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Using Elluminate

This page covers getting an Elluminate account, finding support and training, who to call with questions, how to make your conferences interactive and how to make effective PowerPoint slides.

Also see What is Elluminate.

Getting Started

Get an Elluminate Account

Only faculty and staff need an account to access the Elluminate web conferencing. Students can use the product without the need to set up an account. Only faculty and staff may request Elluminate accounts. Elluminate accounts are usually set up within 48 hours of receiving the request. After that period, try accessing your Elluminate account.

 

After submitting your request, wait 48 hours for your account to be created. You will use the System Administration System (SAS) interface to set up your web conferences. Meetings are the easiest and lowest maintenance option since you don’t have to create user names and passwords for all students who will be attending your web conference. To access the Elluminate SAS,

  1. Go to the Elluminate web site. www.elluminate.com
  2. Click on MyElluminate (top middle of the page)
  3. Enter your user name (your w# in lowercase)
  4. Enter your password (your w# in lowercase)
  5. Click on Schedule a Meeting (left side of screen)
  6. Give your meeting a name, set the date, time, time zone, chair name, and chair email.
  7. Click Create the Session.
  8. Copy the URL for Guest Link and insert this link into your WebCT class for student access or email them the link.

Hint: When setting up multiple sessions for a class, just establish a meeting that starts at the beginning of the quarter and ends at the end of the quarter. This is easier for students to access.

Making Your Web Conferences Interactive

Elluminate web conferencing will allow you to have robust and meaningful interactions with your students, even when you are at different locations. To enhance your web conference, be careful not to monopolize the conversation and build opportunities to get interaction from your students. Here are two excellent training recordings that show effective methods for encouraging student interaction through Elluminate. Be patient when you launch these presentations, they take a few minutes to begin. They were both conducted using Elluminate web conferencing, so you will actually get to see the product in use!

Suggestions on Your PowerPoint Slides

When uploading presentations to Elluminate, avoid the temptation to develop PowerPoint slides that are simply a series of bullets. While bullet point PowerPoints are easy to create, research shows that there are more effective ways to communicate your message. As a presenter, you should go beyond the traditional bullet point presentation. Atkinson and Mayer (2004) give techniques for putting together an effective PowerPoint presentation in their article, Five Ways to reduce PowerPoint Overload www.sociablemedia.com/PDF/atkinson_mayer_powerpoint_4_23_04.pdf:

  1. Each slide should have a single headline that gives the main idea of each slide. Include a meaningful graphic to support the message.
  2. Presentations should be designed like a story with a beginning, middle, and end. Break the story into digestible bites.
  3. Text and excessive bullet points should be moved off-screen to the notes view.
  4. Use visuals with your words to make your points.
  5. Remove EVERY element that doesn’t directly support the main idea.

Here is a link to a recorded presentation

Presenting Elluminate to your students

When you create an Elluminate meeting, students will not need a user name or password to log onto the Elluminate Web conference. It is highly recommended that you copy the guest link for the Elluminate Web conference and paste it into your WebCT class. By doing this, students have everything they need for your class in one place. If you send them the link to the Elluminate web conference in a meeting, you may find that they lose the email and will have difficulties finding the URL to launch the Elluminate online meeting. You should set up your meeting to begin at the start of the quarter and be open until the end of the quarter, that way you have only (1) Elluminate Guest Link URL for the entire quarter. Here is how to get started presenting Elluminate to you students.

  1. Copy the guest URL of the Elluminate meeting
    1. Go to the Elluminate Web Site
      (http://www.elluminate.com)
    2. Click on MyElluminate and log on.
    3. Click Utlities at the top.
    4. Click the Meetings icon
      (Be patient, it takes a few minutes).
    5. Find the meeting and select it by clicking on the gray box to the left. The line should turn orange.
    6. Click on the Advanced icon above.
    7. Copy the Guest Link URL.
    8. Add this link to the Elluminate web meeting to your WebCT class.
  2. Adding a hyperlink to your WebCT class
    1. Open your WebCT class and click on the Designer Options tab.
    2. Click on Add Page or Tool.
    3. Select URL.
    4. Give it a meaningful name and paste the Elluminate Web Conference Meeting Link into the URL Address box.
    5. Have it launch in a New Browser Window and make sure it is on the Course Menu and Homepage.
    6. Click Add.
    7. Switch to the Student View and try the link to ensure that it works.
  3. Audio and Microphone
    In order to be able to hear and speak during the meeting, students will need to have a USB Headset with noise cancellation. There are many available, but we are recommending the LogiTech USB 350. Let your students know that they MUST have their USB Headset plugged in BEFORE they launch their Elluminate class. If they are having trouble speaking, they have inadvertently turned on the mute. Have them click the button located on the Headset cord.
  4. Add an opening slide to explain:
    You will find that students catch onto using Elluminate very quickly. You should have an opening slide with instructions listed on your opening PowerPoint that tell them:
    1. What time class will start
    2. A reminder to do an audio check by clicking on Tools/ Audio/ Audio Set-Up Wizard.
    3. Set the whiteboard to size properly by clicking Tools/ Whiteboard/ Scale to Window.
  5. Training your students
    You will need to do an orientation for your students the first time they log on. Let your students know that all training and support is provided by Elluminate. Here are some resources for them to access.
    1. Elluminate 24X7 Help Desk
      (866) 388-8674 (option 2)
    2. Online training video and manuals
      http://www.elluminate.com/support/docs/8.0/participant.jsp