Videoconferencing

Nassau BOCES videoconferencing service assists subscribing districts with all aspects of videoconference program coordination and professional development. Videoconferencing takes students out of their classrooms and communities for enriching experiences that break down barriers and prejudices. Students have an opportunity to meet with experts at museums (below), zoos and cultural centers, as well as their peers at other schools around the world to share their ideas and expand their awareness of themselves and the world.

What Comes With the Subscription?

Six Paid VCs

• Choose from our catalog or the Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration website
• Any six (up to $1,050) that you choose are included in your subscription

Two Days of PD

• Customized to district needs
• Zoom support
• Facilitating VCs in a hybrid or remote environment
• VC best practices

Access to the Listserv

• Access to more than 1,000 educators who are part of our VC service
• Post to ask for recommendations, ideas, etc.
• Free and new opportunities are frequently posted

Monthly Newsletter

• Curated, timely offerings
• Free VC opportunities

VC Catalog

• Curated listing of popular VCs and providers in PDF, print and digital formats

Monthly Class-to-Class Collaborations and Career Connections

• Opportunity to participate in monthly themed collaboration opportunities and career connections with experts
• Support in creating new class-to-class collaborations within your school, state or around the world

Booking Support

• Support through all aspects of the booking process

Opportunity to Purchase Velex Package

• Velex packages can be purchased and include a bundle of 16 (up to $2,800) VCs

Members Corner

The Members Corner, which is only accessible to members of the Nassau BOCES videoconference service, offers many resources to educators who are planning videoconferences in their schools.

• Documents and tutorial videos to help you set up and run videoconferences using Zoom, technology that every member district has access to
• A searchable PDF of the latest videoconference catalog will guide you in finding and booking engaging educational videoconference experiences for your students
• Monthly newsletter reports videoconference news from member districts, technology updates and more

Question: What is videoconferencing?
Answer: Videoconferencing is a real-time, interactive connection between two or more distant sites.

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Question: What equipment is needed to videoconference?
Answer: All you need is a computer with internet, a microphone and a camera. Most providers are willing to work with whatever videoconferencing tool your district uses: Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Webex and, most popular, Zoom.

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Question: Can I videoconference anywhere in the world?
Answer: You can videoconference with any distant site that has videoconference equipment and transmission capability. However, some faraway places might be problematic because of the time difference.

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Question: Can my class videoconference with a museum or educational center at any time?
Answer: Yes. You just need to schedule an appointment to meet the distant site via videoconferencing. Museums and others will schedule around a school's bell schedule. When you're making plans, be sure to verify the distant site's time zone.

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Question: How do I find videoconference programs that will enrich my content area?
Answer: If your district is a member of Nassau BOCES videoconference services, you can search the Nassau BOCES videoconference catalog. It's located in the Members Corner.

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Question: How do I know if a videoconference program is a good one?
Answer: Service members can learn about good programs by reading, looking for recommendations in the catalog or reviewing the results of the VC Yelp review sheet.

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Question: Are museums and educational sites willing to tailor programs?
Answer: Educational sites aim to please. They will tailor a program according to your grade level and curriculum objectives at no extra fee. Many sites will also create original programs for you for an additional fee.

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Question: Is it OK if my class skips the pre-videoconference activities?
Answer: No. The purpose of pre-videoconference activities is to prepare students for the videoconference. If students aren't properly prepared, they are less likely to interact with and ask questions of the expert. You don't want to reduce the videoconference experience to a TV-watching experience.

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Question: Is it all right to put two or more classes together for a videoconference program?
Answer: Perhaps the biggest benefit of videoconferencing is that it gives students the opportunity to have a face-to-face conversation with an expert. If a large group (more than one class) connects with an expert, only a small percentage of that group will have a chance to interact. If the students aren't interacting, the experience quickly becomes one of watching television—not videoconferencing.

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Question: How do I get access to the Members Corner?
Answer: To access the content (the videoconference catalog, current videoconference newsletter and more) in the Members Corner, educators must be a member of the Nassau BOCES videoconference service. Learn how to join the videoconference service.

