either “in-class” or by “e-class”.

The good news is…thanks to the folks at Contact North my entire Rec 130 class is now registered for “e-classes” and it was encouraging today to see a number of new students attending by "e-class." The bad news is...the original 26 were no-shows for today's class and since the Wall, Canadore's Student Pub, doesn't open until noon...where could they possibly have been?

I have since learned these 26 students, were able to successfully login to Contact North...however, they were unable to access today's class…the gremlins strike again...a helpful "in-class" student wondered if perhaps I had accidentally hit a button causing them all to vanish into cyberspace...never to return.

Not to worry…a missing persons report has been filed with Contact North and they are actively pursuing the case...hopefully the mystery will be solved in time for our next class and we will all be happily reunited...stay tuned.

Pleased to report...rest of my class was uneventful...although, there was some more audio static when I informed students about an upcoming assignment...they do like to grumble at times.