Ed Law 2-d-compliant Zoom licenses are being offered through a contract with Erie 2 BOCES. All accounts through this contract are part of a statewide domain system that will be in effect for the 2024-25 school year.

Districts purchasing 20 or more licenses will be given administrative rights to their own subaccount.

2024-25 Zoom Costs (Includes Nassau BOCES Administrative Fee)

Zoom subscription fee: $150 (waived for districts subscribing to our videoconferencing service)

Pro account: $27

Webinar (500 participants): $792

Webinar (1,000 participants): $3,490

Large meeting room (500 participants): $616

Large meeting room (1,000 participants): $1,108

Room connector: $512

Zoom Order Schedule 2024-25

Google Form sent to districts (approximate date):	April 19, 2024
Google Form and LOA due back to Nassau BOCES:	May 9, 2024
Licenses allocated by:	July 1

Process

1. Complete the Zoom Order Survey: 2024-25 Zoom Order Form
2. If your district is purchasing more than 20 licenses, you will have your own dashboard. Please email Robert Mascolo at rmascolo@nasboces.org with the email address (example: zoom@publicschool.org) and password for the administrator account that should be associated with your subdomain so it can be created.
3. District Zoom administrators will be notified when the Zoom accounts have been activated.

Helpful Information

D.A.T.E. Zoom Tutorials and Information

How do you deliver an effective presentation over Zoom? Practice, practice, practice.

Zoom is a user-friendly platform for those joining and viewing presentations. However, as the presenter or "host" of a virtual event, you'll want to become comfortable with Zoom's basic and advanced features. It's a good idea to practice using Zoom with family and friends before your first event. Once you feel comfortable with Zoom basics, you're ready to plan a virtual event.

Pre-Event Considerations

Schedule a Meeting

The following features are available when scheduling a meeting:

• The registration feature is a useful tool for meetings attended by adults.
• An automatic or unique meeting ID helps protect your PMI (personal meeting ID).
• Zoom has other security features. Some features are default settings (such as only the host can share screen and the waiting room so the host can screen for necessary participants). Note: You can change default settings.
• When you schedule a meeting, you can also require a password and/or require participants to wait for the host to join the meeting. These options are available when scheduling a meeting.

Useful Advanced Features

You have access to basic meeting settings when you are in a meeting. Some basic features are currently default settings. You may change those at any time. To access advanced features, log in to your account at Zoom website and go to Settings.

Note: If you activate any of these advanced settings, it does not mean you have to use them. Some advanced features (e.g., waiting room) can be deactivated when scheduling a new meeting using the basic features. If you make changes to advanced settings while you are in a virtual meeting, you will have to log out of that meeting to activate the setting changes.

Settings

Participant video/audio: You have the option to turn off the audio and video of participants entering your event. However, once in the meeting, participants can activate both. If you want participants to stay muted and without video, you must instruct them in your invitation email. Once in the meeting, you will have the option to "mute all" participants. See Participant Management below.

Private chat: Deactivating this setting (turning the button gray) will prevent participants from sending chat messages to other participants.

Polling: Simple polls created and activated during an event can provide useful information and keep participants engaged.

Nonverbal feedback: Activating the "nonverbal" feature allows participants to give quick responses, such as "yes/no" or "thumbs up/down."

Waiting room: If you activate this, it does not mean you have to use it with every meeting. You can deactivate it when creating your invitation.

Annotation and whiteboard: These are both options you might use when sharing your screen.

What to Include in a Virtual Meeting Invitation

Whether you send an email with a copy of the meeting invitation or a link to register, it's a good idea to encourage participants...

• To connect early and test audio (speakers)
• To keep their audio/video off if the event has many participants
• Provide a telephone number for tech support during the event

Plan a Welcoming, Professional Environment

The beauty of virtual events is that the host and participants can connect from anywhere. Since it's important for the presenter to be "on camera" as much as possible, both the presenter and surroundings should be welcoming and professional.

Wardrobe: Keep it simple. Avoid very bright or very dark colors, patterns, and sparkly, noisy jewelry — all of which can interfere with video and/or audio quality.

Well-lit: The best environment is one where you can control the lighting. Avoid setting up with a window nearby, especially behind you. Make sure you have adequate lighting so everyone can see you. Adjust lighting to present yourself well.

General meeting setting: The best presentations mix it up. The presenter should plan to share expertise, useful content, and, when appropriate, include participant activities. These are easy to do with Zoom's controls at your fingertips. Most likely, you'll conduct your virtual meeting at a desk with easy access to your computer. The background (what's behind you) should be neutral and professional. A virtual background offers an easy solution if your computer meets the technical requirements.

Meeting Design Considerations

Prepare to engage: When it comes to engagement, there are pros and cons to both in-person and virtual meetings. Since you do not have the advantage of physically being with your group, you will need to rely on other strategies.

Keep it simple: A 45-50 minute length is optimal (less is fine) for most virtual meetings. It is better to break the topic into a series of presentations than to cover everything in one long session. If needed, include breaks.

One exception might be workshops, during which participants collaborate or plan. For these, you may want to create breakout rooms.

Be on camera: Participants want to see you and your enthusiasm for the topic.

Share different media: (e.g., PowerPoint, video, whiteboard). Breaking up your presentation helps keep participants engaged. However, close out screen sharing frequently so participants can see you.

Note: When sharing a video clip, be sure to click "Share computer sound."

Create polls: This is not required, but it is an easy way to interact with participants.

Practice: Just like an in-person presentation, do a run-through beforehand and practice using Zoom features.

Time to Connect

Set Up

Be sure to connect a few minutes early.

• Activate "mute all" in the Participants panel
• Allow a few minutes for everyone to enter the meeting
• Consider playing a video so participants know they are set up correctly
• You may want to pin your video, especially for large groups or recordings

Icebreaker

Once the presenter is on camera, it is helpful to begin with brief informal conversation. This allows latecomers to join and signals that you are ready to begin.

Asking participants to respond in the chat is another quick way to connect. For example, ask where they are joining from and welcome them.

Housekeeping

Your participants may or may not be familiar with Zoom. Let them know how the session is structured. For example...

• Select speaker view
• All participants are muted
• Participants can chat with the host
• For smaller meetings, participants may use nonverbal signals
• Participants can use side-by-side mode to view content and the speaker simultaneously

Start Your Presentation

Stay on camera as much as possible. Participants want to see your enthusiasm.

Break up your presentation by sharing media and engaging through chat, polling or discussion.

Consider a co-host: A co-host can monitor chat, manage polling, share content, and control recording. For interactive sessions, a co-host can also manage muting and participant interaction.

Enjoy!

Zoom is a cloud-based video conferencing tool that allows you to host virtual one-on-one or team meetings easily. Features include:

• Video
• Audio
• Collaboration

Nassau BOCES is proud to offer the loan of its 1000-person Zoom webinar room to all COL and Videoconference subscribers. If you are interested in booking a session to use this webinar service, first read through the information below. To book a session, check the calendar to the right to see if your date and time are available, then fill out the Google Form.

The Google Form asks for necessary information to help set up the webinar. Most of the questions are required, which are indicated by a "*". Once the Google Form is filled out, we will be in touch to confirm your booking and provide you with the necessary information to access the webinar.

*Nassau BOCES requires that, if you decide to use this service, you have tech support on hand from your district to help make sure these sessions run smoothly and are able to help troublehoot any possible issues that may arise. We cannot guarantee that our staff will be available to help at your event.

*Nassau BOCES will not keep recorded webinar sessions. If a recorded session is needed, make sure the recorded session is downloaded locally. Nassau BOCES will remove any recordings that are saved to the cloud to protect your privacy since this webinar will be shared.

*Contact Robert Mascolo at rmascolo@nasboces.org or at 516-396-2050 with any questions that were not covered on this page

Helpful Zoom Webinar Information